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<Around words indicates telepathic thought.>
~Around words indicated Kryptonian speech.~
Here's the
TOC ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
From Part 41:
Hannah handed Caitlyn a bottle of water and smiled. “How are you?”
Caitlyn nodded. “Okay. Hmm… Your mom… Has she told you about her siblings?”
“Siblings? Yeah, she’s mentioned it once or twice. But she doesn’t much like to talk about it. Says she hasn’t stayed in touch like she should and she feels guilty about it. It upsets her to talk about it. She said she’s not even sure she’d recognize anybody but the girl that’s closest to her age. Why do you ask? How did you know to even ask for that matter?”
“Well, I know the feeling about not thinking you’d recognize your own sister. Because your *mom* is my sister, and I didn’t recognize her.”
“Oh, wow! You’re my aunt.” Hannah went to her and hugged her. “Wow.”
Caitlyn hugged her back. “Yeah, wow.” Then she proceeded to tell Hannah how she had come to know that Marilyn was her half-sister.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
K’al He sighed. <Lady Edrika has approached me and is quite interested in marrying you. I think that you should consider it. You’ve talked to her. You’ve told me that you have enjoyed your conversations. Would a relationship with her be so bad?>
Los sighed. <Yes, she is nice enough to talk to, but I am not attracted to her. She’s… what? Twelve Earth years older than me?>
<And that is a reason to not have a relationship with her? Her family is politically important. It would be a good marriage.>
Los thought forcefully, <I’m not interested. What is this all about, K’al?> He paused and said softly, “I told you that I plan on furthering my relationship with Marisol. She is the Queen of Wheat.”
“The…” K’al paused in thought. He was both happy and sad. Happy that his brother had found love. Sad that Edrika was potentially a venomous snake that was going to cause the House of El no small amount of problems. <Marisol is royalty?>
<Yes, she is. Do I have your blessing?>
K’al bit his lip and nodded. <Yes.> He hugged his brother. <But be prepared. Edrika may cause all of us problems.>
Los almost felt bad about deceiving his brother, but he would not be a pawn for Edrika. And he loved Marisol. And now he had his brother’s blessing. And he had the feeling that his mother would be furious.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Los’ lip trembled. “Mother is upstairs.”
Clark was alarmed. “*Zara* is *upstairs*?”
Los sat down heavily. “Father, I want to stay here. I don’t want to return to New Krypton. I feel like this is where I am meant to be.”
Clark gave him a tired smile. “Well, you know you are welcome to stay, but isn’t that going to cause a big problem?”
“Probably. But I want to stay. And K’al has given me his blessing in regards to marrying Marisol.”
“Really? How…”
“Hmm…” Los smiled broadly. <Didn’t you know Mari is the Queen of Wheat?>
Clark chuckled and put his hand on Los’. I suppose I should go talk to her. Or perhaps ‘Lord Kal-El’ should speak to her formally.”
“Later.” Los frowned. “I think mother is also going to try to push me into a marriage with Lady Edrika.”
Clark furrowed his brow. “What of her promise? What of Mari?”
Los bit his lip. “It seems Lady Edrika may know of K’al’s and Rya’s impropriety and of my lies. I may have to pay for all of it. And even though K’al’s blessing is very important - it’s huge - mother can still nix anything that K’al has said.” He stood up and swallowed. “I guess as you say here: I have to go face the music.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A New Hero: Part 42 On the short flight to Gotham City, Caitlyn asked Hannah about Marilyn. “Hannah, you’ve indicated that things between your mom and dad aren’t great. Is your mom happy? I mean, I just barely spoke to her the other night, but it seemed that she and Bruce were happy.”
Hannah sighed and bit her lip. “Well, you know my dad.. he.. um… has a reputation as a bit of a playboy. I thought for years that the reason they sometimes fight is because this reputation as a playboy, but now that I think about it, I’ve never heard or seen anything in the rags to indicate that daddy has cheated on mom. Mom is crazy about him and loves him a lot. And daddy loves mom, too. I’m sure of that. He just has a hard time telling her that. So, because of that, sometimes mom thinks that he doesn’t love her. She has said that the only reason they got married is to give him heirs. But when I’ve heard her say that to daddy, he always looks hurt. I think she might do it to hurt him. As they say, I guess we hurt the ones we love. And now… I wonder if some of their problems aren’t from something else… some of his…” Hannah wondered if she had said too much. “Hmmm… And well, I guess Daddy hurts her by some of the things he does. I mean… I mean… they don’t share a bedroom, but mom wakes up really easily and is so grouchy you’d hardly believe it if she doesn’t get her sleep.”
Caitlyn smiled. “I seem to remember that. So you think Bruce is doing something that would wake her up if they shared a bedroom?”
“Umm… yeah. I’m pretty sure of that. Sometimes Daddy *still* has nightmares.”
Caitlyn shook her head. “Nightmares?”
Hannah bit her lip. “Oh… I guess you’d have no reason to know. Daddy saw his parents being murdered in front of him when he was a little boy. You know that has to really affect someone.”
Caitlyn was shocked. “Nooo… I didn’t know. Oh, Hannah. It must have been so hard on him.”
Hannah nodded. “Yeah. I think it explains a lot. It explained a lot to me when I really came to understand what happened. We have always known, but you don’t really understand these things until you are older.” She sighed. “Mom worries about Daddy’s health, too. He was shot several years ago. He had a lot of injuries from that and at first the doctors didn’t think he’d be able to walk again because of the injuries to his back. He also had to have his hip replaced.”
Caitlyn nodded. “Yes, I remember hearing about someone shooting him. I guess he understands a lot of what Clark is going through.” She pouted. “Well, on second thought, I don’t guess he knows about Clark.”
Hannah grinned and touched down on the balcony of her bedroom. “Here we are. Wayne Manor.” She opened the door and walked in. She quickly changed her clothing - too fast for Caitlyn to see, but she didn’t spin.
Caitlyn looked around at the room with her mouth hanging open. The room was almost as big as her entire small house. She softly muttered, “Wow.” After looking around some more, she asked, “Is this the master suite?”
Hannah blushed. “Hmm… No… This is my room. The master suite... suites are much larger. Mom and dad share a sitting room, but they have attached rooms. Even with that you could still say there is more than one master suite.”
“How many rooms does this place have? How many bedrooms?”
Hannah’s eyes twinkled at her Aunt Caitlyn’s discomfiture. “It has 137 rooms.. official rooms anyway. There are probably actually more. I’m not sure anyone knows. There are rooms here that I’ve only been in once. I mean… you know as a kid you explore, but there are some rooms I’ve just never been in more than once. Hmm… I’m not sure how many bedrooms there are. At least 40, I guess. There’s one room you might like to see. My grandfather was a physician, and he liked to collect antique medical instruments. It’s really quite fascinating.”
Caitlyn nodded her head yes. She was still looking around in awe. “Why so big?”
“Well… Old money you know. Things used to be done like that. I guess in colonial times this place was pretty busy… or at least that’s what the history seems to indicate.” She motioned for Caitlyn to come with her. “Come on. Mom is expecting me to come back.”
Caitlyn grinned. “You didn’t tell her that you were bringing me, did you?”
Hannah chuckled. “No, it’s a surprise.”
As they walked down the broad mahogany staircase with gold inlay to the den that Marilyn was sitting in, Al ran past them chasing the dog in play. Hannah rolled her eyes. “*That’s* my little brother Al. He’s ten and he’s a squirt.”
“Uh-huh,” Caitlyn said. “And I bet you love it.”
Hannah nodded proudly. “He’s a great kid. I would have introduced you, but I doubt I could have slowed him down. Unlike me, I think he knows every room in this house very well.” They walked into the den, and Hannah sat down beside her mom. “Mom, may I introduce you to your sister Caitlyn?”
Marilyn stood up and flew into her arms. “Oh, look at you, Caity. All grown up. I can’t believe I didn’t recognize you.”
Caitlyn hugged her back. “I can’t believe *I* didn’t recognize you either. I’ve missed you. *We’ve* missed you. You absolutely must come this weekend to the family get-together. I won’t take no for an answer. I just won’t. I’ll ask Hannah to drag you there...” She giggled. “Fly you there.”
Marilyn sat down and chuckled. “Okay, okay. If you are that insistent. But I’ll be a nervous wreck. Tom has been bugging me to meet grandma - his great-grandmother, so he should be pleased. She raised an eyebrow. “It’s okay if I bring Al and Tom, isn’t it?”
Caitlyn sat down. “Yes. And Bruce, too, I hope.”
Marilyn pouted. “Oh, I don’t know if I can drag Bruce away from here. He’s stubborn.”
Hannah winked at her mom. “You know you love him, Mom.”
Marilyn sighed. “Yes, I do. But he drives me crazy. Absolutely crazy. He takes too many chances. I had to stitch him up again last night.”
Caitlyn raised an eyebrow. “Stitch him up? My goodness, what did he do?”
Marilyn shrugged and rolled her eyes. “Uggg… You know how these sup…”
Hannah leaned over to her mom and whispered to her, “I don’t think Caitlyn knows.”
Suddenly, Tom came running in and then stopped dead. He was holding something dark in his hands, something he was wringing tightly. He looked between them, and seeing his sister, who he didn’t know knew about his dad, and this strange woman, he didn’t know what to say. He was pale and a little shaky, but he quickly composed himself.
Marilyn looked up at him. “Tom. What’s wrong?” As she took in his look of fear, she realized what he was wringing in his hands… a Robin mask. She jumped up. “Oh, *crap*! Where is he? How bad?”
Tom shrugged and pointed ‘down’. “Umm… Bad…”
Hannah’s lip trembled. “Daddy’s hurt?”
Marilyn grabbed Caitlyn and started running. Tom started to protest, but she looked at him and said, “Tom, this is your Aunt Caitlyn. She’s a surgeon, and she’s going to help me. If he’s opened that wound again, I’m not sure I can stop the bleeding. But I’m betting Caitlyn can.” She looked at Caitlyn hopefully.
Caitlyn just followed Marilyn but looked between her and Hannah and wondered what in the world was going on. “What....”
Hannah said excitedly, “Daddy’s Batman.”
Tom looked at her in shock. “You *know*?! I didn’t think you knew.”
Hannah muttered, “Well, have I got a surprise for you… Robin.”
They reached the bottom of the stairs, and Caitlyn stopped in her tracks. She looked around at the massive cave. It finally hit her what Hannah had said. She softly murmured, “Batman.”
Marilyn shouted, “Tom, get the large med kit for me.”
Tom nodded. “I managed to get him out of the Batmobile. That’s as far as I could get him.”
Marilyn knelt beside her husband and began pulling his mask and body armor off. She cried, “Oh, Bruce.”
He was extremely pale and seemed to be in pain. His voice full of emotion, he softly said, “Marilyn.” He took her hand and squeezed it.
Caitlyn said, “He appears to either have a broken leg or a dislocated hip. Can you see where the blood is coming from?”
Marilyn looked up at Hannah. “Hannah, can you pick him up and take him upstairs?” Then she looked at Caitlyn. “It’s probably a dislocation. That’s the side where he had the hip replacement, and it’s been dislocated before. I think the blood is coming from a knife wound to his arm… unless, of course, there’s something new.”
Tom raised an eyebrow. “Riiigghtt… I could barely move him and you want *Hannah* to pick him up?”
Hannah winked at her baby brother and picked her dad up in one effortless swoop. Bruce moaned so softly that only Hannah could hear him. “It’s okay, Daddy. We’ll get you fixed up.”
When Hannah literally flew up the steps, Tom had to stop and sit down himself. “How…”
Marilyn motioned for him to stand up. “Well, get up. If you are going to be Robin, you might as well see what can happen out there.”
He quickly followed his mom. “Mom… How’d Hannah do that?” They entered Marilyn’s home office where Hannah was laying Bruce on an exam table.
Hannah turned to Tom and bit her lip. “I’m the White Tiger, Tom.”
Caitlyn looked at Marilyn. “Do you have the stuff to start an IV?”
Marilyn nodded. “Already getting it.”
Bruce grumbled, “Don’t need that.”
Marilyn and Caitlyn both said, “Yes, you do.”
Bruce frowned. “Caitlyn, why are you here?”
Marilyn smiled at him and patted his hand right before starting his IV. “Caitlyn isn’t just any Caitlyn, Bruce. She’s my sister. I’m sad to say that Hannah was the reason we both found that out.” She looked up at Caitlyn. “The last time that hip dislocated, I darn near couldn’t get it back in place.” She looked worriedly at Bruce. “I told you this could mean surgery the next time this happened.” Then she looked at her son. “Tom, take those gauze pads and put some pressure on that wound.”
Tom muttered, “Okay. Hmm…. I kind of thought the White Tiger was one of Superman’s kids.”
Everybody, including Bruce, chuckled. Marilyn sighed. “Well, Tom. I know you recently found out I was raped. Well, the rape was by one of the New Kryptonians. Hannah is part Kryptonian.”
His eyes widened in shock. “You mean Dad isn’t her real father?”
Bruce said vehemently, “I might not be her biological father, but I’m every bit as much her father as I am yours.” He sighed. “Sorry, I know that’s not what you meant, but that’s how I feel.”
Tom shrugged. “It’s a shock… I didn’t know. I mean, I knew mom was pregnant when you guys got married, but I just kind of found that out by accident.”
Marilyn rolled her eyes. “You find a lot of things by accident, don’t you? Batcave… Batmobile… Bat-computer... ”
Caitlyn was breaking out in a sweat from the effort of trying to relocate Bruce’s hip and sighed heavily. “I’m having trouble relocating his hip. Did you give him something to relax him?”
“I gave him a little Valium. I’m reluctant to give him more. My big, strong husband’s blood pressure tends to drop easily.”
Caitlyn nodded once. “Hannah.” She motioned to her. She briefly spoke to Hannah and explained what she wanted her to do. “Now you watch how I pull and I want you to pull with me. Just use steadily increasing pressure until you feel the leg start to move.” Hannah swallowed hard and looked scared, but she agreed to help her dad. Within a minute, they all heard a loud ‘crack’ and Bruce’s hip was back in place.
He shook just a bit, but then the color started to come back into his face. Marilyn leaned down to him. “Better?”
He nodded. “A lot.”
Tom said, “I wouldn’t have thought putting his hip back in place would have made him feel that much better.”
Caitlyn smiled at him. “A dislocated joint hurts quite badly, Tom.” She moved to Bruce’s arm. “Now let me see that arm.”
Marilyn handed her some gloves. “I’ve stitched that up twice, but it just keeps bleeding. I’ll assist, but this time I’m going to let *you* do this.”
Caitlyn nodded. “I take it you usually take care of him. He seems to have a lot of scars.”
Marilyn nodded. “I was already a nurse when we got married, but he sent me to school to be a nurse practitioner so I could care for his injuries. I bet I’ve put a thousand sutures in him.”
Caitlyn injected Bruce with lidocaine. “You doing okay, Bruce?”
He nodded. “I’m fine.”
Marilyn shook her head grimly. “You’re not fine. You are too old for this anymore.” She frowned. “At least getting over this dislocated hip will keep you off the streets for a while.”
Caitlyn grinned. “Yes, I’m sure if you have had this happen before, then you know you are going to have to take things very easy for a while. But on the up side, that means you can come with your wife and kids to Kentucky over the weekend.”
“For… what?”
Marilyn said, “We are going to a family reunion of sorts. You *will* come, won't you?” She looked hopeful.
He smiled at her and nodded. “Yes, Marilyn. If it makes you happy, I’ll come.”
Caitlyn smiled broadly. “Good!” Then she became a little more serious. “Bruce, this is going to require some minor surgery. Nothing serious… it will only take a few minutes… If Hannah can help.”
“Help?” Hannah said with confusion.
Caitlyn said, “Yes, when I’m ready, I want you to aim a tight beam of heat vision on that bleeding vessel.” Hannah seemed overwhelmed by that idea. Caitlyn encouraged her. “You can do it.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Clark sat staring at the wall of his office. He thought about the saying, ‘When it rains it pours.’ Well, as far as he was concerned, things weren’t just raining - things were storming. It seemed like *too* much was happening right now. He was about to stand up and go check on Claire. His private phone rang and he picked it up. It was his publisher. “Hey, Greg. How are you? Did you get those changes made to the dedication?” His next book was almost ready to be published, but he had requested a last minute change.
“Yes, Clark. I got it done. It’s a good thing you bring in a lot of money because this was no small thing to do this late in the game. The book is set to be released in a month. It’s also a good thing it hadn’t gone to print yet. And now it’s going to be a push to get it printed in time.”
“You’ll be able to get me some advance copies right away?”
“The first edition will start print tomorrow. I can probably get a few to you the next day.”
“Sounds good, Greg.”
“Clark,” Greg said excitedly, “I’ve got to tell you that I think this might be your best selling book yet. I’m glad you finally got Superman’s cooperation. Folks have wanted to know the inside story about the New Kryptonian occupation for a *long* time.”
Clark sighed. “Well, you asked and asked and asked. There’s still stuff I left out. There are things people don’t need to know.”
Greg was surprised, “You wrote about the rapes. What could you have possibly left out?”
“Well, would you really want people to know that Superman - or any of the other super men and women that have now shown up - could disintegrate people with their heat vision?”
Greg was subdued. “No. I guess not, Clark. I guess not. Any chance you’ll introduce me to the big guy? I know he only agreed to talk to you if he wasn’t asked to do any promotions and stuff, but I mean… it’s me. You know?”
“Yeah, Greg, I know. I’ll see what he says. Is that it?”
“Yes, Clark. That’s all for now. I’ll come by in a couple of days with the books. Oh, wait… How’s the sequel to
The Storm coming?”
“
The Calm. It’s basically written, but I have to go back through and make some changes. I’m afraid it might be a little late.”
“Yeah, well, mountain climbing will do that. I don’t think it’ll be too big a problem. It’ll be a best seller regardless of when it finally comes out. But I’m hoping for Christmas time. Three books this year would be great. You’re the best, Clark. The absolute best.”
“Thanks, Greg.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chloe and Ben were sitting in his family room watching a movie. When she had found out that Jon was doing well and was going to be able to come home, she decided to keep her date with Ben. She was worried about Claire, but sitting at home wasn’t going to help her. She had her head on Ben’s shoulder. She loved the smell of him. She loved his almost emerald green eyes that she thought a girl could drown in. She loved everything about Ben Winters.
He turned to her and said, “Umm… Chloe. Can I talk to you about something?”
“Sure, sweetie. Anything. You know that.” She ran her hand down the side of his cheek.
“Well… I’ve been thinking… I mean.. Umm…” He blushed.
Chloe giggled. “You are so cute when you blush. Pink cheeks and auburn hair. What a combination.”
“Hey. You have red hair, too.” He kissed her lightly on the lips. “I.. uh… well… Oh, heck.” He ran his hand inside her t-shirt and caressed her breast. “I.. uh… wondered if you might want to… you know… again. I mean it’s been awhile, but… Hmm… I have protection this time.”
Chloe interrupted. “I rather thought you were the one that put the skids on things. I thought you were the one that wanted to back off, Mr. Ben.”
“Well, yeah. But… you know, it kind of hurt you a little, and I’ve been worried about that… but… well, now you are sixteen, and I thought…”
“Sixteen?” Chloe shook her head in confusion. “What’s that got to do with anything?”
“Well, you know I told my mom about us.”
Chloe rolled her eyes. “Yes. I know. You and your mom are really close. I still can hardly believe you told her without her asking.”
Ben nodded and blew out his breath. “Yes, well.. she told me to back off for a while.”
Chloe pouted. “Why?”
“Because sixteen is the age of consent in New Troy. She was pretty worried about you being only fifteen. I… well, you know mom had me when she was just fifteen herself, and she was worried..”
Chloe was a little confused. “That I’d get pregnant?”
“No. Her dad tried to get my dad charged with statutory rape. He was seventeen. The only reason he wasn’t charged was because mom begged… and because they got married.”
Suddenly understanding, Chloe softly said, “Oh.” She sighed. “And you and your mom worried that my dad might try something like that. Hmm…”
“Yeah. It really scared her a lot because dad almost got charged. Well, actually he was charged, but the charges were dropped.” Ben dropped his eyes.
“You miss your dad a lot, don’t you?”
Ben nodded sadly. “But I know you understand. That’s a lot of what brought us together. It just… so much happened. You never met Micky or my dad. You would have liked them. Micky was so sick. He was in liver failure and we all finally made the decision that I’d give him part of my liver. And then… Dad and Micky were killed in a car accident on the way home from the hospital. And dad was stupid enough to not have life insurance. He should have known better. He was a lawyer, for Pete’s sake. Mom had worked so hard to put him through school - at the expense of her own education, no less! I’m glad she’s going back now.”
Chloe nodded. “Your mom is still a young woman. She’s what? Thirty-two?” She stood up and took Ben’s hand. She shyly said, “Let’s go to your bedroom, Ben. Your mom won’t be home until midnight.”
Ben smiled and stood up. “Are you sure? I mean… I don’t want to hurt you, Chloe. You know how much I love you.”
She kissed his cheek. “Oh, Ben, you know why it hurt the last time.”
They walked into his room and tumbled on the bed. He started to turn off the light. She smiled and said, “Leave it on, Ben. The last time we did this, it was in the back of your car and it was dark. I want to see things this time.”
He grinned and said, “I agree, Chloe. I agree.” He smiled appreciatively as Chloe pulled her t-shirt off. "Oh, yes, Chloe," he whispered huskily.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Clark walked into Jon’s room and sat down beside him. Jon was sitting up in the bed reading a book. Clark took his hand. “How do you feel?”
“Better. A lot better. Still sore.”
“Good. I’m glad you feel better. ”
Jon sighed heavily. “Dad. You look really troubled. What’s up?”
Clark closed his eyes tightly. “A lot has been going on. You know?”
Jon frowned a little. “Yeah. It has.”
Clark sighed. “Zara is here. Please don’t say anything yet. Zared isn’t home from work yet, so he doesn’t know. He’s always wanted to meet her.”
Jon’s eyes widened. “Wow. Is she here to take Los and K’al back?”
Clark pursed his lips. “I haven’t spoken to her yet. But I don’t get that feeling.”
Jon frowned. “She’s not going to try to take Zared, is she?”
Clark huffed, “Just let her try.” Then he looked down and fidgeted. “I’ll be telling all of you this individually. Claire didn’t really want me to do so, but I think it’s best and she finally agreed.” He frowned and squeezed back tears. “She was raped, Jon.”
Jon nearly came out of the bed, but pain pulled him back. He winced. “Alex. Son of a…”
Clark nodded. “Jon. Have you ever gotten very close to Alex? I mean… physically close.”
Jon looked at him with confusion and shrugged. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Well, he was in some kind of dirt bike accident a few years ago. It seems he has green and red kryptonite crystals imbedded in one of his thighs. I think the red kryptonite is the reason that Claire was sure she was madly in love with him. And the green kryptonite is the reason he was able to rape her. She wasn’t able to get away from him.” He ran his hand through his hair. “Didn’t you go on a double date with them once?”
“Yeah… I was still dating Mary then. Hmmm… That was back in October. Yeah, yeah. He stood right next to me while we were getting drinks at the pizza place. I remember feeling a little nauseated, and I thought I was getting sick.”
“And… did anything else happen. Anything ‘weird’?”
Jon bit his lip in thought. “Yeah. Maybe. I remember I got a fit of the giggles. I couldn’t stop. Mary broke up with me over that - no great loss though. I giggled and giggled and giggled. I think that must have lasted for a couple of days. I got in trouble at school, too.”
Clark grinned. “Yes, I remember. At least now you know why. It was the red kryptonite.” He shrugged. “At least your powers didn’t go out of control.”
Clark got up and kissed him on the forehead. “I love you, Jon. I’m going to go check on Claire, and then I’m going to talk to Zara.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Caitlyn had finished the minor surgery on Bruce’s arm. Hannah was smiling broadly because she'd been able to successfully use her heat vision to help. She had picked her dad up and settled him in bed. She kissed his cheek. “You rest. And behave yourself, Daddy. I can take care of Gotham for a while. And maybe I can get some other volunteers.” She whispered to him, “And don’t forget to tell Mom that you love her. I know you do. And you know she needs to hear it more often.”
Her mom and Caitlyn were just walking into Bruce’s bedroom and were laughing about some sisterly joke. Marilyn looked up. “Are you comfortable, Bruce?”
He nodded, “Yes, Marilyn. I’m comfortable enough. Where’s Tom… and Al for that matter?” He motioned for her to come to him.
She smiled and sat beside him. “Tom is looking for Al. I hope Al hasn’t fallen asleep in a room someplace again.”
Hannah looked around and started scanning. “No, he’s actually asleep in the play room. Tom shouldn’t have any trouble finding him.” She stood up. “We need to leave. But Mom, if you need me, if you need any help moving dad, call me. I’ll be here in a couple of minutes.”
Bruce smiled at her - one of his rare real smiles. “You like that flying, don’t you?”
She hugged herself. “Oh, daddy you wouldn’t believe what that’s like. It’s amazing. I’ll take you sometime.” Then she smiled. “Guess what?” Marilyn and Bruce looked at her expectantly. “I’m an engaged woman. Jon asked me to marry him.”
Marilyn went to her and hugged her tightly. “Oh, congratulations, honey.”
Bruce nodded quietly. “Yes, congratulations. But I hope you aren’t going to rush into things. You are both very young.”
Hannah’s eyes twinkled. “But very mature. I think we will probably be getting married right away.” She looked at her mom. “And no big ideas. I don’t want some big society to do. I just want a simple, quiet, little wedding. So keep it quiet, okay?” Her parents nodded their agreement. Hannah turned to Caitlyn. “Come on. Let’s go.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Marilyn sat down beside Bruce and brushed his hair out his eyes. He reached up and pulled her to him. “Marilyn, I do love you. You know that, don’t you?”
She nodded but seemed unsure. “It’s just… You scare me, Bruce. You are fifty-two years old. You need to back off some. Let Dick... Nightwing take care of things now. You know he was taught by the best.”
Bruce squeezed her hand. “There’s still so much to do… Thomas wants to take over for me when he’s older.”
Marilyn was downhearted. “I had an idea that might happen. But he’s only fourteen. And physically, he still has a lot of growing to do. Can’t Gotham go a few years without a Batman? Can’t you at least cut back some more?”
“I… don’t know, Marilyn. You know how things are for me. It’s…” He closed his eyes tightly. “Stay with me tonight?”
“Any time you want, Bruce. But tonight, it might be painful for me to be in bed with you.”
He shook his head no. “No, it won’t. I want my beautiful wife in my bed with me. And Marilyn, if I have to tell you one more time that I did not marry you to provide me with medical care or to give me babies, I might have to shake you. I love you!”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chloe ran her fingers down Ben’s chest. “Wow. I definitely like having the lights on. I don’t think I’ve ever seen your chest before this. Even when we swim you always wear a shirt. Is it to cover the scars from the surgery?” She ran her fingers over the multiple long scars on his abdomen.
He grinned and pulled her close. “Hmm… no. I burn easily. I can’t believe you don’t. But then you don’t have the pale skin I have. But yeah, the scars are nasty, aren’t they? Who would think that they’d need to make such incisions to take out a tiny part of my liver?” He ran his hand over her belly. “Chloe. I know it was dark before, but… you… I’d swear you used to be flatter.” He took a deep breath. “Are you pregnant?”
“Oh, Ben. Don’t be silly. Like you said. You just haven’t actually seen me like this before.”
“Well… I don’t know. I mean, just earlier this evening you were eating chocolate ice cream topped with pickle relish.” His look was one of disgust. “That would seem to be indicative of something like a pregnancy.”
She giggled. “Oh, Ben. You worry too much. I haven’t missed any periods, so how could I be pregnant?” She abruptly sat up and started dressing quickly. “Your mom’s home. Get dressed!”
“She’s not due home for a couple hours. I don’t hear anything.” He lay back on the bed.
Chloe hissed, “I’m telling you she’s home.”
When Ben heard his mom’s voice calling for him and Chloe, he got out of bed and began dressing. He looked at Chloe with an odd look. “How’d you get completely dressed that fast?” She shrugged but felt unable to tell him about herself at this very moment.
The tall red-haired woman named Beth Winters just knew that her son and his girlfriend were in his room. They should have been in the family room. They weren’t. But Chloe's purse still was. She would give them a second to at least get presentable so she called, “Chloe! Ben!” It wasn’t long after that that she threw open Ben’s bedroom door. He was pulling on his shirt. She looked between the two of them and shook her head. She huffed, “Ben. I told you…”
He interrupted, “Well, Mom… it’s okay now.”
Chloe nodded in agreement. “I’m sixteen now.” She looked at Ben and rolled her eyes. “Big mouth.”
He shrugged. “Sorry.”
Beth sighed and said, “You are both too young for this. But telling you that is like…” She shook her head in frustration. “I’ve been there… I *know* what you think.” She looked over and saw the package of condoms on Ben’s bedside table. “Well, at least you were responsible *this* time.” She looked between the two of them and said crisply, “Kitchen. Now!” She turned and walked out of the room.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Los leaned against the wall in the sitting room. He’d been there for what seemed like forever. He shut his eyes tightly. He’d go see what Rya and K’al wanted before he went to speak with his mother again. He walked to their door and knocked.
Rya opened the door and smiled. “Come in.”
“Well, your English is progressing nicely.”
“Umm… progressing?”
“Oh… ~progressing.~” He winked at her. He turned to K’al who was cooing at his baby daughter. Due to Rya’s English still being a bit weak, he spoke in Kryptonian. “~What did you want, K’al?~”
K’al blushed. “~Well, it’s a little thing… But you know, we don’t know how long we will be here… and well, Rya has this romantic notion. She wants us to be able to make love on this planet. And well… We were wondering…~”
Los chuckled and raised an eyebrow. “~Brother, your wife just gave birth two days ago.~”
Rya rushed to answer. “~Oh, yes, but this yellow sun… Well, I seem to be healing quite rapidly. And I just thought that we could…~”
Los smiled. “~So you really want to do this, huh?~” She nodded eagerly. He looked at the ceiling and shook his head. “~Let me see how you are doing.~” When he was done examining her, he sighed. “~Yes, you are healing much faster than you normally would.~” He looked at his brother, then back at Rya. “~Okay, but gently. *Very*, very gently.~”
Los turned back to his brother and swallowed hard. He still chose not to tell him that their mother was here. He wasn’t sure why his mother hadn’t contacted him herself, but he was sure he would find out soon. But right now, he had Mari on his mind. “~K’al. You can perform the Ceremony of Union. Will you do so?~”
K’al nodded. “~Very well, brother. But if she should become pregnant right away, and if you want the child to be recognized properly and not as only a lower lord or lady, then it needs to be confirmed that she isn’t already pregnant… And you can’t do that for your own intended.~”
“~Will Caity do?~”
K’al nodded. “~Yes, Caity will do. And congratulations, Los. Hmm… Have you already...~” He raised his eyebrows in a questioning manner.
Los nodded. “~Yes. We have.~”
K’al smiled and nodded. “~Ah, well. The biggest thing is that she not be pregnant, and if she does happen to be, we know it can’t be yours.~” He closed his eyes. “~Congratulations, Los. I have a feeling that you want to stay here, don’t you?~”
Los just looked at him steadily but didn’t answer. He shrugged, turned and walked out the door.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Clark knocked on Claire’s bedroom door. When she didn’t answer, he walked in. He sat down beside her and took her hand. “Hey, sweetie.”
“Hey, daddy. Sorry, I didn’t answer. I’m just...” She shrugged then smiled a little. “But I feel better after talking to you. And that police lady was really nice.”
Clark nodded. “Good. I’m glad you feel better. Did have a nice nap?”
“Yeah. Better than I have in a while. And I started, too. I guess all that stress relief or something. Did you tell anybody yet?”
“Jon.”
She nodded. “I want to tell Chloe myself, okay?”
“Are you sure?”
She nodded. “Yeah. I’m not sure when she’ll get home, but yeah, I want to tell her. I wrote her a note to wake me up should I be asleep. I’m going to sit here awhile and read so hopefully I will still be awake.”
“Okay, honey. Just call me if you need me. Okay?”
“Okay. Don’t tell anybody else until I’ve talked to Chloe.”
He nodded. “Okay, honey. I’ll probably tell Caitlyn, but I won’t tell any of your other siblings until later.” He smiled and walked out. He thought to himself that they just might get through this after all.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Los stood outside the upstairs guest room. He took a deep breath and finally walked in. He let out a sigh of relief. His mom was asleep. He looked at Mari expectantly and motioned for her to come with him. They quietly walked out the door. <Hey, beautiful lady. Why is mom asleep?>
She shrugged. <She was having some cramps - from the miscarriage, I guess. She told me about that. I gave her an ice pack and told her to go to sleep. She told me she wasn’t here to take you all back yet. She’s just here to check on you. She didn’t go into a lot of detail, but I think she actually wants you and K’al to stay here a while. I think your mom likes me. So maybe we won’t have to worry about Edrika.>
He smiled. <I hope not. Besides K’al has given us his blessing, oh, my Queen of Wheat. He will perform the ceremony of union. Maybe we can get that done before mother wakes up.>
She raised an eyebrow. <A *little* subterfuge, my darling?>
He twisted his mouth. <Absolutely. Having been raised as royalty, I’m quite good at it. K’al said that we need to assure you aren’t pregnant yet. But I can’t do the exam. K’al has the right to attend if he so wishes. Can you handle that?>
She was surprised and her mouth opened in an ‘oh’. She swallowed. <Yes, anything for you. But… can’t you just ‘look’. Can’t K’al do the same?>
He furrowed his brow in thought. <Yes, K’al is trained well enough in anatomy. Yes. I think that would be okay.>
Los thought to K’al. <K’al. I hope you aren’t… involved.>
<No. What do you need?>
Los quickly explained. <Would that be acceptable?>
K’al opened his door and motioned them in. <Yes, I think that will be fine.>
Los motioned for Mari to lie down. He quickly looked then told K’al where to look.
K’al winked at his brother. “Looks pretty empty to me… no baby.” He turned to Rya. “~Isn’t your scarf one that can be used for official ceremonies?~”
She nodded and held it out to him. “~Yes. It’s been in the family for many years. It was blessed and was used for the ceremony of union for my parents.~”
K’al smiled. “~I take it you want to do this now?~” Mari and Los both nodded eagerly. He raised an eyebrow. “~I’m not sure why you are in such a hurry, but okay… Well, it’s not a gold rope, but that doesn’t always have to be used.~” He bound their wrists together and then began to speak. Los began to translate the ceremony for Marisol. K’al droned on and on. Los and Mari were getting really nervous about Zara waking up when, finally, he ended with, “~I declare this union complete, its consummation sanctioned by the law.~” He smiled.
Los hugged his brother, who was taken a bit aback, and smiled. “You have no idea what this means to us.”
Mari hugged him, too. “Yes, you have absolutely no idea.”
K’al waved them out of the room. “Go.”
Mari and Los walked out and stopped in the hall. <He doesn’t know, does he?>
Los shook his head no. <No, he doesn’t. He’s probably going to be furious with me.>
She grinned and pulled him to her. <So I guess this means we are married under Kryptonian law?> He nodded. She kissed him lightly. <Now we need to make it official on Earth, too. But for now, this is enough.>
Los nodded and kissed her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
tbc
