DC: Starting With Homelander As My Child!

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When Peter returned to the farm, he saw Azu standing helplessly in front of an unconscious Clark.

Quickly stepping over to Clark, Peter picked him up and asked Azu, "What happened, Azu?"

"I…I didn't mean to," Azu stammered, clearly terrified. "I accidentally threw the lawnmower into the air, and it fell… right on Clark."

"Dad, I… I didn't mean to." Azu thought he might have seriously injured Clark, maybe even permanently.

After examining Clark's body and confirming he was unharmed, Peter let out a sigh of relief.

"It's alright, John. I know you didn't mean to," Peter said, patting his head gently. "But we still need to take Clark to the hospital."

He sent Azu inside to grab Clark's clothes, while he started the car. Even though he knew Clark's nearly indestructible body couldn't be broken by a lawnmower, he still wanted to get him checked out, just to be safe.

At Smallville's central hospital, a doctor was examining Clark. Jonathan and Martha entered the room.

"Clark!" Martha rushed over and hugged him as he cooperated with the doctor.

"Oh, thank goodness, Clark, you're alright."

The doctor set down his stethoscope and said to Martha, "Mrs. Kent, Clark is in perfect condition. Nothing to worry about."

"Thank you." Martha thanked the doctor repeatedly.

Peter nudged Azu, who stood with his head down. Anxiously, Azu walked up to Martha and said, "I'm sorry, Aunt Martha. It's my fault Clark got hurt."

Seeing Azu's remorseful expression, Martha crouched down and held his hand to comfort him. "It's not your fault, John. I know you didn't mean it."

She had witnessed Azu's superpowers, like the time he accidentally used laser vision, and understood the difficulties he faced. While comforting Azu, she glanced over at Clark with worry. If Clark could withstand such a heavy lawnmower without a scratch, it hinted that he, too, might not be an ordinary child.

Initially, she had planned for Clark to start school soon, but this incident made her realize she needed to discuss the matter more thoroughly with Jonathan and Peter.

Half an hour later…

Azu left the hospital with his father, still unable to shake his guilt. The birds chirped, and bees buzzed as they walked down the sunny, honeysuckle-scented street, but Azu felt terrible.

He hated the sunshine, he hated the blue sky.

"Damn birds and bees," he muttered. "Why don't you find a corner to go mess around in?"

"Azu?" Peter heard his muttering and immediately frowned. "Did you just say a bad word?"

Azu instantly knew he'd messed up.

"Sorry, Dad, I…" He quickly covered his backside.

Peter didn't smack him, though. Instead, he knelt down and asked, "Tell me, son, where did you learn that phrase?"

Seeing his father's serious expression, Azu felt even more nervous. He knew that look meant his dad was truly upset.

"Uh… little Sam Jones," Azu admitted sheepishly.

Peter thought for a moment and realized that Sam was the boy who lived near Lana's house.

"Don't hang around with that boy anymore," he said, frowning. He didn't have a favorable impression of Sam and didn't want Azu picking up bad habits.

"Okay… got it," Azu nodded reluctantly.

A thought occurred to him. "Dad, is Clark like me?"

Seeing how Clark was unharmed after being hit by the lawnmower, Azu wondered if he might not be a regular person either.

Peter nodded, "Yes, he's like you. You both have special gifts, and you're like brothers."

"But…" Azu said, sounding conflicted. "He's not your real son. I am."

Azu had thought his bond with Peter was special because he'd inherited his father's abilities, but now that Clark was showing similar traits, he feared his place might be threatened.

Peter was surprised to see Azu so concerned about being his real son. If he ever found out he'd come from a spaceship, wouldn't that shatter him? He knew he'd need to gently address Azu's feelings about family and identity someday.

"Yes, Azu, you're my son, and you always will be," Peter reassured him. Then he shifted the topic back to the lawnmower incident. "Think about it, Azu. If that lawnmower had hit someone other than Clark, it could have killed them. Do you understand?"

Azu nodded, downcast.

Peter continued, "Now, think about school. If you lose control like that, it could hurt someone. Do you see the trouble it could cause?"

Azu mumbled, "Yeah, I get it." His dad made a lot of sense.

"That's why… we can't skip training." Peter had been helping Azu and Clark focus their attention, but now he realized they needed to increase the difficulty of their exercises.

That night, on the farm…

Azu sipped milk while trying to crush a raw egg in his hand without breaking the yolk. Peter had told him that controlling his strength was critical, especially when he was emotional.

As he drank the milk (something that always gave him a strange look on his face), he tried to concentrate on the egg.

Crunch!

Looking at the crushed egg in his hand, Azu sighed, feeling hopeless, and reached for another one.

Meanwhile…

Officer Lane received a call in the middle of the night: another jewelry store in town had been robbed.

When he arrived, the officers were already examining the scene.

"Was it the same guy?" he asked the officer in charge as he looked at the wreckage.

This was the third similar incident today, including a robbery at a Luthor family bank.

"Most likely. No one else could have the strength to rip open an iron door like this."

The officer pointed to the store entrance, which looked like it had been clawed open by some ferocious creature.

"What is this, a werewolf?" Officer Lane laughed it off. "We don't have any legends about werewolves here."

"Is there surveillance footage?" he asked.

"No, the cameras were destroyed beforehand. Not a single clue left."

"This is terrible," Lane muttered, picking up a small green crystal he found among the broken glass.

"What's this?"