A/N: Here comes the new chapter! I'm not sure it's going to answer your questions but it gives us some Shamy perspective, so I hope you'll like it.

Extra large thanks to Katie who took time in the middle of all her packing to read and correct this!


Chapter Six

The French Nonsense Recurrence


When Claire Marchand had been told she'd be introduced to her boyfriend's roommate, she probably hadn't expected to meet the most stubborn scientist this side of the Atlantic. "A PhD in French literature? Really? That's what passes as important these days?" Sheldon had said in lieu of greetings, while Leonard had looked close to jumping out of the window. She had simply smiled, though, and told Sheldon that surely someone as clever as him could not ignore the "incredible power of words." Sheldon had merely rolled his eyes, but Claire had insisted that words were the most powerful weapons in the world, that they had the power to heal wounds they had opened only moments earlier, that they could spark wars and save lives, that they could build a civilization in a heartbeat and destroy it just as quickly. Sheldon, of course, had laughed. Words were just that – words. Literature paraded as an important matter, when it really was just the nest of people with too much ego and not enough brain, the nest of people who wished they were important but could not begin to grasp the splendor of science.

Claire had looked at him silently for several minutes, and then she had said "One day, you'll see." She then had grabbed Leonard's hand, they'd gone out on their date, and two weeks and three encounters with Sheldon later, Leonard's relationship with a woman who had a PhD in French literature of all things ended just as abruptly and inexplicably as it had begun. Life had gone on, and Sheldon had forgotten all about Claire Marchand, her French accent and her red glasses – saved for that time Penny had cornered him in the laundry room and asked "Has Leonard ever been involved with someone who wasn't a brainiac?"

Until he met Amy.

"Now, before this goes any further, you should know that all forms of physical contact up to and including coitus are off the table."

One sentence. It had taken one sentence – twenty four words – to tilt his world off its (straight, linear, controlled) axis. He hadn't known, at first, how much these words would change his life – and for the longest time, he had refused to acknowledge that Amy's words had been the reason why he'd let her into his life at all. "It's not what she said – it's why she said it. She knows, that it's more important to learn and know than it is to kiss and cuddle. I'm not relieved to see that I'm finally, finally proven not to be the only one to think this way – I'm pleased to see that other people know."

As he'd gotten to know Amy, words became harder to ignore. Sometimes Sheldon thought back on that one word that had completely turned his life upside down. "Fascinating." Amy had kissed him, rubbing her germs all over his mouth, and he hadn't cared. It had been fascinating. Of all the words known to man, that had been the one to escape his lips before he could even realize he was speaking. The English language was home to words like "disgusting," "revolting," and "nonsensical," but he'd gone with "fascinating." It had been properly terrifying for a while; not understanding where that word had come from, and then he'd had to face the truth.

"My groin's a little worse for wear," Leonard had said, and "He went out for coffee... with a girl," that Dale character had giggled, and Sheldon's body had been swept under a wave of rage. He had thought back on his argument with Claire, that morning in the shower after he karate chopped, and that evening in his bed after he played Mystic Warlords of Ka'a with the guys. "Some day, someone's going say something that is going to make you finally want to stop living your life to its fullest," she had said, and as he had been scrubbing his body and tossing and turning in his bed, he had realized – that was it.

"Amy, will you be my girlfriend?" Sheldon had swallowed hard, the words choking in his throat, and yet, the moment they had rolled off his tongue, they had tasted like the most natural thing in the world. And when Amy had answered, he had remembered Claire's words. "Sometimes, a single word can become the best thing that has ever happened to you," she had said, and when Amy had nodded and murmured "Yes," Sheldon had been forced to admit that Claire had been right – yes was the single greatest word in the English language.

Sheldon had finally understood – words were all Amy and he had. Because they didn't kiss, or hold hands, and words were the basis of their relationship, the foundations on which lay the happiest years of his life. None of their friends understood, because their relationships had a physical element to it, but Amy and Sheldon were Amy and Sheldon because of reasons that went well beyond that. Claire had been right all along, and for a while, it had been the best thing that had ever happened to Sheldon. But as it turned out, she had also been right when she had said that words could spark wars and destroy lives.

"You are not changing your field of studies."

"We were thinking maybe more of us living together with... not you."

"You and I could live together."

"I don't mean to be rude, Sheldon, but my life is kind of falling apart right now."

A chain of random unlinked events, four sentences that crystalized Sheldon's fall into madness and chaos. He had had time to think back on them, as he'd ridden trains and lived off sandwiches and cheap meals in the last four months.

He had remembered Siebert's serious face, and his voice, firm and dead set in his principles, and the way he had put his hands on his desk and leaned forward into Sheldon's space, as if to dare him to challenge him. Siebert's words had had a finality that was probably rooted in his position – he was Sheldon's boss, and he obviously counted on that to keep him in line.

He had remembered Leonard's demeanor, the way he had fidgeted on his chair as he had choked out the words, the redness of his face, the shaking of his hands. Leonard had been uneasy to tell Sheldon about his plans, until Sheldon had decided to fight back – then Leonard had taken a more assertive tone. Sheldon figured it was about time Leonard decided to fight back – truth be told, he'd been walked all over for years. But this Leonard was gone now, replaced by a walking disaster.

He had remembered Amy's eyes, soft and loving as she'd tried to reassure him. She'd told him he'd be fine on his own, and if he really couldn't do it, then she'd be happy to live with him. She'd been foolish, even though she hadn't realized that. Sheldon could not live with her, not like that – Amy could never have been a simple roommate for him. He loved kissing her, and putting his hands on her hips, and breathing in her scent, and holding her hands. God knows what more would have happened if he had been thrust into being by her side 24/7.

He had remembered Stuart's annoyance as Sheldon had made the destruction of his livelihood and home all about himself, the way he'd stood there, broom in hand, sweeping burnt debris and trying to figure out what would happen to him. Stuart hadn't understood that the destruction of his store would not affect only him, though, and it had been what had sent Sheldon over the edge.

Because none of them – not Siebert, not Leonard, not Amy, not Stuart – had understood that it was the accumulation of everything that had broken him down in that way. There had been four sentences, and Sheldon had thought all summer that if there had been only one, he would have been okay. But that was something he wasn't so sure about anymore.

"Amy is missing." That was only one sentence – three words – and yet it washed over Sheldon with more force than the rising tide, leaving him numb, his hands shaking, his legs trembling, his heart pounding.

"What?" he finally managed to choke out, and Penny's lips trembled.

"She's... well, she's not really missing – the police found her quickly after we told them she'd disappeared – but she... she told them she doesn't want us to know where she is and they had to respect that and..."

Sheldon looked at Penny without really seeing her. Amy had asked the police to keep her whereabouts a secret. It seemed so completely out of character, for the woman who he knew had craved friends her whole life, for the friend who treasured her relationship with Penny in a way that had sometimes made him resent the ex-waitress.

"Penny, what on earth happened?"

Penny breathed in – this was going to be a long tale.


A/N: The following chapters will come back on what happened in Pasadena and Glendale while Sheldon was away! You're going to start getting answers, even though I don't doubt that most of you have pretty much figured out what is going on at this point.

There will be a break of a few weeks in the publication, though. Katie is going to Europe for three weeks, and I don't want to post this story without having the chapters beta-read. Besides, I'm myself busy preparing my own trip to France in a couple of weeks. I may come up with a one-shot at some point, though - I have a stupid plot bunny that's been bugging me for a week and could write it down at some point. Not promising anything, but it could happen.

I hope you guys are still enjoying this fanfic. I'm asolutely floored and a little terrified by the popularity of this story, and I really don't want to disappoint. Thank you all so much for tuning in for each new, it means a lot. Special shout out to dranquist who managed to write reviews that are probably longer than my chapters!

See you soon, I hope!

-Marina