Disclaimer - DC and WB own them, etc etc.

I had the idea for this just before leaving work. Hmm.

Clex, suitable for all. Future fic, possibly AU. And weird *g*.

Thanks to nel. Feedback would be great. Really.

********

Kal opens his eyes. He doesn't need to eat, or sleep, but resting for two hours once a day ensures maximum performance. The Fortress dresses him in the colours of his house, informs him of any activity that may have occurred while he was unconscious and opens the roof for him as he leaves.

Shooting into the sky, he takes the same route he has always travelled, in a life he has always lived.

Kal rarely dreams. When he does, it's without colour.

*

Those beneath him wave as he passes, calling out a name that isn't his. It doesn't bother him that they use it; it simply isn't his name.

He doesn't wave back.

He barely looks at them.

When a siren sounds in the distance, his speed increases as he flies off towards it.

*

A woman is falling from a building, her screams nearly as loud as the blood he can hear pumping through her veins. Kal catches her easily and brings her carefully down to the ground.

Undamaged, she cries and laughs, throwing her arms around him as she sobs her thanks.

Kal has seen every reaction that saving someone's life has produced. She is the second reaction he ever saw.

He leaves without saying a single word.

*

Noise draws him to a laboratory. It's overloading, someone says. It's going to explode.

Bursting into the building he finds only one person trapped inside. No time to get clear; Kal covers the man's body with his own and protects him from the blast.

Afterwards, when the building has stopped shuddering around them and Kal is about to push them clear, the man curses.

Cheap fucking workmanship, he mutters.

Kal frowns.

Pushing the debris away, he guides the way out of the wreckage and turns to face the man he protected.

Who draws back, away from him. It's you, the man says, shock giving way to cynical amusement. I can't believe I had to actually see you in person to realise.

The man is obviously mistaken in what he believes. Kal has never seen him before and leaves him to be treated by the emergency services.

*

Something is wrong, not as it should be. Unable to explain it, Kal questions The Fortress. It has always taught him everything.

It is to be expected, The Fortress informs him. You are so far from your birthplace, Kal-El, among an entirely different species. There will be conflicts, abnormalities, but they are only temporary. This is an aberration, nothing more.

The Fortress has always been able to explain everything. Kal is certain it is right and that the abnormalities will pass.

*

That night he doesn't sleep. When he thinks of the laboratory, his heart rate changes.

*

A man has been kidnapped. Kal moves in so quickly that the kidnappers are unconscious before they even realise he's there. Moving to free the victim, Kal pauses when he realises it's the man from the laboratory.

Soon free of his restraints, the man stands and looks down at one of the unconscious forms. Mercy's going to be impossible to deal with when she wakes up, he complains.

Realising what the implication means, Kal is confused. He arranged his own kidnapping?

I wanted to talk to you, the man confirms. We didn't get much of a chance to catch up the other day.

The man is curious, strange. I don't know you.

The confident smile falters. You know me better than anyone, Superman.

Kal doesn't know him at all, but before he can leave the words slip from his lips. My name isn't Superman. It's Kal.

*

The abnormalities continue. Kal suddenly hungers for lemonade. He stands out in the rain, arms spread wide and concentrates on nothing but the feel of it against his skin.

The Fortress assures him this will be over soon. You have a destiny, Kal-El. This is nothing but an inconvenience.

Kal's comprehension of that last word must be in error.

*

You're doing this on purpose, Kal is certain, flying the man away from a bomb in a briefcase.

Yes, he admits, We need to talk. I told you that.

The briefcase explodes, making Kal wrap his body around the other man's. Why?

Not caring that they're three hundred feet above the ground, the man turns his head until he meets Kal's gaze. Because you're so much more than this. Pulling an arm from around Kal's neck, his hand delves into his jacket pocket and brings out a jewellery box. It must be lined with lead because when the man flicks it open, there's kryptonite inside.

It's small but Kal feels it instantly. They drop ten, fifty feet, Kal groaning at the too-familiar pain and the struggle against gravity. What...what are you...?

You feel, the man whispers, unconcerned by the rapidly approaching floor. You feel, Kal.

Feeling the strain on every muscle, Kal is barely able to hover. Ten feet above the ground he drops the man he's holding, and it's far enough away for his strength to return. Heat vision flickering behind his eyes, Kal glares down at him. Only my enemies use kryptonite.

Grunting, the man rolls onto his back and smirks up at him. I'm your greatest one yet.

*

The Fortress always knows when he's been exposed to kryptonite. It asks what happened, so he tells it.

He doesn't mention how he can't forget the feel of the man's skin.

He is dangerous, The Fortress decrees. He must be destroyed. He is trying to prevent your destiny.

Kal still doesn't know what that is. If it's destined to be, how can he stop it?

He is evil, Kal-El. It almost sounds angry. That is all you need to know.

*

Kal flies to the city. The wind is cold against his face and people smile when he looks down at them. Landing on the man's balcony, he isn't surprised to find him waiting there.

Kal, he greets.

Kal folds his arms across his chest. I have a destiny. I'm here to kill you.

The man nods slowly, then shrugs. Would you like a drink first?

Aggravated, Kal sighs heavily. I don't need to drink.

Leaning closer, the man looks up at him. That's not what I asked.

The press of lips against his comes as a surprise, although not as big as it should be. Kal jerks back but the man follows, keeps following until Kal's back is pressed against the edge of the balcony. Don't-

Make me stop, the man breathes against him, mouths tangling together in a way Kal's never experienced before.

He's heard of this. He knows what it is. He knows he's not supposed to want it.

The Fortress had always told him he wasn't supposed to want it.

A noise, from him. Greedy, surprised, and then he's yanking away and spiralling into the sky; body hot, breath shaking, and the most confused he's ever been.

He was lied to about this. Lied to. How can he be sure this was the only thing?

*

Kal doesn't go back to The Fortress. He hovers outside it instead, but even from there he can feel it calling to him. For him.

Forgive me, my son.

Kal's eyes burn. When they stop, The Fortress is a smoking ruin.

He doesn't miss it the way he thought he would.

*

The man is sipping at a drink from a glass when Kal returns, still out on the balcony. Landing as far away as possible, Kal hesitates.

I think I...

Yes? the man prompts, arrogance on show but somehow Kal knows it isn't real.

Somehow Kal knows he can do this.

Moving towards the man, he grabs onto his upper arms firmly. Know you. I think I know you.

Arrogance slides into surprise, into something that might be joy. Smiling, the man draws Kal close, arms wrapping around him. It's okay, Clark. You're here now. You're here.

The glass shatters on the balcony floor.

"Lex,"

Clark wakes up.

~FINIS