A/N: Wow! Seriously folks, you made this girl right here very happy! New fandoms can be tough to crack, but y'all made me feel so good about this fic. You're all awesome. A cookie for everyone who reviewed. Two cookies if you spotted the third fandom in this fic ;) Also, shout out to my fantabulous beta baschashe, who is chief cheerleader on this fic and one awesome dudette! :)

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 2 - The Firefly Connection

"Well, maybe she's drunk" Howard suggested, his fifth idea as to how Penny had come to voluntarily spend time with Sheldon tonight, watching a sci-fi TV show no less, "As we all know from TV, and with Penny from experience, girls do go wild when they drink."

"Wild, yes," Raj nodded in agreement, "but not completely bat-crap crazy!" he rolled his eyes. "If Penny were drunk she'd be calling us all cute pet names and trying to sleep with Leonard," he reminded his friend. "I've never seen her quoting sci-fi with Sheldon and laughing about it. That's just creepy, dude!"

"That is all true," agreed Leonard as he pushed his Chinese food around in the silver tray, "but, I mean, its not like they're not friends just like the rest of us. Remember when Penny and I broke up? Sheldon was really awkward about being caught between two of his friends, so he clearly cares about Penny as much as cares about any of us."

"Cares enough about her to forget its Vintage Games night?" asked Raj, finding that even more strange than the blonde's own behaviour, "Maybe he's the one who's drunk" he considered.

"No," Howard shook his head. "He's not singing and his pants are still on. The man's sober as a judge," he assured them.

That was a comforting thought, since as amusing as drunk Sheldon could be, it was also a little scary not knowing how he would act. His usual behaviour could be as annoying as hell but on the up side, at least you always knew what to expect. This whole situation with him and Penny spending time together was just so unfathomable. Not least because what they seemed to be bonding over was science fiction!

Just when Leonard opened his mouth to give another suggestion as to what might be going on or how they might deal with it, the door opened and his room-mate strolled in with a happy enough smile on his face.

"Greetings, fellow scientists," he grinned, "and Howard" he added, cruelly as ever as he headed to the kitchen to get himself a bottle of water out of the fridge.

"Sheldon," Leonard greeted him with a nod. "Its not like you to be late for a meal, or, y'know, for anything ever," he pointed out as he watched his friend get his drink.

"I'm sorry if I caused offence," he shrugged as he appeared from behind the fridge door. "I'm afraid I lost track of time," he explained, at which point Raj dropped his fork in shock.

"You? You lost track of time?" echoed Howard, looking similarly stunned.

This only served to confuse Sheldon in turn.

"I'm sorry. Is your hearing impaired in some way, or are you not familiar with the concept of being so distracted that you forget to check the clock and run late for a standing appointment?" he checked, condescending as ever, as he walked over and took his usual spot on the couch.

Howard opened his mouth to say something snide back but ended up not bothering. For one thing, he really couldn't think of a good comeback right now, and even if he could, he knew the sarcasm was likely to be lost on Sheldon.

"I think the problem that Howard is having is understanding how someone usually so fastidious about time-keeping as you could become as distracted as you seem to have been tonight," Leonard explained, as Sheldon picked up his food and examined it for any error in his order.

"It's quite simple," his friend shrugged easily. "Though I am vastly superior in knowledge and IQ to the rest of you, I am still a human being. I am capable of the occasional error in judgement, a momentary lapse, if you will" he smiled easily. "As you are all aware, I am a fan of Joss Whedon's Firefly and it would appear that is an interest Penny and I share," he went on to explain. "We were watching a DVD and quite forgot to check the time."

All of his friends were staring at him now, but Sheldon barely noticed. He was too busy turning his Chinese food over in the tray and listing in his head all the things that were once again wrong with it. The mistakes made by the people at the restaurant, coupled with Leonard's inability to protest strongly enough about said errors were only half the battle tonight. This food was also going cold and congealed in the silver carton, but it was Chinese food night so he would eat it. Two changes in one night might be a little too much to take in his fully scheduled life.

"So, you and Penny, huh?" asked Howard eventually. "What's going on there?"

The look on his face was suggestive at best and downright dirty at worst. Sheldon seemed to notice neither of these things and gave his friend only a momentary glance before going back to his food.

"I'm sure I've just explained that," he noted, spending rather longer than usual chewing on a piece of chicken that was past its best. "Penny and I have a shared interest in Firefly," he repeated. "I'm not sure what it is you're failing to understand about that".

"Since when does Penny even watch sci-fi?" asked Raj, a little put out that if she was going to go geek that she hadn't chosen him, "and why with you?"

Raj and Penny had come so close to sleeping together that one time, and he was the only truly and perpetually single guy here.

"I'm not aware of any other interest she has in science fiction..." Sheldon considered. "She certainly made her feelings about Battlestar and Doctor Who very clear - not a fan," he confirmed, shaking his head.

Leonard was quick to agree. He knew that apart from a little original Star Wars trilogy and a brief acquaintance with Smallville, Penny was really not a fan of space or comic book type fandoms. He did know she kinda liked Firefly though, after all, he had been the one to buy her the boxset and pass it off as something he had to freely lend. He really never expected that to lead to her getting close with Sheldon, only with himself for being so generous. Way to have a plan backfire, apparently!

"Well, I think it's nice that after all these years you two finally found something you have in common," said Leonard, trying to cover the fact he was still a little jealous of anyone spending time with Penny when he wasn't, even if it was the most asexual person in his peer group.

"Its not as if Firefly is the first common interest between us," Sheldon called behind his friend as he wandered away to the kitchen. "We've had many long interesting conversations about your various short-comings," he said, straight out, no hint of sarcasm or a bazinga.

Leonard was not impressed but did not get a chance to protest.

"Hey, where does this leave the lovely Amy?" Howard asked suddenly, a perfect subject change and also a genuine point of interest to him. "I mean, two girlfriends, Sheldon?" he smiled. "I'm almost proud."

Sheldon rolled his eyes at the ridiculous suggestion.

"Really, Howard?" he sighed with apparent exasperation, but then his friends were used to that happening quite often. "As I have explained many times now, Amy Farrah-Fowler is my friend and a girl, but she is not my girlfriend" he confirmed. "The same can be said of Penny. Therefore, I should be causing no distress to either party, or anyone else for that matter," he explained, finally giving up on his cold Chinese food and dumping it unceremoniously onto the table.

"I don't know, I think you're distressing Leonard," Raj giggled like a school boy, even as the other guy glared at him from the kitchen. "Seriously, dude, do you really think Sheldon is moving in on your ex?" he laughed out loud, the idea of it ridiculous to him and Howard both as they chuckled.

"No, I don't," snapped Leonard, at which Sheldon got to his feet.

"And I should hope not," he said just as firmly. "Frankly I'm ashamed to be sitting here with you all behaving like school children just because a man and a woman choose to spend time together taking in a few episodes of a highly-acclaimed and cruelly cut-short sci-fi western!" he told them, before striding away to his bedroom in an apparent huff.

That only made Raj and Howard laugh harder, and Leonard frown. Something more was going on here that was obvious and he knew it. Sheldon was never late for a meal or any regular event for that matter. He never went to bed without eating, and he never got so wound up over a woman. Sure, he got this wound up about Firefly, and maybe that was all this was really about. After all, Leonard himself did have a tendency to take things personally where Penny was concerned. Maybe it was just him being dumb... then again, maybe not. Only time would tell.


Sheldon wasn't at all phased by his friends comments regarding time spent with Penny. To his mind, there was nothing sinister or strange about his passing time with a woman he had long since come to admit was part of his circle of friends. Of course, she was nowhere near as intelligent as most of his peers, but Penny was kind and sweet in her way, and the only person anywhere close to him that shared his love of Firefly. He chose not to examine the situation any more closely and simply invited her over to his apartment to watch further episodes of one of their favourite television shows.

They alternated between his apartment and hers, eating snacks as they watched, unable to help themselves from quoting all their favourite lines, be it together or apart. Penny never asked why Leonard seemed to be very deliberately out when she came over to their place to watch, she just assumed he was avoiding a show he didn't much care for. The truth was Sheldon had deliberately picked times when he knew his room-mate would be absent. He refused to make a big deal out of why, since he told himself it was only because his fellow scientist did not understand the wonders of Firefly. That and any time the ex-lovers were in a room together Sheldon was convinced that eventually they would find away to initiate coitus again, and that he could not bear. Leonard and Penny were bad enough together the first couple of times, he was not going through all that trauma again, it simply wasn't worth it for anybody!

It was strange for Penny to realise how much more she enjoyed sharing her watching experience with Sheldon. Usually if they ended up watching TV together it was either a sciencey thing that she didn't get, a geeky thing she didn't want to get but he would explain at length anyway, or a reality show she loved and he insulted for the entire hour. With Firefly, they could really connect. They laughed at the same jokes and cheered at the same victories. It was nice to have someone to share with like this, and it was particularly nice for it to be Sheldon.

As the end of the final episode neared, Penny was curled up at one end of the couch, whilst Sheldon sat upright in his usual spot on the other end. Mal was atop the ship, welcoming River back aboard, after the evil Jubal Early had been ejected into outer-space forever. Penny felt her eyes welling up with tears as they always did at the happy family-type ending. By the time the credits rolled and Sheldon looked over with his mouth open ready to speak to her, her eyes were red and her cheeks streaked from crying.

"Don't be sad that its over," he advised her. "Be glad that it happened," he smiled, reaching for the box of tissues on the side table and offering her one, as was customary when women cried.

"Thank you," she said, for the sweet words and the Kleenex both. "Its not that, its just... It all worked out," she smiled, before blowing her nose rather loudly and making Sheldon physically jump. "They let her stay, and they accept her even though she's crazy and..." she stopped, as a surprising revelation hit her.

Sheldon was River. It was a wacky concept given that one was a present day science nerd with severe OCD and the other was a psychic genius from the future, but there were stunning similarities too. Neither of them really fit in, both too smart and too crazy to make sense to any normal person. They were struggling to find their place in the world, went through their own personal hell in the early years, until they found a make-shift family that would accept them.

Penny smiled without realising she was doing it, though Sheldon took that as a good sign. Smiling was happy, a vast improvement on her tears of sadness a few moments before. When Penny smiled the sun shone brighter, or at least it seemed to. It would be a scientific impossibility for solar activity to be genuinely connected to the happiness of one lowly waitress from Nebraska, but it was a metaphor he'd heard used before that strangely seemed to apply here. It made him smile too as this strange moment passed between them.

Penny snapped out of the odd daze first.

"So, I guess we're done" she sighed as she swung her feet down onto the carpet and moved to stand, "Its been fun though..."

"Wait!" Sheldon spoke so suddenly that Penny dropped back down onto the seat from a few inches above, quite surprised. "We're not done. We've only watched all the episodes in the series in their standard form," he explained, picking up the box and shaking it at her as he continued. "We still have commentaries, behind the scenes extras, the gag reel," he went on. "Not to mention the follow-up movie, Serenity."

"No!" Penny's sudden yelling had Sheldon visibly jumping back against the couch cushions. "No, no, no! I have never seen that movie and I never want to!" she said vehemently, pointing a finger at him and backing up as if afraid that getting too close would change what she was saying. "Okay, I know somebody dies in that movie, one of those characters that I love, so no, I will never, ever watch!"

Sheldon's mouth dropped open of its own accord and he didn't even notice enough to close it again. An avid Firefly fan as Penny was, someone he might even call a Browncoat, and she had never seen Serenity? It was the most ridiculous thing he ever heard.

"Penny that is preposterous logic," he shook his head at her. "If you were a true fan of Firefly you want, nay need, to see the follow up movie, with every fibre of your being," he told her vehemently.

Still his friend and neighbour continued to protest, going so far as to get to her feet to make her presence better felt and her point all the more valid apparently.

"I love those characters, Sheldon!" she told him, gesturing madly at the TV on which she'd been watching the crew of Serenity just moments before. "I've watched them over and over, and the idea of one of them dying... No!" she shook her head definitely. "No, I can't and I won't watch it!"

With that she turned on her heel and slammed out of the apartment before Sheldon had a chance to argue anymore.

"Well," he declared with a sigh, "she is more than a little whimsical in the brainpan."

To Be Continued...