Sheldon felt like his feet will fall off as they reached the gates of the castle. Howard and Raj were kind of feeling the same as they complained all the way, but Bernadette didn't let them rest. They were kind of angry at her but when they arrived to the gate she proved to be very useful, basically she was the reason the guards even let them in and she was the one leading them through the labyrinth of narrow, crowded streets. They let Cinnamon outside to wait for them. After they finally got to the corridor they saw the door of the throne room, at least Sheldon hoped that this would be finally the throne room.
The door was closing right at the moment by a short man wearing luxruiously looking, fine clothing.
" Leonard? " Sheldon asked as he realised who he was.
The man looked up to him. He didn't recognize him either just like his other friends. Sheldon felt a little disappointed.
" My name is Lord Leonard. What do you want? " he asked.
" We have to speak to the King, my Lord. " Bernadette said kneeling down. She was wearing her helmet and armor again in the castle. Howard and Raj followed her.
" Are you Bern, the Warrior? " Leonard asked.
" Yes. " she nodded.
" Well, the King travelled East. His son's in captivity by the eastern and he and his wife are about to free him. " Leonard said.
" So basically no one's here? " Sheldon asked.
" The princess is here, but she is really tired now from her duties. Maybe tomorrow? " he asked.
" This can't wait. I have really bad news about our Southern villages, and a Roc attacked us on our way, and that man is a stranger from an other world. " Bernadette summarized.
" A Roc? From an other world? Fine, I'll let you in. " Leonard agreed finally.
He opened the door.
" Princess Penelope! The people here wants to speak to you. " he said loudly.
" Penny? " Sheldon asked looking at Penny who was sitting on the throne in a flowy, long, blue dress with her legs crossed busy with picking her nails.
" Her name is Princess Penelope! " Leonard whispered to Sheldon.
" Leonard! I told you I've had enough for today! Ruling is so damn boring. Why did you let them in? " Penny asked with a complaining tone.
" I'm sorry. I had to, they have important things to tell you. Plus they are with Bern the Brute. "
" Gah. Fine. Would you please at least bring me some wine? " she asked, as she put both of her feet now on the ground.
" And I think you've had enough of that for today too. " Leonard answered.
Penny rolled her eyes.
" I mean, that was just and advice." he explained himself.
Penny shrugged her shoulders. " Fine. "
Sheldon was looking at Leonard curiously. " So, if she is the Princess, than are you the Prince? " he asked leaning in close whispering to him.
" Why would I be? " he asked.
" Because you're married, aren't you? " Sheldon looked at him. Leonard laughed.
" No! Of course not! I'm the King's first advisor and the Kingdom's treasurer. Princess Penelope is engaged to Prince Zachary from North. Where are you from? "
Bern put her helmet down then kneeled in front of the Princess again.
" Come on, Bernie, get up, let it rest. So what's up in the Kingdom? " Penny asked.
" Bad news everywhere. A Roc attacked in the Pixie Woods. We saw a giant's been there too. And some southern villages… They were burnt to the ground. I guess it's the Ogres again. They want a war. But let me introduce you my companions: Howard and Rajesh. And Sheldon. "
" Welcome to the palace. Blah Blah Blah. How did you meet them? " Penny asked Bernadette again.
" I saved them from the Roc. "
" Cool. " Penny said.
" And Sheldon, Howard and Raj told me, that he is from an other world. "
Penny now looked at him suspiciously.
" Are you from an other world? " she asked.
" Yes, Penny, I am. " he answered.
" I told you, her name is Princess Penelope!" Leonard said.
" Leave it, Leonard. Penny is fine with me. "
" If I may interrupt we travelled here to bring him to you, my beautiful Princess" Howard bowed " We may hope for reward. "
Penny frowned. " No reward till we know for sure if he is the one. "
Then he turned to Leonard.
" How could we test that he is really from an other world? " she asked.
" I don't know. Maybe send him to the witch. "
" Wait! I want to know what's happening. They told me they'll tell me anything once we get here. Now, we're in the palace. I want an explanation. " Sheldon said.
" There was a prophecy about the one who can stop the war. It is said that the One may comes from an other world. It's an old prophecy, was written in stone. You can watch it, it's in the library. " Leonard said.
" So you may think I'm the one who'll stop the war? But how? " he asked.
" We don't know. But the war is about to come again. There are really bad rumours. In the East there's a deserted land and there… Ogres and other creatures live. They are mostly realitvely peaceful or at least not organized enough to have an army and start a war. But from time to time someone gathers them. A dark magician or a leader. And then nasty things happens. This goes on like every ten or twenty years. The Roc is really bad news, only a powerful magician could send it here. And if there's a chance you are the one, who can stop this, we should give this a try. " Leonard explained.
" And what if I don't want that? " Sheldon asked.
" Then we'll find you a cell in the dungeons until it's not clear where you are from. " Penny answered.
" Great. " Sheldon was kind of angry. Those were his friends but they were so different and so much the same. Why is this world so messed up? Leonard and Penny aren't even together. And where is Amy? Is there an Amy here too? Maybe she would understand him. Maybe she would help him get home. " Don't you know a girl named Amy? " he asked finally what bothered him.
Everyone shook their head.
" No. Why? " Penny asked.
" This world is somewhat parallel to mine. I know all of you, I mean I know an other version of all of you. And there's this girl, Amy, she is really… special to me. I hope if you're all here, maybe there's a version of her too here. "
" I'm sorry, but we don't know her. " Penny said. " Leonard, tell the kitchen that we're having dinner with our special guests tonight. And get them rooms to stay the night. And get someone who'll give Sheldon some appropiate clothing. And shoes."
" My friend Rajesh has a Yali. She's waiting outside. Is it possible that you'll feed her too. " Howard asked after Raj whispered in her ear.
" What's a yali? " Penny asked.
" It's a half lion, half elephant creature. It lives east, far from here, overseas. " Leonard answered.
" Cool. Then would you mind asking the kitchen and the housekeeping to care about our guests?
" Sure. " he nodded.
So they said goodbye to Penny and Sheldon got a room and soon a young man who gave him some clothes. The boots were leather, the pants a little bit big and saggy, the shirt simple, but he got a nice, brown west and a comfortable, warm, knee length jacket. He also got a belt. Before changing he wanted to take a shower so much, but when he said he wants to bathe, he only got a washbasin of cold water. He washed himself as much as he could and had a really strong desire for a modern bathroom.
His room was simple, mostly consisted of a big, wooden bed and a locker which was empty. He lay down ont he bed to think. He still didn't know how could he have ended up here. Whether he's descended into madness and is having this wild hallucination or was he in an other world. He wanted to go back, but also, this was everything he ever dreamed of. Being the chosen one in a fantasy world… Everything he loved was about that. He felt like a Harry Potter. A Frodo. A Bilbo. A Luke Skywalker … Hopefully no one from Game of Thrones, they die so easily.
The dinner was great, he finally ate food which was not raw and there were not just wine but fresh water to drink. Penny was mostly chatting with Bernadette talking about people he didn't know. Howard was desperate to join their conversation and he complimented them every time he could. The girls were mostly annoyed, Bernadette maybe a little flattered. Raj didn't say a word because of the women. Sheldon thought about telling him that alcohol could temporalily solve his problem, but Howard was more than enough. Leonard was sitting next to him and he caught him several times staring at Penny, but besides that he was really interested in Sheldon's other life.
" So in your world… Is technology more developed? " he asked.
" Yes, a lot more. We're like a thousand years ahead of you. "
" Wow, that must be exciting. Are you able to fly? " he laughed.
" Well, there are planes. Machines which fly in the air, but people usually don't fly. But we have cars. It's like a ….. without horses. "
" Sounds great. And what am I doing there? You know, my alterego. "
" You're an experimental physicist. " Sheldon answered.
" And what does that mean? "
" Well, there are theoretical physicists, like me, we make theories about how the world around us is working. You test those theories whether they are true or not. "
" That actually sounds interesting. So are we working together? "
" Sometimes. But we are mainly friends. We used to live together. "
" Wow. And… Do I have a wife there? "
Sheldon was giving a look to Penny whether she was listening. It certainly didn't seem a smart idea to share with Leonard how they ended up together. Or wasn't it? Maybe he only needed a little push to make a move.
" You actually have a wife, yes. "
" Whoa. Is she pretty? I'm just joking. Is she nice? Does she love me? Is she smart? " he asked.
" She is considered to be pretty, I guess, but I'm not looking at her that way. And she does love you. But she's not always nice. I mean she is a great friend, and you can count on her anytime in need, but she has a harsh opinion and she tells it whether you need it or not. Sometimes she bullies people a little. And she can act quite selfish and bossy sometimes and can make scenes. Smart… Well, she's not that dumb I think, but she is not well educated, and has a little knowledge about your work."
" It's funny, because you're pretty much describing the princess. " Leonard whispered laughing.
" Well, yes."
" Are you saying that she is my wife? " he asked whispering. He seemed surprised.
Sheldon nodded.
" Nooo! That's a crazy idea. She's… not for me. You're just telling me this because you noticed that I like her. " he said.
" Everyone notices you like her. But I told this because it's true. "
" What's true? " Penny asked.
" Sheldon was telling me about flying machines in his world. Incerdible, isn't? " Leonard asked and gave Sheldon an angry look. Sheldon didn't say a word.
" Sure. " Penny turned away.
Sheldon had a really great sleep. Some parts of him still was hoping that he would wake up in his real life, but it didn't happen.
Penny said that he and Leonard will be joining them for breakfast, but only Leonard showed up. He was really worried about Penny, and Sheldon, after taking some quick bites offered him to help him find her. Penny was sitting on the stairs outside at one of the many doors of the palace. Sheldon pointed with his head to Leonard who stepped forward.
" Princess, what happened? You didn't show up for breakfast. I was worried about you. "
Penny was crying.
" It's about Zack."
" What happened to Prince Zachary, Princess? " he asked.
" He is an asshole, that happened! My maids told that one of their husbands saw him last night getting drunk in The Foamy Pony Pub again kissing the barmaid! He is cheating on me! Leonard, why? Why do I keep meeting all this guys? Remember the last one? My Dad had to break up the engagement!. "
Leonard stood behind her slowly touching her back, gently caressing it. Sheldon decided he stays to watch this.
" Maybe you don't choose wisely enough. " he said.
" I know I'm stupid. And I know so many guys just want me because I'm a princess. But it's so unfair. "
" Shh... You're not stupid, Princess "
" You are so nice. Do you really think I'm not sutpid? "
" Of course, Princess "
She smiled at him through her tears.
" You know what? I hate being called Princess Penelope. I liked when Sheldon called me Penny. Coul you call me Penny, too? "
" Sure, Prince… Penny. "
" And also I decided I won't stay here with him anymore. I hate being locked up here. I'm going to the witch with Bernie and the guys. "
" But Penny, you can't. Someone has to stay here… Your people... "
" My people… They come and go and complain about the war to come. But maybe we could stop this. I want to do something not just listen to them! "
" But Penny, it's dangerous. And there is a chance that the prophecy won't work. Or that Sheldon is not the one we're looking for. Please don't do this to me, you know I promised your father that I'll protect you, while he is away. "
" Well, come with me, so you can protect me! "
" Do you want me to come with you? " he seemed surprised.
" Why not? "
" Well, I guess your father will be home soon anyway. And for a while there are other advisors who can rule the kingdom. " Leonard said. Sheldon knew that he never could say no to Penny.
" Thanks Leonard, really. I don't know what would I be doing without you. " she gave her a hug and a slight kiss on his face which made Leonard face red. Sheldon smiled, now at least one little progress was made.
So after he got a relatively new and light sword and a sidebag filled with water and other supplies they took off and by noon they left the castle behind them.
Thanks for the reviews, I hope you still like it. How did you like the Princess and Lord Leonard showing up? Next chapter will be up tomorrow.
