Hi, I'm back.
Well, I enjoy writing Sheldon/Penny. I especially enjoy writing them OOC, and in a whole AU. So, that's what I'm here with again. Though, I don't know how long this story will be, and honestly the ending isn't planned out yet so it can go either way. But this IS a Sheldon/Penny story. So bare in mind these things as you read:
NO they are not geniuses.
NO they don't live in LA.
YES they are OOC.
With that being said, I hope you enjoy!
I.
A loud crack of thunder filled the air. It was raining heavily, that wasn't surprising.
In the small town of Newmist, all it ever did was rain, and if it wasn't raining it was cloudy and cold. Rarely did the people of the sad town ever get to see the sun, but if you lived in Newmist it was because you didn't care for a tan, or you were unlucky enough to be born there.
The town was small, the population consisted of nearly one thousand people, if not less. It was surrounded by thick dense forestry and was very isolated from the rest of the world—the only entry and exit point being a worn train station or a long foggy bridge that drew out over a dark rough lake, commonly known as Dead-Mans Lake. Its real name was Norton Lake, but it got its nickname many decades ago because numerous people would travel to the bridge and jump when they wanted to commit suicide, the number of skeletons the police found raised yearly.
You either got out of Newmist by suicide or winning the lottery.
And as the young woman stared blankly out of the large store-front window, lightening filling the sky as the heavy raindrops abused the cracked roads, she knew which way she was leaving. Her dream was to go to California and have the world see her art, she loved to paint, draw, sketch, anything that got her hands moving and her creativity flowing. Her parents had faith in her, they always did. But once her father died suddenly, her mother became a lot more recluse and barely left the house for anything. She remembered the last words her father told her, it was as if he knew he was going to die.
"Do better than me, Penny, no matter what."
She had a small two-bedroom home, with the necessities she needed to live. It wasn't far from her workplace, and it was just on the edge of the forest, she loved it. Though, she liked it more when she lived on her own. Her boyfriend, Kurt, had been living with her for the last year. He wasn't a good guy, and he often was out getting drunk at one of the three bars the town had. She wouldn't be surprise if he was actually cheating on her. Kurt never supported her art, he wanted her to do something practical that way he didn't have to work, and she could support them both.
Ding!
The bell over the store door chimed loudly, signalling that a customer had entered. Or rather, multiple customers. The blonde stayed seated in the rickety stool that sat behind the cash register, she expected it to be a bunch of school kids who came into the store on a dare. She glanced at the clock on the wall and noticed it read one o'clock. School was still in session, so these kids probably skipped classes for the day.
Penny worked in an occult shop. It wasn't orthodox, but it paid the bills. The small store drew a lot of controversy too, many people believed there shouldn't be such a store in a small town where kids were a lot more susceptible to these kinds of things. Her parents weren't overjoyed when she announced she was working at the store, the complete opposite if anything, but they couldn't say anything about it. She was eighteen at the time and was legally allowed to make her own choices. Besides, Mrs. Grey needed the help, she was old, and her husband died in his sleep, she couldn't run the store on her own. Of course, Penny faced scrutiny when she started working there, the kids all believed Mrs. Grey to be some kind of witch, but she loved the old woman as if she were her own grandmother.
The blonde was surprised when she looked up and saw a group of men walk deeper into the store, their voices a hushed whisper. There was a darker skinned man with hair as black as night, a shorter one with brown hair and pale skin, the third one had glasses and a head of curly black hair, he was just as short as the second one. Then at the front of the group was another man who stood out exceptionally, he was extremely tall and walked with his head held high, he had shaggy brown hair and his eyes a piercing blue colour. She nearly lost her breath when he suddenly looked over a shelf of books and directly into her green eyes.
She looked away immediately, what the heck was that?
A loud crack of thunder jolted her, the lightening lighting the store up quickly before disappearing.
She hadn't recognized these men from anywhere, and it wasn't hard to remember a face in a town of a thousand people. And nobody moved to Newmist, the place was basically nonexistent to the world. They didn't even have an airport, just a train station. She narrowed her eyes and focused on the magazine in front of her, she knew the customary thing to do would be to introduce herself and ask if they needed assistance, but she couldn't bear to look at them again. She still felt the piercing stare of the taller man, and it made her anxious.
For some reason she felt herself itching to reach below the counter and grab her sketchbook, and just freehand his eyes. They were like piercing orbs of ice. She let out a deep breath she didn't realize she was holding and jumped slightly when she saw large calloused hands in front of her. She took her time closing the magazine, doggy-earing the page and looking up into the same eyes she needed to draw.
"Hello."
His voice was polite, and smooth.
Penny looked to the men who stayed behind him, hanging around one of the racks that were filled with tarot cards and how-to books. She looked up at the man in front of her and raised an eyebrow, there was no reason for him to have an effect on her, she didn't know him, and nor did he know her. They were probably just tourists or something, she almost chuckled at the thought, nobody came to tour Newmist.
"Hi, can I help you?"
The man narrowed his eyes at her slightly, a look of confusion ran through his face before it disappeared. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, swiping he held a photo up to her, "Do you happen to have this necklace in store? I've been looking for it, everywhere."
Penny nodded her head, she recognized the gorgeous necklace anywhere. Mrs. Grey had told her there was only one, and she happened to get her hands on it almost six years ago at an auction. Nobody had wanted it because they all thought it to be cursed.
Apparently, sometime in the sixteen hundred people thought to have believed witches and supernatural beings existed and held witch trials and burnt, whoever the thought to believe was a supernatural being, at the stake. They were ruthless and went off of nothing but pure gut instinct, probably murdering hundreds of innocent people in the process. However, once they surrounded a house filled with a mother and her daughter, convinced the mother was a witch, they forced her out of the home by burning the house down. They burnt her at the stake, not giving her a chance to plead her case, and her young daughter just watched on in horror as her mother's skin charred.
She disappeared before the burning was done, and the next morning while recovering the burnt house the village discovered everything to be in ashes except for one silver necklace that looked as if it were protected by a shield, so the fire couldn't touch it. It sparkled in the sunlight, and the mayor claimed ownership of it and gave it to his own daughter.
Not long after, his daughter died in her sleep. So, the necklace was taken from her neck and the next owner –an older lady, died in her sleep as well. And so, the curse began. Nobody dare touch the necklace again, leaving it encased in a glass display so those could see it but never ever touch it.
Penny moved from behind the counter and gestured for the tall man to follow her, the group of men walked behind her as she pushed through thick red curtains and walked into a darker room. She pulled on a string that hung from the ceiling and the room was illuminated. Dozens of shelves lined the wall, and many lone objects sat in glass displays, with many warnings for customers to not touch nor open the display.
"This is where we keep our 'cursed' or 'haunted' paraphernalia," she gestured around the room, "Many people look, but could never bear to stay in this room for more than five minutes…" she trailed off, "I don't blame them." She watched as the men circled the room.
She walked forward, and removed a ring of keys from the belt loop of her jeans, she used an oddly shaped gold one to open a glass cupboard and pointed towards the necklace, "I'm assuming this is what you're after?" The man walked over and glanced down at the silver chain, his eyes untelling.
He nodded and stepped back, "Yes. How much is it?"
Penny closed the cupboard and locked it back up, "Not for sale." She said simply, "Mrs. Grey, the owner, refuses to sell it, she says it brings her comfort knowing she's in possession of it." She shrugged her shoulders. She watched as the other men looked at the taller one, each weary.
The blue-eyed one nodded, "Ah, well…I understand." He said simply, but for some reason Penny felt awkward, as if she had just said the wrong thing. He looked at her and smiled, "Well, I have to be going. The rain doesn't seem like it'll be letting up soon," he gestured to the door.
She glanced at the necklace once more, the thick silver chain glowing in the light. The pendant was gorgeous, a single crescent moon made out of intricate vines and at the top point of the moon was a deep red ruby that looked to be made out of the deepest, richest blood. It made the hairs on her neck stand.
"Thank you for all your help, Penelope."
Penny turned, confused as to how he knew her name, but he was gone. They all were. She walked out of the dark room and into the main part of the store, it was empty. She looked out of the store-front window, and only saw heavy rain and grey skies. She frowned deeply.
She narrowed her eyes and looked across the street, she could swear she saw the man standing there, watching the store. However, with a quick burst of lightening and thunder, and a large truck driving by, he was gone. Penny decided it was time to close the store and take her much needed break.