Missy sipped the tea Stephanie had handed her and eyed the three kids watching Super Friends on the couch. "Okay," she said weakly. "So, my brother and two of his friends have been turned back into kids by his so-called best friend and the two women from the hallway. One of those two women is s'posed to be Shelly's girlfriend. S'posed to love him and be by his side. Instead," Missy's voice got twangier and began to hiss through her teeth faster, "she decided to upgrade him like he was a damned car. Take out the cassette player and put in satellite radio or something. You," she pointed to Penny, "came home and found out what had happened, took the boys in, and have been lookin' after them ever since. You," she indicated Stephanie, "were Shelly's doctor, still are I guess, and you're helping' Penny. Right?"

Stephanie nodded . "Yes. Now, those three dummies are supposed to be working on a cure. Some way to reverse this, but truthfully, we don't know if they can. They were initially only trying to modify the guys mentally. They were so intent on getting it done without anyone finding out what they were up to, they didn't spend time double checking their work. They thought themselves too smart to screw up. Bernadette's not even really sure how much of her own chemical was used. They have no idea if any external factors may have affected the boys."

Missy shook her head with confusion. "I don't understand even half of that." She felt a tug on her pants leg and looked down at the chubby dark skinned boy with a riot of curls. He held up his hands and whimpered. Missy reached for a couple of grapes from the fruit bowl and held them out for Raj before sending him back to the couch.

Penny reached over to tousle his hair as he walked by. "It means we may never figure out how to return them to adults. They may have to re-grow up," she said sadly.

"Shit," Missy murmured. She stood and smoothed the slacks she was wearing over her hips. "If you two will excuse me, I need to speak with Shelly's creepy girlfriend."

Missy walked to the kitchen table and opened her purse. As soon as Penny saw what she was reaching for, she darted across the room and snatched it from the Texas beauty's hands. "Okay, I get the urge, I really do. But you can't taser anyone. Not yet, anyway."

Missy glared at her. "They screwed with MY BROTHER!"

Stephanie nodded. "Yes, they did. And they will pay for it. But, unfortunately, we need them. They are the only ones who know about the drugs they used, and we need them to try and reverse this."

Penny slipped the taser into her pocket and sat back down at the island. Missy opened her mouth to argue but a small hand slipped into hers. She looked down at Sheldon who was sucking on his thumb. He laid his head against her thigh and whimpered. Missy knelt and pulled him into a loose hug. He surprised her by hugging her tightly around the neck.

Missy looked up at the other two women with a sigh. "Okay. I'll let it slide. For now."

"I do have a solution to our most pressing problem, though," Stephanie said calmly. "I called up my uncle and told him we had temporary custody of a couple of children and needed a larger place to stay until they could be returned to their parents. He had his lawyer drop off the keys to his house. Uncle Clarence only stays there in the winter, and he said we can use it for as long as we need. The backyard is large, and has an 8 foot security fence. Pool, laundry room, 5 bedrooms, and a fully stocked kitchen."

Penny felt relieved. Her little apartment was no place for kids, and they were very cramped in this tiny space. "How soon can we move in?"

"Tomorrow. I'm borrowing a van from one of the lab techs at work. It will make it easier and faster to move what we want."

Missy hugged Sheldon again and released him so he could go back to watching tv. "I should call Mom," she said finally.

Penny bit her bottom lip. "Okay," she said slowly, "I'm not saying that's a bad idea. But Missy, that's a really horrible idea. Think about it. One, can your mom handle this knowledge? Two, will she be a help, or will she go Mommie Dearest on Leonard, Amy and Bernadette?"

"Perhaps they could use a bit of Mommie Dearest," Stephanie muttered.

Missy shook her head. "No, she wouldn't do that. But you've never seen a Texas momma with a mad on. It wouldn't be pretty." Missy sighed and looked over at her little brother. "Okay, so no calling Mom. Listen, other than a bit of babysitting when I was a teen, I know little about taking care of kids."

Stephanie shrugged. "I've dealt with them at work, but that's it." Both women looked at Penny.

"I used to baby-sit my niece and nephew. Until I told my sister 'I love kids. They're great barbecued'. After that she was hesitant about leaving them with me." Penny stood and walked over to pull three sippy cups from the fridge. She grabbed a couple of cans of spaghetti O's from the cabinet and started to open them. Missy and Stephanie looked at each other and smiled slightly. They watched Penny move on autopilot.

"Look, people raise kids all the time. Surely we can too," Penny said as she placed the pot on the stove and started heating it up. She took the cups over to the coffee table and turned off the tv. The boys groaned and she patted Howard's head gently.

"Besides," Penny said as she returned to the kitchen to check on the food, "it's not like we're actually raising them. Surely Leonard and the girls will find a cure, right?"

Stephanie watched Penny spoon the lunch into little bowls. She took two and Missy took the other one. They placed them on the table for the boys while Penny cleaned up. Stephanie and Missy looked at her with a smile. Penny felt a sense of foreboding as she looked at her collaborators. "What?"

Missy shook her head with amusement. "Hello, Mommy."

Penny looked at the sponge in her hand and the clean pot in the dish drain. She looked over at the boys, eating happily. Her jaw dropped and she looked back at Missy. "Damn. How the hell did I do that?"

Stephanie stood and grinned. "For now, let's get some things packed up. We can worry about the details later, okay?"

Penny ran a hand across her eyes and sighed. Only two days and she was already starting to act like June Cleaver.

AN: For those who asked where this fits in the timeline, it doesn't. For those who say "I just can't see Bernadette doing this", this is my story, my rules. I'm not wasting my time justifying it to anyone.