This is kind of a filler chapter where nothing really happens, but please bear with me.

To Leanne: I google'd Drop Dead Diva and I was literally shocked at the similarities! And thank you for that very detailed summary! From the characters to the side stories—I didn't even know a show as cool as that existed! I'm definitely looking into watching it when I have some time :-D Bailey is a bit nicer in this chapter, though, but that's mainly because I didn't put much of her perspective. And Sheldon is changing slowly and he has yet to notice that… until this chapter! Oh, but that wonderful moment with Penny won't last as the revelation is near! So near that you can taste it!

Also, the Steel Samurai and the rest of the characters are from one of my favorite games of all time, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney! I just expanded their story and went into a little more detail. And this story has reached a hundred reviews! Awesome! Thank you to all of you who constantly review, you guys rock!


If there was anything in this world that could get four grown up men to fear their lives like someone cornered by a starving lion, it would be the redheaded manager of Sunshine Fun Center.

Smiling Brenda.

"—it has been decided that Maddie will play the duck, and Andy will play the sheep."

The four men couldn't help but drown the redhead out to focus on how eerie her smile was. Like they always said, she reminded them of the Joker, except an actual one. They didn't really intend to scrutinize the kind woman (seriously) who was actually very nice to them, it was just that her smile was so disturbing. It was impossible to not notice. Comparing it to other smiles, it really wasn't too different, but once you saw her doing it, it would be inevitable to not get bothered by it. Her normal smiling face was usually a tight lipped one that was probably because her lips were just... naturally smiling. Her smile was actually nice—if she had other facial expressions. Smiling Brenda's facial expressions were divided into two categories; creepy smile and plaguing smile. The creepy smile was the one she had on whenever she was talked to, and when she wasn't talking to anyone. The plaguing smile was actually her cheshire grin that further accentuated the curve at each end of her lips that made it so... creepy. Like the wide smiles that the creepy cartoon cats had. What really made it eerie was the fact that she never stopped smiling.

Leonard theorized that she was just a generally happy person.

Howard tried to point out that smiling Brenda only smiled like that to them, as everyone else didn't seem to be bothered by it.

Raj commented that it really just was the smiling quality that the curve of her mouth had.

Sheldon reasoned that it was the reason of his nightmares, and tried convincing one of them to anger the redhead to see if her smile would falter even for a bit.

They all rejected the idea, as Raj said something about how the happiest people were normally the ones who were dying inside. That brought the four of them to think of various scenarios that would stem from one of them angering the calm lady. There was of smiling Brenda (Leonard's idea) stalking them back to their houses and hiding in their showers with a kitchen knife, waiting for them before ruthlessly killing each of them. Then there was one where smiling Brenda (Howard's idea) would give them each a video tape of something that she was involved with, and once they watched it, they would get haunted by something for seven days before smiling Brenda comes out of the television still smiling on the seventh day. Then there was one where smiling Brenda (Raj's idea) would get furious yet still retain the smile on her face while swearing at them. Then there was one where smiling Brenda (Sheldon's idea) wouldn't react at all—while really seething on the inside—and everywhere they go, hiding in the shadows and making them feel anxious; then when night time falls, smiling Brenda would somehow simultaneously appear from their own shadows, reaching out to turn them to face her—forcing them to see her grin that has blood oozing out from her teeth before stabbing them on the stomach with a rusty knife that will lead to their untimely death.

Though the three wondered how Sheldon even got an idea as horrifying as that, they all found themselves tossing and turning the following night. Dreams of all four of their predictions plagued their slumber, which was what was making them eye the redhead cautiously. She was actually really nice, but their poor judgement wasn't making them see that, right now.

"—we will provide the costumes for the play, so none of you have to worry about anything." Smiling Brenda smiled at them (when did she not) then glanced over her shoulder to look at the whiteboard. "The play will be sometime next week, or so. But, there really isn't anything to worry—the twins are doing great!"

Maddie nodded in agreement, twisting her body from Leonard's arms to turn to the other adults. "Maddie good at quack!" She took a deep breath before imitating the animal she was going to play, "quack! Quack, quack, quack!"

Andy huffed from Raj's arms, crossing his arms, "Andy want to be duck. Andy da seep." He had on a bitter frown as he did his own set of animal sounds, "bah, bah. No fun."

"There's an H in shee—ow!" Sheldon glared at Leonard who was sending him a look of disapproval.

"If you're wondering," the redhead piped in, "they really won't be doing the animal noises. Their play mostly consists of them doing a couple of gestures along to Old McDonald. They're not really going to do the animal noises, but we teach them the animal sounds, anyway." Smiling Brenda widened her smile, directing it towards the twins. "They've already memorized majority of the routine! Well, it consists mostly of waving Maddie's arms, flailing and waddling, while Andy's steps are practically only of him on all fours and swaying a bit—but compared to the other toddlers, they've really got the steps down pat!"

Maddie folded her arms then started flapping her hands. "Quack, quack!"

Andy grumbled a bit, then swayed in Raj's arms, "bah."

Smiling Brenda's eyes lit up, "see? They've got it down pat!"

Howard leaned towards Sheldon, lowering his voice, "is it just me, or is she just happy in everything she does—in a creepy way?"

Sheldon cocked an eyebrow, surveying smiling Brenda's unmoving smile as she conversed with Leonard and Raj about the upcoming play. "I will not agree nor disagree with what you said as I fear that she might turn to talk to me if I do. However, I do believe that—while doing this in a way that does not mention said person whatsoever to avoid a Beetlejuice scenario—I feel an ominous shiver run through my body each time that said person directs said person's attention towards me." The two men shuddered at the thought of smiling Brenda talking to them when they already evaded the terrifying smile. It was a hypothesis between the two of them, that whenever they mentally mentioned the redhead's name or so much as thought of her, she would turn to them to plague them with her smile. Which was why they were giving zero effort in trying to join in the conversation.

Then something miraculous happened.

"Oh, Brenda!" One of the teachers called, trotting up to the redhead. "There's a problem."

Smiling Brenda turned her body slightly to look at the brunette, her smile smaller, yet still there. "What's wrong?"

"Remember the air vent that wasn't working that we kept on asking the janitor to fix?" Smiling Brenda nodded. "Well, we asked him to fix it yesterday, but it turns out that he didn't. It's really humid in the Clear Sky room, and it was a good thing that all of the students already went home."

For the first time ever, smiling Brenda's smile dropped and was replaced with an ominous frown that was absolutely terrifying the four men. "What? I told him to get it fixed yesterday, and he said that he did!" She hissed, clucking her tongue in irritation. "I'll talk to him, don't worry." Her frown lifted as she turned back to the frightened men, sending them a non-creepy smile. "If you'll excuse me, I have to settle something." She gave the brunette a look that told her to follow her. "Bye, Andy and Maddie! See you soon!" With a wave, the redhead spun on her heels and marched past them towards a different hallway.

"Did you see that?" Howard shrieked, struggling to keep his voice low do that no one else in the building can hear him. "She frowned!"

Sheldon let out a breath, still startled at what had just happened. He gripped the strap of his messenger bag, shifting his eyes to Howard. "I am questioning my sanity if what just happened was real or a simple illusion, but as I can feel my hand pressing against my strap as I grip it, I am not dreaming—nor is it an illusion or a hallucination—therefore that just happened."

Raj blinked ten times, then searched the room for the redhead. "That just happened cause I didn't drink anything, and I was seriously just waiting for her smile to drop the entire time. And it happened! Plus, her frowning is actually scarier than her smile!"

"I have to agree with Raj," mumbled Leonard, his free hand grasping his chin in thought. "Her frowning was so much scarier than her everlasting smile. In fact, it's so scary that I don't even mind her smiling anymore. Her smile even seems pleasant now that we've seen her dark side." The four men all nodded in agreement, causing Andy to send his twin a quizzical look from his position in Raj's arms.

The four men all stood in the middle of Sunshine Fun Center's lobby, probing how terrifying smiling Brenda's unhappy expression was. Though they were creeped out by the smiling woman, they were accustomed to her smile. It was already expected of her to smile all the time, even if it did give them nightmares. With them finally proving that smiling Brenda did have another expression other than smiling, her smiling face seemed less... creepy. It still crawled under their skin, causing goosebumps and shivers to run down their spines, but it no longer made them fear their life. Or the shower. Or the shadows. Now, she was just kinda creepy.

"So," Raj started, tearing each of them from their thoughts regarding the redhead. "How about we go clear our thoughts and get some cookies?" Sheldon sent him a scathing look. "No, no, wait and listen. I was roaming around the internet when I saw this article about this patisserie in Los Angeles that supposedly makes some of the best pastries out there! They first started out in Cupcake Wars, and after they won, they ventured out to making cookies and stuff. I saw the reviews, and they were great! They were even featured on the Today show!"

"Hmm," Sheldon hummed disapprovingly, "getting featured in a television show is already discrediting, but joining a televised contest that does not make full use of said patisserie's abilities and over exaggerates the terms of the challenge is much worse. Are you sure that they're supposedly one of the best out there?"

"Well, for one, they made C3P0 cookies for one of the challenges..." Raj mused, raising a curious eyebrow at Sheldon who looked interested. "And they made a Death Star display for the final challenge, which was for a celebrity's Star Wars themed party."

"Det Stah!" Maddie chirped, grinning widely. "Maddie want Det Stah, peas!"

"Is C3P0 the only character they design?" Sheldon questioned.

"Dude, the owner is a major Star Wars fan! There's loads of Star Wars themed food!" Raj nodded happily in response, making Sheldon's frown lift, but not too much. "Fine, but if this proves to not be as good as you thought, I get the right to say I told you so. I am only agreeing to this as I am curious, nothing more."

Sheldon gestured to the exit before leading them out of the establishment.

Howard chuckled to Leonard, "leave it to George Lucas to get Sheldon to do something." The three men all laughed together, until Sheldon barked that they get moving.


"I told you so," hissed Sheldon as they stood at the very end of the line in front of the store. "If we simply returned home, this wouldn't happen."

Raj sighed, counting the number of people in front of them. "There's only a line because the food is so good! They don't just serve desserts, they have full course meals, too!"

Leonard noticed how Sheldon's eyes ticked, which did not mean anything good. "Sheldon, calm down. Raj's right, there wouldn't be a line if the food wasn't good." The line moved, and three sets of people entered the corner brownstone store. It was actually a pretty nice place; it was the corner store and had it's own outdoor seating. With the way people were flowing in and out, the food must really be good. "Look, the line just moved!" He pushed the twins' stroller and took ten steps forward. There were only five groups of people left. "The line's moving pretty quickly."

Howard stuffed his hand in his pockets as he stood beside Sheldon, "I just saw a lava cake with sparklers on top come out of that restaurant. That has to mean that it's good!"

"But with this line, it will be impossible to enjoy the food whilst thinking about how long we stood here before we even got to get our order!" The theoretical physicist huffed, sending a glare to all five groups in front of them. Had they not chose to dine here, he wouldn't have to deal with a stupid line. He had other things to do that was more important than buying frilly cakes and tea; like solving the questions of the universe that he would one day answer. "Think of this, there are five sets of people in front of us; the first having three people, the second having two, the third having five, the fourth having three and the fifth having two and one infant. Let's suppose that there are around five tables that can seat five people each inside, that means that twenty five people can dine inside. Then there are four table outside here that can hold four people each, and as we can see, are all full. The precious two sets of people had two people each, and as we do not know how many people are actually inside, let's say that they cannot find a table. There is a ten-to-one table ratio, and seeing the pace that people eat, it will take at least half an hour before a table clears up." The three men silently nodded, following Sheldon's train of thought. "Therefore, there are nineteen of us—excluding the twins—and zero tables left, which mea—"

"I thought I recognized that condescending voice," a familiar voice remarked, successfully interrupting Sheldon and causing him to scowl in frustration. Sheldon turned around to see Penny's dark haired friend, smirking as she made her way towards them.

"Oh my god, it's Bailey Mckenzie from Halfway There!"

"Wow, she's so tall in person!"

"And she's so pretty! The rumors are true, she looks great even without makeup!"

"I can't believe she's standing right in front of me! I'm such a fan of her show!"

Bailey raised an eyebrow, glancing at the gushing customers then back at Sheldon and his friends. "Wait right there, I just need to do something." Her expression changed from her usual haughtiness to a seemingly genuine happy one as she trotted over to the people in front of the line who kept calling her for photographs.

"How is it that she's nice to them, yet not to me?" Sheldon spat, deeply frowning as he watched the annoying woman happily take pictures with her supposed fans and talking to them nicely. She even dropped her usual snarky tone as she conversed with the various people hugging her and taking pictures with her.

Leonard shrugged, "I think she's nice. She's actually really nice, you know." The theoretical physicist sent him a look of disgust. "I'm serious! You just don't see it cause you react so negatively around her all the time. She even posed for a picture with all three of us twelve times so that we could make a calendar. Anyone who'd have the patience to do that isn't as bad as you'd think."

Sheldon shook his head in disbelief at the experimental physicist who was clearly out of his mind. It might have been a side effect of seeing smiling Brenda frown. He turned back at Penny's friend who was smiling happily as she took a picture with a fan, then gave the fan a hug, then signed the notebook that was held out to her. After a minute or so, Bailey reached the group of people who were standing in front of them in line and proceeded to take pictures with all of them before heading back to them. He found it somewhat amazing how the people recognized Bailey even with her large sunglasses—had he not had an eidetic memory that recalled the actress' voice and facial structure, he wouldn't have known that it was her. He briefly wondered if Penny dealt with being recognized all the time. If Bailey was immediately swarmed by excited fans, then there was no doubt about it that the blonde was, too. Then he wondered if the twins were ever subjected to swarming fans whenever they and their mother were out doing menial tasks. It must have been exhausting for all of them.

"Sorry about that," the actress said, her tone making her sound sincere instead of her usual condescension. "I don't like ignoring fans." She let out a cool breath before smoothing down the bottom part of her black trench coat and readjusting her dark orange scarf that hung on her shoulders. "So, where were we?" Bailey pursed her lips in thought, then raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah. What are all of you doing here?"

"We're here to try one of the supposedly best pastries out here, as Raj claims." Sheldon answered stoically, jerking his head towards Raj's direction. "They say one of the best pastries, I refute it and say that it has one of the longest, most insufferable lines I've ever had to endure."

Raj pouted moving over to Howard who frowned. "Raj said that you haven't even tried the food yet, and yet you're already so critical." Raj whispered something again. "And that it has to be good for it to have a line."

Bailey blinked, "is that the only reason why Mr. Genius is acting all annoyed?"

The three men nodded while Sheldon growled, "it's Doctor!"

The dark haired actress nonchalantly smiled, ignoring Sheldon's protest. "Oh. Well it's your lucky day, I'm actually here cause Sparkly asked me to meet him here." She eyed the stroller thar had the sleeping twins in it. "He's been here since an hour ago, and he's pretty mad cause I'm late. I'm sure that seeing the twins will get me a fast pass to forgiveness." She placed a hand on the stroller and gestured for them to follow her, "come on. Knowing Sparkly, he's probably at a table by his lonesome self thinking of what pastry won't ruin his figure."

Leonard gingerly looked around, trying to check if any of the people in line were mad that they had gotten a fast pass inside. "Uh, Bailey, are you sure it's okay to cut in line?"

Bailey glanced over her shoulder, "yeah. For one, Gregg and I know the owner, plus we're regular customers, so we don't really wait in line when we eat here. They just kind of usher us to a table. And, like I said, Gregg always has a whole table to himself, and I don't think he'd mind you guys joining—he'd actually be ecstatic. He loves company. Oh, and if they were to get mad at you, they should be mad at Gregg for holding up a table that could seat a new group of people for an hour that's effectively ruining the flow of people getting inside to eat then leaving so that new people can sit down and eat." She opened the outdoor seating area's door with her free hand, then pushed the twins' stroller inside.

Howard's mouth fell slightly agape at what Bailey said, then turned to Leonard and Raj. "Remember when we said that Amy was too much like Sheldon?" The two nodded. "Well, we were wrong. It's really Bailey, except she's the much tolerable version of Sheldon."

"She is nothing like me," protested Sheldon who stopped in his tracks just to glare at them. "If you ask me, she's more like Missy, but she is nothing like me. I'd have to lose four inches and a handful of braincells to be like her."

"Hey!" Bailey called from the door, a small frown on her face. "Are you coming or not?"

"Demanding," Raj mumbled as the four of them stalked towards the impatient dark haired actress. "Just like Sheldon."

Bailey waited for them to get inside then gestured for them to follow her to a booth at the very end of the restaurant, where a thoughtful Gregg sat, staring down at the menu. "Look at him. He's probably been doing that the entire time that he's been here, which has been over an hour." They moved in front of the table, and Gregg simply ignored them. "See? He's just sitting there, going through the special menu that lists all of the nutrition facts that each pastry has." Bailey stared at Gregg for another moment before snapping her fingers, "Gregory, hey! I'm here!"

Slowly, Gregg's head lifted and instead of his usual charming smile, there was a deep venomous frown on his face.

"Yeah, yeah, you're mad that I'm late," Bailey started, holding her hands up in defense, "but I had to finish that Mexican soap opera that I'm closely following. Miguel just cheated on Anita with Teresa, and Anita's getting back at him by going out with Alonzo. It's pretty intense, if you ask me."

Gregg gave her a look of disbelief then gasped at the sight of the four men awkwardly standing behind Bailey. "Oh, hey! You guys are here." He searched around before noticing the stroller at the front of the table that sat two sleeping toddlers. "And the twins! Bailey, why didn't you tell me you were bringing them here?" He gestured towards the empty seats then patted the one beside him. "Sit! Then order anything you want that you think won't ruin your figure!"

Leonard, Raj and Howard occupied the booth opposite Gregg, while Bailey took a seat beside her friend, leaving the solo chair for Sheldon to sit on.

Sheldon stared at the wooden chair with disgust then grabbed the wipes from his bag, and proceeded to furiously wipe the seat of the chair until it sparkled.

"If what I think he's doing is true," Gregg said, watching the physicist bend down to wipe the chair clockwise. "Then Penny's stories are spot on. He's really interesting!"

The standing physicist dragged a finger down the seat then scrutinized the pad of his finger. Huffing, he sat down on the chair and frowned. "This is less than satisfactory, but I have an inkling feeling that those booths' cushions are far worse than the uncomfortable solid surface of this wooden chair." He wiggled his bottom against the surface, "it is impossible to find a proper spot. How disappointing, but this will do." He gave each of them a forced smile, then pulled the double stroller beside him.

"Okay, now that Sheldon's settled, why don't we order?" Gregg offered, smiling at the still awkward looking men. "Have you guys had lunch? Are you hungry for dinner or just a snack? The food is great, but the desserts are better."

Bailey's eyes scanned the menu before roughly passing it to Sheldon, who sent her a glare. "Gregg and Raj weren't lying. They have great desserts here and have a great variety of it, too. Do you guys have anything in mind? I recommend everything in the menu except their triple chocolate cake. It's so sweet that two bites might get you a shoo in for diabetes." She waved her hand up, calling on a waiter to get their order. It took a second before the waiter arrived, but not before asking the two actors to sign his notepad. "I'll have the blueberry cheesecake, two mini servings of apple strudel—preferably sliced horizontally into bite sized pieces—earl grey tea and Gregg will have the carrot cake. And a bottle of water for everyone." Her eyes shifted to the men sitting in front of her. "What will you guys have?"

"I'll have the slice of apple pie, the special tea," Sheldon stoically said, handing the menu to the waiter. "And the Chewbacca chewy cookies."

Leonard cleared his throat, and did what Sheldon did, "I'll have the apple pie, as well." Raj leaned over to him to whisper. "Raj will have a platter of the Java the Hutt cookies, and what will you have, Howard?" The engineer took one last glance at the menu before sliding it down to Sheldon who gave it to the waiter. "I'll try the brownies—without nuts, please. I'm allergic."

Andy slowly opened his eyes, yawning softly as he took in his surroundings. Once he realized that he was somewhere he didn't know, he turned his head towards his twin, roughly smacking his hand in her arm to wake her up. "Maddie! Maddie! Wake up!"

Maddie—who was cherishing her nap—opened a single blue eye at her brother and grumbled. "Maddie seeping. Go away."

"Maddie," Andy cried, still unable to comprehend why they were in a different place. "We not at sun-sine cen-tah!"

Sheldon ignored Gregg and Bailey's conversation about whether or not carrot cake would ruin his diet and tilted his head down to see Andy desperately waking his twin up. "Andy," he called, getting the restless toddler's attention, "why are you waking your sister up?" The toddler grinned at the sight of their temporary de-facto guardian and lifted his arms up. Complying, Sheldon unbuckled his seatbelt and lifted Andy to the empty space beside Bailey.

"—but I've been going on a strict diet for a week, now, and I think all of these might break that."

"Then why did you ask me to meet you here, in the first place?" Bailey hissed before feeling something tugging on the sleeve of her coat. Turning to her left, she saw Andy staring up at her with happy blue eyes. "Andy, you're awake!" She quickly picked the toddler up and placed him on her lap, "I got you and your sister's favorites! Apple strudel!"

"You like apple strudel?" Sheldon asked to the toddler, who nodded in response. "Aun-teh Bay-wee and Uncah Gwegg ah-ways give Andy, Maddie and mommy ah-pah stoo-dah!"

There was a shuffling noise coming from the stroller, and Sheldon peeked to see that Maddie was awake. Unbuckling the seat belt, he lifted Maddie from the stroller and placed her on the empty space beside Bailey. The toddler's nose barely reached the table, and Sheldon sighed, picking her back up and placing her on his right lap. He normally didn't like either of the toddlers touching him too long, but he did not trust the booster seats or the highchairs in the restaurant. Knowing toddlers that he did not know, they would most definitely had slobbered all over the trays of the highchairs as well as dumping their food on them. Then those booster seats were abused by various children who no longer fit in a highchair who had accidents, and he was sure that the staff never did anything to sanitize them. He was not risking the chance of Maddie (and Andy) getting infected by the bacteria that swarmed those chairs and thus, he would make a sacrifice. He would allow Maddie—this once—to sit on his wonderful lap. Like a child foolishly sitting on Santa's lap thinking that they would get a present if they believed in Saturnalia.

Sheldon barely noticed Leonard, Howard and Raj exchange looks as he shifted Maddie on his lap. "Good afternoon, it seems you've finally woken up," he greeted the still drowsy toddler who had tilted her head all the way back to look up at him through sleepy eyes. If Maddie continued to stay in that position, her neck might get stiff, and that was not good. He gently pushed her head back to it's normal position, and noticed the questioning glances that his friends—Bailey and Gregg were still arguing about the carrot cake—were sending him. He raised an eyebrow as the waiter returned with all of their orders and placed each in front of them. Once the waiter left (and Bailey and Gregg were still arguing) he sent them a withering look before dragging a plate of sliced apple strudel. "Bailey said that you liked this."

"—the carrot cake's already here, Gregg!" Bailey growled in annoyance, taking the other plate of apple strudel and sliding it in front of Andy. "So, eat it or else."

Gregg grumbled, dramatically raising his hand to meld back a stray hair that hung above his eyebrows. "I have to retain the figure, Bailey. I didn't work out all week just to lose to sweets." He protruded his lips as he picked his fork up and shoveled into the carrot cake and took a bite. "There isn't any flavor! I should have gotten the red velvet one. Oh! Screw the diet!" Gregg pushed the plate away from him and stabbed his fork in Bailey's cheesecake and took a bite. "Yup. Bon Voyage diet, and bye bye Steel Samurai costume."

"Steel Samurai?!" The three men gasped in shock, while Raj squeaked.

"Uncah Gwegg da Steh Sam-wai!" Andy chirped before taking a bite of an apple strudel piece.

"You're the Steel Samurai?!" The three men exclaimed, eyes wide and mouths agape while Raj squeaked, again.

Gregg glanced at Bailey who was eating the cheesecake, barely paying attention to the new conversation. "Yeah, I've been playing the Steel Samurai even before I got my breakthrough role in Lies and A Truth. I haven't quit the show, ever since" The four men's—even stoic Sheldon—mouths dropped in awe. "That's why I've been trying to maintain my diet. I'm afraid that I won't be able to fit in my costume, anymore."

The Steel Samurai: Warrior of Neo Olde Tokyo was a live-action adaptation of a famous anime called Meta Brothers that was a spinoff of a famous visual novel-slash-game. But unlike the original anime, the show was centered around the Steel Samurai and his quest to defend his country from the evil Evil Magistrate. Alongside him was his side kick, the Jamming Ninja, a ninja who had an enchanting singing ability that could get animals to join forces with him, who was also on a mission to save his beloved Princess Misola that the Evil Magistrate often kidnapped. Another lead character was the Steel Samurai's rival turned friend, the Pink Princess that often brought along her adopted younger brother, the Nickel Samurai, that was searching for his long lost metal brothers, Aluminum and Tin Samurai. The show was originally intended to be a children's show, but it turned out to be widely famous to all ages and had garnered a large cult following that allowed the show to expand vastly. Now, there were video games, toys, apparel, board games, food, memorabilia, themed household items and even an upcoming movie.

"Da Steh Sam-wai da best!' Maddie commented, biting down on a big piece of strudel that smeared the corners of her mouth.

Sheldon cringed from above her head and immediately grabbed a napkin to wipe the sauce and the crumbs off of her mouth. It was annoying how much the toddler was like her mother with her knack of disorganization, and eating like a slob. Andy usually ate properly while Maddie often made a mess. She didn't throw her food like what other toddlers did, she was just a really messy eater. Spilled milk from her cereal, spilled juice even from her sippy cup, spilled oatmeal, droppings of pieces of food—it was endless, and like always, reminded him of their mother. Well, Penny did it on purpose to annoy him, and he doubt that Maddie was as taunting as the older blonde. Unless, Penny had corrupted her children beforehand into irritating him by eating messily like she had before—but, he doubted that Penny would be crafty enough to think of doing that. She could have, but there really was no point of making her children do it unless she could see it. "Yes, that's nice. Now, don't talk with your mouth full."

"I can't believe I'm talking to the Steel Samurai!" Howard remarked, a wide grin on his face as he turned to Leonard and Raj then to Gregg who had an amused look on his face. "You don't understand, we're all fans of the show! Even Sheldon! We have countless merchandise, and we haven't missed a single episode. Anime and live action western version!"

Sheldon looked up from Maddie, nodding in agreement. "Even I appreciate the wonderful work that is the Steel Samurai: Warrior of Neo Olde Tokyo. We've been fans since it became the anime spin off and the live action one you're currently starring in. We have trading cards, costumes, board games, video games, toys, apparel, collectible plastic replicas of the weaponry, and everything else we can get our hands on." He pulled his phone from his pocket, unlocking it and showing Gregg his wallpaper. "My favorite character is the Evil Magistrate. See? He's my wallpaper. You're Raj's." He pointed a finger towards the astrophysicist who was grinning as he lifted his phone that showed his Steel Samurai wallpaper. "Told you."

Gregg laughed light heartedly, ignoring the annoyed look that Bailey was sending him. "I didn't think that you guys—or any adult—would know the show. The set is right next to the Halfway There set, so the twins watch us film all the time." The four men's mouths dropped, again. "Our set can be visited if you take the tour, but it was always parents and their kids. I've never even seen an adult who likes our show," the flamboyant man admitted, rubbing a hand on the back of his neck. "I've seen the articles about the large cult following, but I've never believed that adults actually like our show."

Bailey lifted an eyebrow, taking one last bite of her cheesecake before sending her best friend a bored expression. "I just realized, you never told me why you wanted me to meet you here,"

Gregg knitted his brows in confusion, trying to think of why he really asked his irritable friend to meet him. His eyes wandered towards the twins who were happily eating their apple strudel, and he suddenly remembered what he had forgotten. "That's right! Bailey, I actually called you here to get you to call them here." He raised a hand and gestured to the four men, then turned back to his friend. "And I must ask, how were you able to sense what I wanted and took one step ahead of me?"

"I just saw them standing outside and asked them to come with me," answered Bailey with an uninterested tone, "I didn't really know anything about what you wanted me to do."

Gregg nodded ecstatically, clapping his hands together and turning to the four men. "You see, The Steel Samurai: Warrior of Neo Olde Tokyo, is having this meet and greet event that we're holding at the studio." The four men's eyes lit up in excitement in what they were about to hear. "It's a tour at the set, then a meet and greet with the cast, then a special show will be performed that will be aired as our show's hundredth episode. It's an open event, and is going to be really fun—and I wanted to get Bailey to inform you about it so that the twins can come. Are you guys free to bring the twins at our studios on Saturday? I promise to give you a fun time."

"Are you kidding?" Leonard asked, still in awe at the fact that they were talking to the actual Americanized version of the live action adaptation of the original anime. "We'll make our schedules free! Are adults allowed to join?"

"Of course! Everyone of all ages can come if they want to." Gregg shrugged, combing his hands through his hair and brushing it upwards. "I'll give you guys my number so that we can contact each other." He grabbed a pen from his bag, then scribbled his number on a napkin and handed it to Raj who was close to fainting from sheer excitement. "Can you make it there by ten o' clock? I know it's early, but I have a feeling that there's going to be a long line." Sheldon's excitement quickly dropped off the face of the planet at the mention of the line, and Gregg chuckled. "Relax, Sheldon. I'll make sure that you don't have to go through any lines." The physicist perked up, and continued on eating his pie. "Besides, I think you won't have any trouble getting in the studios. The guards at the entrance actually knows the twins since they've had a few adventures around the backlot, that caused Penny to get paranoid and called the assistance of security."

Bailey sullenly nodded, taking a sip of her tea, "it's happened so many times that there isn't a single security personnel that can't recognize them from a mile away. Now, whenever the twins disappear from the set, they return about ten minutes later with one of the guards. The twins have even made friends with our neighboring sets."

"They've even made uncredited cameos in other shows because of it," Gregg added with a grin. "But anyway, as long as you can get there, I'll handle everything else. I've already talked to Penny about it beforehand, and she gave us herconsent. As long as the twins don't get their hands on the official Samurai hot dogs. Allowing them to eat even one of those will ruin their appetite," the two actors shuddered at the memory, "we learned that the hard way, and let's just say that Penny wasn't too happy." The flamboyant man then wistfully sighed in recollection, and even Bailey looked like she heavily regretted it. "Nevertheless, can I expect all of you to go?"

The three men all stared at Sheldon—who was calmly wiping his mouth—for approval. They knew that even if all three of them wanted to go and Sheldon didn't, no one would be going to the awesome meet and greet. Sheldon, too, was a huge fan of the show (he was the biggest fanboy of them all) but when he didn't feel like it, he didn't feel like it. Like when they had the symposium in San Francisco, and all of them wanted to take the plane. But, Sheldon wanted to take the train, and three against one meant they were taking the train. However, they did get to meet Summer Glau on that train, even if Howard got his phone destroyed by her—but they still got to meet her. However, there was absolutely nothing good about not going to the meet greet that would be personally escorted by the actual man who played the awesome badass ginormous fan wielding samurai that was actually one of Penny's best friend, who also happened to be a very famous man. The only good thing of not going would be the possible privilege of gloating when Sheldon realized that not going would be the mistake of a lifetime. It didn't even sound as good as it usually would, compared to the meet and greet.

Sheldon placed the napkin down, and lifted his gaze to meet his friend's anxious ones, and Gregg's questioning ones. Then he felt a hand tapping his shoulder, and he looked down to see Maddie grinning. "Sedon go, peas? Da Steh Sam-wai amah-sing! Fun!"

Andy enthusiastically nodded from Bailey's lap, "da Jam en Ninja, fun, too! Go, peas?"

There was a moment of hesitation before Sheldon remembered his life size usable Steel Samurai fan that was displayed on top of his dresser. Not only was it one of the limited five released that already gave it a high value, but getting it signed by Gregg would further heighten it's value. So will getting his rare Evil Magistrate signed. Plus, the idea of getting his picture taken in front of the various backdrops and sets would look great on his Facebook account, and for a personal calendar.

"We'll go," Sheldon collectedly answered, emitting happy responses from both his friends and the twins. "But we better not endure a line like the one we endured outside."


Leonard went over the merchandise that was spread across the coffee table as Sheldon appeared from his bedroom, carrying his own Steel Samurai items. The tall physicist was wearing his navy blue Evil Magistrate shirt over a grey long sleeved shirt that matched the yellow Steel Samurai shirt that Leonard wore under his layer of jackets. "Are you getting your Steel Samurai fan signed?"

Sheldon smirked, gently placing the merchandise on the beige armchair and dramatically pulled the fan from a linen bag that came with the fan. He spread the fan with a flick of the wrist then gracefully swung it around, imitating the Steel Samurai's signature move.

"Aerial Swing Number Six," Leonard said as his roommate continued the movement. "Originally known as the randomly named chousen nakare hitotsu, the Steel Samurai's signature move in battle."

The theoretical physicist did one final swing before returning the fan to it's bag. "Impressive, Leonard. I believe you have studied up since our past blunder in the Steel Samurai Bowl where you mistook ASN6—aka chousen nakara hitotsu—for ASN5 or originally known as asare nakara mittse, the Steel Samurai's commonly used attack to finish an irrelevant battle." He gave Leonard a tight smile then returned to placing the collectibles in his bag. "We might have a fighting chance in this year's bowl if you keep this up."

Andy watched curiously from their playpen as Leonard brought out a fork like thing (another weapon in the show) and started poking the air. "Maddie, wat Uncah Wenad doing?"

Maddie looked up from her xylophone, furrowing her eyebrows at the scene in front of them. This time, Sheldon brought out a plastic sword that was almost as long as his legs and started swinging it at Leonard, who was effectively dodging it with the giant fork. "Maddie dunno. Dat a big foh-owk."

"Leonard, give up," Sheldon said as he swung the Evil Magistrate's sword of regulation against Leonard's replica of the Nickel Samurai's two tined pitch fork like thing. "We both know that the Evil Magistrate trumps the Nickel Samurai every time they meet. Surrender now, and I—the powerful Evil Magistrate—might even tell you where your lost metal brothers are!" Leonard made a faux struggling noise before pushing the weapon upwards with all his strength, and only moving Sheldon's sword by an inch. "Oh come on! Fine, I give up!" He whimpered placing his weapon down on the coffee table and lifting both his arms in the air. "But let it be known that the Nickel Samurai will one day beat the Strawberry Clan and the Evil Magistrate."

Sheldon contently nodded, taking a seat on his spot while Leonard went to switch the tv into the Skype call to Penny. "Leonard, what do you think is more suitable—not that I really care about your opinion, I'm just torn—a Jamming Ninja or a Steel Samurai visor cap?" He held both caps in the air, "I have yet to buy an Evil Magistrate one, and both heroes effectively ruin my outfit."

Leonard glanced at the items over his shoulder then turned back to tv and using the Xbox to log on to Skype. "Why would you even wear a visor?"

"For one, it's pretty neat, and it might be sunny." Sheldon simply stated, staring at the two caps before choosing one. "I'll just wear the Steel Samurai one. Knowing Wolowitz, he'd be in full Jamming Ninja themed attire."

"That's true. I heard him talking about fixing an outfit that was the exact colors of the Jamming Ninja. White dickie and all," Leonard told him, starting a call to Penny, which she quickly picked up. "Hey Penny, how—are you sick?"

Sheldon lifted his gaze from his mint condition Steel Samurai Fighting Stance action figure and glanced up at the blonde on screen. Penny was in her hotel room; her face was flushed, with dark bags under her eyes, her eyes looked red and watery while her nose was bright red and a comforter was wrapped around her already temperature appropriate clothed body. She looked like she had gone through hell and back. Like when Leonard was supposed to got the Large Hadron Collider, and she had gotten both of them sick. She did the soup cooking and he did any medical checking. The difference was; he was not sick, and a screen, an ocean and thousands of miles away separated him from her enough to not get him sick. "Penny," he started once he found his voice, "two questions; are you sick, or have you been crying? I'd need to be in the room with you to correctly tell if you're sick, and we all know that I can't physically do that."

The blonde grabbed a tissue and blew her nose, causing Sheldon to automatically back away in horror. "I'm sick with the flu, actually," she lightly rubbed her nose with her hand and Sheldon resisted the urge to tell her not to do it. "I think I got it from one of the production staff. Or cause of all the six in the morning training we've been doing." She sniffed and took a sip from a mug, "either way, I'm sick and took the day off. So, how are all of you? I'm assuming that those things are for that kiddie show Gregg stars in? He called me up yesterday saying that you'd be coming to this meet and greet event."

"Penny," Sheldon stated, still somewhat disturbed by the fact that the blonde was sick. He knew that it was impossible to get infected through a screen, but he just couldn't help it. "The Steel Samurai: Warrior of Neo Olde Tokyo isn't just some kiddie show!" He glanced at Leonard who was subtly nodding in agreement. "It's a live action spinoff-slash-adaptation of a critically praised anime that is an adaptation from a famous gameboy and DS game, that deals with the everyday struggle of the titular hero—and his useless sidekick that does nothing but sing—in defending his city and sometimes his country from the devious, yet cunning, Evil Magistrate. Not only does the show have great effects that most live action shows fail to do, it has a realistic feel that differs it from the anime, yet still gives it it's own identity. There is a reason why it has a large cult following, and most of them are the reason why I am a fan."

"Leonard, did Sheldon really just say all that to say that he's a fan?"

The experimental physicist nodded, walking towards the playpen and unlocking it to allow the twins to talk to their mother. "Well, not in that sense. He mainly did that to refute you claim of it being some kiddie show."

"Oh. Well, he could have just said so in the first place instead of adding to this stupid headache I have." The blonde sighed, rubbing a hand at the back of her head as the twins toddled up to the camera. "Good morning, Andy, Maddie."

Andy tilted his head to the side, slightly frowning at the groggy quality of his mother's voice. "Mommy, sick?"

Penny weakly smiled, "yeah, I have the flu. But I'll be healthy again in no time—I just have to rest—and as Sheldon would say—drink plenty of fluids."

Sheldon raised an eyebrow at the screen, "of course I'd tell you to drink plenty of fluids. Why would I suggest that you drink gasses, solids or ionized plasma? Has your sickness already affected your brain, Penny?" The blonde frowned, but it didn't have the intimidating quality it used to have whenever she did not like what he said. It looked more like a tired frown, than one of disapproval. "If so, I suggest you go see the doctor immediately. I'm sure that you can search for the French translation of 'help' on Google."

"I think I can do fine by myself," commented Penny, who tiredly shook her head. "I got a check up from the on-set doctor, and she said that all I needed was rest. Something about fatigue lowering my immune system. So, I'll be fine."

Maddie gasped, shaking her head in disapproval. She may not know what 'fatigue' or 'immune system' meant but she knew that her mother was sick. And that meant one thing. "Mommy sick," the toddler proclaimed, gesturing for her twin to stand closer to her. "Andy and Maddie sing sof' kitty."

"Halt." Sheldon ordered, his voice stern and commanding. "Though I still am unsure of how exactly you children know that song—I do assume, however, that it was your mother who taught it to you—we must establish something vastly important." Both toddlers turned to him and Leonard groaned from the beige armchair. Penny had a weary expression on her face, one that told him that she didn't need his rant right now. It wasn't one of annoyance like it normally was, it was one of actual exhaustion. He then remembered her current health, and quickly back pedaled his thoughts. Suddenly, he recalled the two times that Penny took care of him when he was sick. It gave him an odd sense of nostalgia with how his eidetic memory flashed all of the memories of Penny in his head. This had started a week ago, after Penny's win, when he mentally acknowledged that he missed his former neighbor. It was sudden, but the feeling never left him.

In the two years that he hadn't seen Penny, he never so much as missed her. Kind of. He remembered her often—what couldn't he remember?—each time they played HALO or Age of Conan, and sometimes when they ate dinner and one of the three mentioned the missing presence of the blonde. Mostly, he thought of Penny when Leonard blubbered on how much he missed the blonde that Raj quickly joined in with. However, he never felt a sense of longing in any of those instances. He only actually missed her after their short conversation. Now, whenever he did something that had a tiny connection to the blonde, he couldn't resist reminiscing about the days when the blonde still forcefully inserted herself in their daily life. Laundry night, HALO night, mooching off of them, mooching off of their wifi, mooching off of their cable, her nonsensical questions and topics of discussion—and most of all, driving him to work when Leonard was either unable to, or was mad at him about something trivial. He had to take the bus whenever Leonard mysteriously disappeared, and when he came back furious at him.

He even missed the Cheesecake Factory and it's terrible service. Immediately after Penny upped and left, he proclaimed that they would never eat at the restaurant, again. The only reason they ate there was because Penny was their waitress, and only she could touch his food. There was a time when he found Bernadette okay, but then she quit and became a microbiologist that earned more money than the peanuts Howard made. Since then, he had his Tuesday burger at the quaint restaurant that Raj found, where they also bought the twins' food from. Although they had better burgers than the Cheesecake Factory (they always remembered to put the barbecue, bacon and cheese on the side, and no tomatoes) he sometimes missed having his barbecue bacon cheeseburger there, and reprimanding Penny on forgetting the menial task of not adding tomatoes in it. The Green Project did his food so well that he never had a chance to criticize it. It was impressive and saddening at the same time. Plus, they had excellent service that never slacked off.

Life without the blonde was actually easier than Leonard claimed it to be—minus the having to ride the bus to work. Their apartment no longer suffered the likes of Jersey Shore, or the Kardashians, or Penny's silly antics such as dancing. Their pantry no longer got scrounged by the blonde's mooching ways, nor did their fridge. Though, Leonard got all mopey (which was one of the main reasons why he grew a dislike for the blonde) he no longer designed his futile plans of getting Penny to fall in love with him. Or get back together with him. Raj could now speak without difficulty when at their apartment, except when Amy came over. He now became the undefeated HALO champion, and had a peaceful time at playing Age of Conan. He really didn't see the 'missing thing' that Raj and the others kept on pointing out, but looking over the past two years, again, he did notice how it was a little less lively without the blonde. Plus, when he got sick, he had to take care of himself since the others were all unreachable. He had to sing soft kitty to himself to get better, and it didn't sound as comforting as he thought.

Sheldon heaved a heavy sigh as he glanced at the twins' unsure faces, then at Penny's sickly appearance. He was growing too soft. "I—soft kitty is only for when you're sick." The twins stared up at him, waiting for what he was going to say. "Clearly, your mother is sick. Which means that you have to sing soft kitty to her."

"Sof' kitty!"

"Mommy, Andy sing sof' kitty!"

"Really?"

"What's soft kitty?" Leonard asked, his eyebrows slightly furrowed.

"It's a song for when you're sick. Don't pay much mind to it," Sheldon quickly answered, handing Leonard the rare collectible Jamming Ninja iconic red guitar that they bought together. "Should we get just the Jamming Ninja to sign this, or the whole Magatama gang?"

Maddie cleared her throat and counted to three before singing along with Andy. "Sof' kitty, wahm kitty, 'itah bah of fuh, happy kitty, seepy kitty, puh, puh, puh."

Sheldon tuned Leonard out, and listened to the mispronounced version of his sick song. He saw Penny smile warmly at them from the screen and sighed, again. He really wasn't happy that someone other than him knew the song—much less, Penny—but he supposed that he could let it go for now. He tore his gaze from the screen and caught up with Leonard's reasoning on who they should get to sign the guitar. "I must admit, you are right, getting all of the actors to sign will make it's value heighten."

"Hey, Sheldon," the blonde called, sounding much chipper than before. "Thanks for letting me hear soft kitty."

"Don't be ridiculous," the theoretical physicist huffed, handing the rest of the items to Leonard. "You are sick, and the song is befitting. I also had nothing to do with it as it was your children who sang it to you." The smile on Penny's face was irking him. "I suggest that you go and rest to further recuperate."

The blonde nodded through the screen, a smile still on her face. "Alright. I'm feeling much better now, but I'll listen to tour suggestion. I can tell that you're excited to see Gregg's show and I'm stalling you guys." She waved at the screen, and the twins waved back. "Thanks for the song, guys. I'll talk to you, soon." She sent them one last smile before disconnecting the call.

Sheldon stared at the screen for another moment before picking up the mint condition Pink Princess action figure and handing it to Leonard. "Don't forget this one. Signed Pink Princess toys are worth much more than the male warrior ones."

"Hey guys," Raj greeted as he walked through the front door, Howard trailing behind him. "Are you ready for some Steel Samurai?"

Howard grinned, gesturing to his themed outfit that consisted of a white dickie underneath a blue long sleeved shirt, over navy blue pants and red shoes. "The real life Jamming Ninja is here!" He swung the iconic red guitar from his back, and started strumming on it. "Song of Hearts; reprise!"

"Wow, you guys are really dressed up," Leonard commented, glancing at Raj's outfit that was in the colors of the Nickel Samurai. "Sheldon and I were thinking of doing that, too, but we remembered our shirts. But we got the twins to wear the Pink Princess and Jamming Ninja shirts we bought them yesterday." He zipped the bag filled the collectibles and slung the strap over his shoulder. "Sheldon, you ready to go? This is gonna be a big day!"

Sheldon stood from his spot, grabbing his own bag of items then proceeded to carry Maddie. "It's not just a big day, this will be the day that we will fight alongside the Magatama!" The four men enthusiastically raised an arm and did a battle cry that only confused both of the twins.


Bailey clucked her tongue in slight annoyance as she stood beside Gregg in front of the Steel Samurai: Warrior of Neo Olde Tokyo's studio. She did not have any intentions of going with him to the meet and greet, and instead planned to spend the day catching up to all of the shows she watched. Sadly, at nine sharp, the flamboyant man appeared in front of her doorstep—like a wild Ratata or Tentacool from Pokemon that no one wanted to encounter—excitedly demanding that she get ready to join the 'fun.' Since she was so nice, she obediently complied, but not without mocking the show he starred in.

"Do you think that they got lost?" Gregg worriedly asked, fixing a stray hair that had separated from the moussed light brown hair that was stylishly brushed upwards. Gregg was known for his great hair. "I told the guards beforehand to bring them directly here at the studio. What if they arrived early, didn't see us and went back home?"

The dark haired woman raised an eyebrow, "Sparkly, you're overreacting. It's only been ten minutes, we're not late. You're too anxious, today. You haven't had coffee, yet, have you?"

Gregg's hazel eyes flared, and Bailey sighed; whipping her phone out to text one of the staff to get her friend a cup of coffee. Whenever Gregg didn't have his early morning coffee, his dramatic perkiness died out and was replaced by dramatic crankiness. "Well maybe if you didn't take half an hour to choose an outfit from your wardrobe that consists of all black, maybe we could have gotten here earlier!"

Bailey glanced down at her outfit; a black jacket over a black turtleneck, over a pair of dark jeans. Since everyone knew that the only colors she wore was black, it meant that Gregg was getting paranoid with the way he freaked out over her choice of clothing. She changed the order of a cup of coffee to three; two for Gregg, one for her. "Hey don't put the blame on me, I'm not the one who needed to apply makeup even though he doesn't even need makeup."

"Maybe if you put some makeup on you wouldn't look like that ghost girl from the Ring!" Gregg snapped, running an agitated hand through his styled hair. He then started pacing, until the Halfway There staff member arrived with the coffee that calmed him down. After two cups, Gregg relaxed and brought out his phone. "Oh, they just texted me saying that they're here."

"You are so weird," Bailey plainly said, taking a sip of her coffee as a go,f cart arrived with the aforementioned people. "I told you we weren't late," she took one last sip before dumping the styrofoam cup into the trash. "Well, good morning to all of you," she greeted as the men hopped of the golf cart one by one then placed the stroller filled with the toddlers on the ground. The twins waved at her and Gregg, and they both waved back before she stepped towards the men. "Is there a particular reason why you're fifteen minutes late?"

The three men stared accusingly at the mute man who had a sheepish look on his face.

"We just had to stop over at a convenience store," Sheldon dully answered, glancing at Raj. On the way to the studio, Raj realized something very important; there was a big chance that a woman might talk to him—like a production assistant who might ask him for his information that would be needed in order to join the official Magatama club that was now also open for adults. After countless tries of insisting that they get him at least a can of beer, Sheldon agreed and they stopped over for Raj's drink. They took a little bit longer because the twins wanted snacks and they had to scrutinize which would be okay for an infant with a very strict mother—who was also intimidating and could easily kill them, shall they give them junk food—to eat. In the end, they got them fruits and fruit juice that they made sure wasn't artificial. Then when they arrived at the studios, Raj supposedly saw the star of something called 'Pretty Little Liars' and insisted that they go after her. Which turned out to be a random woman who was touring the studio, and in turn nearly called Raj a pervert. Luckily, they ran across a security guard who recognized the twins, and brought them here. "That was it."

"I'm glad that you're finally here," Gregg smiled, crushing the cup in his hand before tossing it in the trashcan. "I thought that Bailey's indecisiveness had caused us to arrive later than you, causing all of you to leave." He wiped his hands on a napkin that Bailey handed him, then glanced at the various life sized replicas that the men were carrying. "Are you getting to get those signed?" The four men eagerly nodded, and Gregg handed him a stack of post-its and a pen. "Then, we should head over to the studio. The rest of the cast is already there, rehearsing for the show later. I can get them signed for you while we wait for the meet and greet to start. Put your name on those papers and attach it to the items that you want to get signed. Don't want to get a mix up." He motioned for one of the guys who was driving the golf cart to come over, then gestured to the items. "Could you get those to the dressing room and tell them to sign it for me? Then tell them that I'll be with them after a bit, and that I just have to finish things." The guard nodded, carefully taking the items from the guys and placed it in the golf cart before driving off.

"Watch Jam en Ninja, now?" Andy asked from the stroller, a hand gripping a bottle of apple juice.

Maddie swallowed the cracker she was chewing on, and snatched the bottle from her brother's hand and drank it down. Once she washed the cracker down, she sent her twin an affronted look. "Maddie no want Jam en Ninja. Maddie want Steh Sam-wai! Da Steh Sam-wai da bestest!"

Raj faked coughed, "The Nickel Samurai is the best," then avoided the glances the rest of the adults were sending him.

"You're all wrong," Sheldon stated, folding his arms over his chest. "The Evil Magistrate is clearly the best, or else someone would've beat him by now." He saw Gregg raise his eyebrows, and he cleared his throat. "No offense to Gregg, of course. Your portrayal of the lovable—yet gullible, as always—hero is remarkable, but there is just something about the Evil Magistrate that makes me biased."

Howard leaned over to Leonard, "must be the one accident waiting to happen that's talking to him."

"Or the dark side," Leonard suggested, causing him and Howard to stifle a laugh.

"Oh, it's okay," Gregg chuckled, gesturing for them to follow him to one of the studios. "My personal favorite is the Pink Princess—cause there's just something so dramatic about her that I like. I do love my character, of course. But I'm just one of those people whose favorite isn't the hero—or anything canon—and prefer the one that isn't everyone's favorite. Plus, the Pink Princess costume is so much lighter than the Steel Samurai's." He stopped in front of a set of double doors and grinned, "everyone, hold your breath—except Bailey cause oxygen is the only thing that keeps you lively—because we're about to enter the world of Neo Olde Tokyo!"

With a push, he opened the doors and revealed the various realistic ancient Japanese architecture—and the line that formed due to the people taking pictures.

Sheldon frowned, turning to Gregg, "you said that there wasn't going to be a line."

Bailey looked around, scanning the line that spanned from one of the makeshift towers to a plaza to a forest to a paper house to a green screen, and back. "Mr. Genius—"

"—it's Doctor—"

"Yeah, yeah, Dr. Genius here is right," the dark haired actress pointed out as Gregg placed a hand on his forehead. "The show starts at eleven, but seeing that line, I doubt that they'd be able to take pictures here and get to the performance area in time for your fancy little special episode."

"We can wait in line," Howard insisted, even though he found the line to be as long as the Great Wall. He saw the others cringe—and Sheldon mentally shoot lasers from his eyes at the people—and sucked in a breath. All three men sent him different messages by simply looking at him. Raj's said, "what the hell, dude? Are you freaking crazy?" Leonard's said, "you have got to be kidding me!" And Sheldon's said, "if you think you will subject me to, again, enduring this irrelevant line, then you are wrong. This is beneath me, and shall you force me to do such, you will be awarded a hefty number of strikes that will permanently affect your guest record. Tread lightly."

"Yeah... we can wait in line."

There was a series of muffled protests, followed by Sheldon vehemently shaking his head. "No. Absolutely not! Have you seen that line, Howard? That line is longer than the one at the Avenger's midnight premiere!" The theoretical physicist waved his lanky arms to gesture at the line then did the Evil Magistrate's Rejection Swipe that consisted of swiping the arms across the air, making an X then pointing upwards. A couple of the people in line clapped once Sheldon finished the move, then he barked at the people to mind their own business. Had they not been at a place filled with people who knew what the hell he was doing, he would have looked crazier than he already was. "Gregg! You promised that there wouldn't be any lines. What is your excuse?"

Gregg narrowed his hazel eyes as he searched the room, clucking his tongue before frantically waving his arm to call on a production assistant. "Mr. Wilkes! I heard that you were finishing something first before heading over here."

"Aren't we holding people off from the actual set until the meet and greet?" Gregg asked, panic evident in his pitchy voice. "I was planning on touring my friends around the set cause I thought that the picture taking activity was to be held outside at the makeshift set for the show. Why is everything going all wrong?" He dramatically asked, turning to Bailey who was sending him a look of embarrassment. "Sparkly, you're getting too overdramatic. The set doesn't leave—you know that—and they can easily come back another day to take pictures. I think that the meet and greet is more important than this."

"We're sorry Mr. Wilkes," the assistant started, scribbling something on her clipboard, "a fan somehow got in the studio and led the rest inside. It's out of control, and we're doing our best to handle it. We've been thinking of moving the meet and greet earlier so that the fans will divert their attention to that. For now, I hope you and your friends don't mind waiting at the makeshift set," the woman lowered her voice, cautiously turning her head to make sure that no one would hear, "cause that's where the meet and greet will be at."

"Fine," Gregg exasperatedly sighed, "I'll just tour you here some other time. At least, that wouldn't have any lines, and you'd even get to try the green screen." The four men perked up while Bailey still frowned. "We'll head to the makeshift set. Oh, and could you please put my friends at the start of the list of the meet and greet? Bailey, here, won't be happy if the twins get smothered by people."

The production assistant nodded, moving over to the four men and handing them the clipboard. "Write in your names so that I can personally get you when the meet and greet starts." The adults complied, writing their names down and handing the clipboard back to the lady. "Alright, then. I'll fetch your friends when the meet and greet starts, Mr. Wilkes. And don't forget to get in to costume right after the meet and greet—the show starts right after it." The lady sent Gregg a smile before walking off.

"Wait, I thought that you got their things beforehand so that the cast can sign their things? If you and their collectibles aren't there during the meet and greet, what exactly is it?" Bailey inquired, checking on her plum colored nails.

"Good question, Bailes," Gregg said, placing a hand on the twins' stroller and leading them out to the makeshift set outside the studio. "You see, the difference between the meet and greet and me personally getting their things signed is that the meet and greet signatures are only the character names, whilst mine is getting the actual actors to sign it. The meet and greet is practically just a photo op with the costumed body doubles, and a chance to hug them." They exited the studio and stopped at a clear space that had the same backgrounds and rows of chairs in front. "Welcome to where the special show will be held. Pretty cool, huh?"

Maddie gasped from the stroller, her eyes going wide at the newly built set. "Maddie no go dah be-foh!"

"Dis new pace," Andy added as he scanned the wide set that replicated the one inside the studio. "Dat da Jam en Ninja house!"

Howard dug through his pocket to get his phone, taking a picture of the set. "This is so awesome!" He turned to Gregg, excitedly grinning at the actor. "Is it okay for us to pose and take pictures there?"

"Yeah, of course! Take as many as you want," Gregg watched as Raj pulled out a retracted monopod—from somewhere he didn't want to know—extending out and attaching a camera on top of it. Raj placed the camera in the middle of the audience seating then giddily ran back to them. "Guys, I downloaded an app on my phone that let's me control the camera's timer from my phone! We can take as much as we want!"

Leonard and Howard grinned at Raj, then took the twins out of their stroller with full intention of including them in the pictures. "Sheldon," Leonard called, adjusting Maddie on his hip, "aren't you going to come with us?"

Sheldon's eyes slightly narrowed, sending his roommate a scathing look. "That is a makeshift set, therefore it is not the actual set where the show is filmed, thus making it irrelevant." He frowned completely when he realized that his words were not being understood by his friends, and that their excitement had not died down. "I'll pass. I'd rather wait to go to the actual set than take pictures in a set that will be torn apart after the show."

Leonard blinked, then grinned at his roommate, "okay, then! We'll see you later!" The three of them waved before hurriedly making their way to the temporary set, excitedly chattering on how the pictures would look so cool.

"So," Bailey hummed from beside Gregg, who was watching the others in amusement, "want some coffee?"

Sheldon stared at the dark haired actress for a moment then shrugged. "I don't drink coffee. I do, however, drink tea."


"So, Sheldon, did you know that I have a boyfriend?"

Sheldon looked up from his tea filled styrofoam cup, raising an eyebrow at Gregg's statement. "Yes, you informed me of it when we were at Penny's award show party. If I'm not mistaken—which I'm not—he owned the restaurant that we ate at."

Gregg happily nodded, "that's right! We've been together for five years now, and we're thinking of either adopting or having a kid. What's your thoughts about that?"

"I've thought of having one via in-vitro fertilization and a surrogate up until Leonard said that I shouldn't." He still considered the idea of having progeny via the scientific way regardless of Leonard constantly telling him that he shouldn't. What Leonard's problem was about it, he didn't know. It wasn't like there was something wrong about it. Though his mother would reprimand him for 'not doing it the way Jesus told them to do it' he was sure that she would be ecstatic to have a grandchild. In contrast to his roommate, his mother had been prodding him to 'give' her grandchildren ever since Junior gave her one. It really was a win-win situation—his mother getting a grandchild, and him not doing it the messy way—and he would surely go through with it in the near future. Maybe, a little after he won the Nobel so that his progeny would be inspired by his success. "You should ask Penny to be your surrogate—her broad hips and corn fed vigor will surely house your offspring well."

"Oh, she'd house it well, alright," Gregg quickly answered before giving Bailey a look that Sheldon once again did not understand. "Anyway—you seem to think that Penny's a good choice for a surrogate. Why don't you get her to be your surrogate?"

"Why in the world would I choose her as my surrogate?" Sheldon squawked, clearly affronted by the question.

"Cause you suggested it, genius," Bailey snarked, placing her cup down on the empty seat beside her. "And hey, what's wrong with getting Penny as a surrogate? She's a bit too bubbly for my taste, but even you admitted that she's remarkable."

"Penny already has two children of her own," replied Sheldon, taking another sip of tea. "Asking her to bear another one that isn't one of her own seems to be a bit unreasonable." The two friends shared another knowing look that was getting on Sheldon's nerves. These two had their own language that was built mainly on widening the eyes and moving the eyebrows. What he wanted to know was if they were talking about him. They could have been planning on killing him and he didn't even know it. "And, that was a simple observation-slash-opinioned suggestion for you, not me. You did ask me for my opinion, did you not?"

Gregg smiled slightly, leaning back onto his chair. "True—but, let's change the topic. Bailey and I were talking the other day and we noticed that the twins are very fond of you." The three of them glanced towards the stage where the makeshift set and the others were. Raj was at the front, adjusting the camera on the monopod while Leonard and Howard were practicing the poses they would do. At their side was Andy and Maddie who were imitating what the adults were doing. Andy turned to do the swinging move that Leonard was doing, but stopped when he saw the three adults staring at them, tapping his sister's shoulder then waving happily at them. "It's really interesting cause the twins actually dislike strangers."

Sheldon turned to the flamboyant man, sending him a look of confusion and Bailey continued. "What Sparkly said is true. The twins really don't react well to strangers unless Penny was the one who introduced the stranger to them. It took them about a month before they got used to us."

What the dark haired woman said was true; the twins really did not react kindly to strangers. Looking back at it now, the twins never warmed up quickly to any of the strangers he introduced to them. They barely spoke when Mrs. Gunderson was talking to them; meeting Amy was one of the awkwardest scenes he and Bernadette had ever seen, they barely acknowledged Stuart, and it took a while before they got used to smiling Brenda. Kripke, however, was a different story, as they somehow connected due to their misuse of the letter W. Though they were usually energetic, happy and friendly infants, but that did not apply to strangers. Maddie even went as far as stopping Andy from talking to Kripke when they first met him. But, if they didn't like strangers... why didn't they shy away from him? He was considered as a stranger—as they never met before—yet they liked him from the start. Well, he really was such a likable person.

"How long did it take for them to get used to you?" Bailey faced him, a curious look on her face.

"They didn't. They liked me from the start," he answered, recalling how from the very first week, the twins often tried to get his attention, which led to Andy and Maddie's stumble in the apartment. "But it isn't surprising, as I am truly an amazing person."

Gregg chortled, causing Bailey and Sheldon to glare at him. "It's so entertaining how narcissistic the two of you are! You're really long lost siblings!" The flamboyant man dodged the punch to the shoulder that Bailey was about to do as the costumed Steel Samurai characters came out of the studio, followed by the previous production assistant walking up towards them. "Mr. Wilkes! The meet and greet is about to start—we've told the audience about it, too." She glanced down at her clipboard then settled her gaze on the physicist beside the two actors. "He's one of the guys on the list, right? We've placed you at the start of the list. Please follow me."

"You should take the twins with you," Gregg suggested, standing from the chair and glancing around the area. "The audience might be flowing from the studio any minute now. You should get going."

Sheldon frowned at him before silently standing up and making his way to the stage where the others were. Knowing his friends, they'd rather take photos for their Facebook rather than taking a picture with the actual costumed characters. He stopped in front of the posing adults who were ignoring him as they took pictures, and turned to the twins. "The meet and greet is starting, and I'll be bringing you along with me."

The toddlers grinned at each other, jumping up and down in excitement. "Andy want pic-cha wid Jam en Ninja!"

Maddie raised her hands up to Sheldon, and he lifted her up. "Sedon! Take pic-cha wid Steh Sam-wai too, peas!"

"We're going to take a picture with all of them," Sheldon stated as they walked down the steps, grabbing hold of Andy's hand as he jumped on each step. "Andy, you really have to be careful. Your mother won't be happy if you get hurt again." The toddler simply let out a giggle, stopping at the second to the last step and taking one big jump to the ground. "Andy not get hurt! Cos' Sedon no make Andy booboo!"

"I didn't really understand anything you said, but I'll take that as a compliment," he gave the two toddlers a small smile before walking towards the production assistant. "Okay, you're the first here so you can start the meet and greet with any characters you like. The pictures will be given once you've taken one with each character." The lady gestured to the start of the line and unhooked the rope from the post. "Enjoy, and I'll meet you at the end to give you your pictures."

The first character was The Jamming Ninja who Andy immediately approached, which the mascot responded by lifting the toddler up for the picture. After Andy—Maddie didn't like the character and refused to take a solo one with him—Sheldon took a picture with the mascot while the toddlers went up to the Nickel Samurai. They each took a solo picture with the mascot, then moved on to the Pink Princess which Andy refused to take a picture with, saying that he didn't like pink. When they reached the Evil Magistrate, Sheldon took four solo pictures with him before the photographer told him to move on to the last. He originally wanted to take twelve (to make a calendar) but four was good enough, and with the number of pictures he got with the other characters, he could make a Steel Samurai: Warrior of Neo Olde Tokyo calendar instead. All that was left was the Steel Samurai.

"Andy take pic-cha Steh Sam-wai, wid Sedon, peas?"

Maddie nodded from his arm, "Maddie, too! Maddie and Andy no pic-cha wid Sedon!"

The Steel Samurai mascot—which wasn't Gregg as he was talking to Bailey—waved to them, gesturing for them to stand beside him. Sheldon sighed, grabbing Andy's hand as they moved closer to the mascot. "Sedon," Andy called, tugging softly on his hand, "Andy up, too?"

"You want me to carry you?" The toddler nodded. "I thought that you weren't an infant, and only infants want to get carried." Andy blinked, barely understanding what he had said, and raised his hands towards him. Sheldon wondered why the mini Penny suddenly wanted to get carried. He never wanted it before, and always chose to walk (toddle, skip and stumble) beside them. The only time he didn't walk by his own was when he was in their stroller, or when one of the others chose to carry him. But the big question was, could he really manage to carry both of the toddlers?! Leonard had done it before, but it took five minutes before he grew weak and set Andy down. Howard could only carry one of them and he never saw Raj carry both of them. If he does break his back, let it never be said that he refused the pleas of an innocent toddler who simply wanted to get carried. Penny owed him for this.

Heaving a sigh, he secured his hold on Maddie and bent down to lift Andy with his free arm. Once he straightened back up, he blinked and glanced down at the two toddlers that were on each of his sides. He succeeded in carrying them! And he didn't break his spinal cord in the process! Maybe, he really was a superhero!

"Okay," the photographer said from behind the slightly outdated camera that he had been using the entire shoot. The photographer claimed that they were using that so it would match the traditional Japanese theme of the show, but not having a camera and painting portraits would be more appropriate. "Smile for the camera!"

Sheldon preferred to do the signature Steel Samurai pose, but due to the circumstances of the twins that were sitting on his arm, all he could do was make a small smile. "That was amazing!" The photographer grinned from the camera as the printer buzzed from beside him, producing the pictures that the assistant took. "Thanks for the pictures! Next, please!"

The production assistant led them out the area, and back to the front of the stage. "Here are your pictures," she lifted the handful of pictures as Sheldon placed both of the toddlers on the ground then took the pictures. The ones with only him and the mascots—except the Steel Samurai—were amazing! It would look amazing as a calendar, and glancing at the long line that formed at the entrance of the photo op, he doubted that they would get pictures as great as the ones he got. Then when they returned for Gregg's tour of the set, he would take more pictures that consisted only of him and the backgrounds while wearing the themed costumes he had!

The woman glanced down at her clipboard then at Sheldon who was staring at the pictures in his hands. "Oh which reminds me, in celebration of the Steel Samurai's hundredth episode, we're opening the Magatama club for kids and parents to join for free. It includes set visits, automatic inclusion to any events the show will be holding and much more. Would you like to join the kids in it? There's no age limit, even you can join."

Sheldon absentmindedly nodded, still awestruck at how amazing the pictures looked. The others would be so envious of him!

The woman sent the seemingly busy man a small smile before crouching down to level her gaze with the toddlers. "Can I have your names? It seems that your guardian is a bit busy."

Maddie grinned, nodding happily. "Maddie and Andy Coopah!"

Andy turned to Maddie with a frown, "Andy fuh-st!" Maddie harrumphed, facing the opposite direction in annoyance. "It Andy and Maddie Coopah. Andy fuh-st."

Coopah— Cooper.

Sheldon's eyes widened as his mind processed what the twins had just said. He suddenly felt his heart stop as he lowered the photos, glancing down at the twins and the lady who was scribbling the names down on the clipboard. His hands started to get clammy, and his throat had run dry. What did they mean by Cooper? Penny's last name wasn't Cooper, so it was impossible for the twins to have that last name if they took Penny's. Maybe Penny's nameless man that is also the twins' father had Cooper as their last name. That's right! Cooper was such a common name—he knew a lot of Coopers! But, why was his heart suddenly racing? That and why was he getting an ominous feeling?! It was nerve wrecking, and as he glanced down at the photo he held—he saw that it was the one of them and the Steel Samurai.

"Okay," the lady said as she finished scribbling the names down and glanced back up at the twins. "And who's the man behind you? He's kinda busy, so I hope you can fill me in. I need to write down a guardian's name who will give consent."

Maddie placed a hand at the side of her mouth to whisper—not realizing that her voice was still loud. "Dat Sedon Coopah, Andy and Maddie's daddy!"

"Dat Sedon Coopah, Andy and Maddie's daddy!"

Their… father?

No! It was absolutely impossible! There must have been some kind of mistake! Surely, Penny knew who her children's father was! His felt his head spinning, and he had the strong urge to vomit—this just couldn't be happening. The others might have just told the twins to say that to mess with him! That's right! Howard told the twins to say that he was their father so that he would get mad, and they would all laugh! How would he be their father when they called him Sedon, right? If he really was their father then they would have called him so! This must be just a really cruel joke that they organized to mess with him. Or maybe the twins just decided to consider him as their father as he was so amazing, and the most influential male adult in their life right now! They might have just remembered that his last name was Cooper, and decided that they were Coopers, too! Because, really, it was impossible! How in the world could he be the twins' father when he and Penny never—

"The Chancellor's Award night," he shakily whispered to himself as he felt his hand shaking.

"Hey! That's mine!" The blonde hissed, wobbling a bit as she stood up, "and you're not at the hotel anymore, you dumbass! You're at home!"

Sheldon extended his arm upwards, putting the bottle out of the blonde's reach, glaring down at Penny. "I need more alcohol, Penny. I'm losing my confidence."

But, that was a dream! He convinced himself that it was a dream, and that it wasn't real as he was heavily intoxicated that night! He only remembered fragments of that night, therefore, it was a dream. An alcohol induced dream that did not happen, like he kept telling himself. It was just a dream! It was just a dream… right?

Sheldon rubbed his thumb against Penny's palm glancing at her hand for a second, then directed his gaze up to meet her eyes. "Thank you for being more than a wonderful friend, Penny. You don't understand how much you've helped me, and I wouldn't know what to do if you weren't here."

He placed a hand on his forehead where a vein had started throbbing, tightly closing his eyes as his mind whirled. He wanted to scream, but he couldn't find his voice. All he could manage was a dry croak that made him want to bang his head on the pavement. His eyes were getting blurry, his head was spinning, his heart was racing in an alarming rate—it was all too much, and he couldn't handle it anymore! He couldn't hear what the lady and the twins were talking about—nor could he see their faces clearly—and all he could hear was his blood drumming as the memories of the Chancellor's Award night flashed in his mind so quickly that it was becoming painful to even try to stop thinking about it.

"Sheldon, where did you get the scars?" Penny asked, lifting her gaze to find Sheldon's face reddening as he jerked his arm away. "I'm not sure," he answered, glancing at his arm, "I might have just hit something and didn't notice it. Now, weren't you going to talk to Leonard and fix things?" Penny opened her mouth to speak, then closed it again.

Then, he opened his eyes and glanced at the hand that was clutching his forehead.

It was still there—the scars that Penny left to make sure that he wouldn't forget about that night he always tried to forget. They were an inch long, dark, ugly and were out of place with his pale skin, but it wasn't as horrible as it looked in his memories that started flooding in his mind. The Chancellor's Award, Penny coaxing him to drink, the two of them returning to the apartment, the night that he refused to believe happened, the morning after when he saw the deep gouges that decorated his wrist downwards, Penny inquiring about it, Penny and Leonard breaking up, and the day that Penny left. It came crashing quicker than he thought and he felt like he was suffocating. It was too much; he couldn't take it, anymore. It was like he was stuck in a nightmare that didn't want to end. Nothing and everything was making sense.

Sheldon looked back down at the picture and felt everything crashing down on him like a piano violently falling down on someone in a cartoon.

This was the first time that he had ever seen him and the twins in someone else's perspective. He had always only seen them as Andy and Maddie or Penny's twins, and he had never noticed the striking resemblance that the twins had with him. They were a blonde version of him and Missy when they were toddlers! Like what Penny said in the magazine, Maddie did look like him. Her clear blue eyes were the exact same ones that he and Missy inherited from their mother, that she inherited from Meemaw. That was why her gaze seemed familiar, why it was as intense as it was, because it was his gaze. Andy had the same smile as his, but was also mixed with the natural happiness that Penny's smile had—which was what Maddie inherited. The picture alone gave him answers that he had been searching for since the first day that they arrived to live with them—they looked like a real family, had he not known who the man in the picture was. The matching themed shirts didn't help in convincing him that he really wasn't the twins' father.

Everything became clear to him—all of those questions that were unanswered were slowly being answered. The reason why they acted so comfortably to him, a stranger, when they first met was because they already knew that he was their father. They were far more intelligent than children of their age and grew an instant liking to Star Wars because of him. It was why seeing them cry made his stomach drop and him want to do everything they wanted, as long as they stopped crying. That was why he reacted so strongly when they said that he wasn't fun. Why he couldn't seem to get mad at him as he normally would when they made him miss William Shatner, and had accidentally destroyed his Lego Death star. It was why he felt a sense of loneliness when he saw the magazine they were featured in, and the happiness that he was missing out. Why he felt so relaxed when Maddie slept beside him, and he didn't even reprimand her for stepping into his comfort zone. Why Penny laughed at him when he told her that he would allow his future progeny to marry the twins, and when he said that Andrew and Madison Cooper sounded nice.

It was why he felt a strange sense of responsibility over everything they did. Why he knuckled under toddlers he had never even met, or knew existed until they appeared at his doorstep almost two months ago. Why he didn't even try as much as he usually would to find a way to get them back to their mother. Why he wasn't offended when Maddie refused to eat the pancakes and ordered him to make a new one. Why he quickly grew accustomed to their presence in their apartment compared to when he was still getting used to Leonard being his roommate. Why he wasn't bothered by carrying either of them and holding their hands even though he hated personal contact. Why it felt natural for him to take care of them even if he strongly disliked children and the concept of children. Why he felt a certain kind of warmth and comfort when he hugged both of them, before. Why Leonard refused to tell him anything about the identity of their father, and why even after a few weeks, having them around felt like the most natural thing in the world.

But this was still impossible—and he refused to believe that this was true until there was actual proof that they were his children.

Snapping out of his troubled thoughts, he shoved the pictures in his messenger bag and grabbed both of the twins; abruptly cutting their conversation with the production assistant. He ignored their questions as he marched towards the makeshift set where his friends were still taking pictures.

Leonard saw them from the corner of his eye and said something to the guys before turning to greet him. "Hey, how was the—"

"Be quiet," Sheldon snarled, placing the twins gently on the ground then strode down the tiny stage causing his friends to worry. He didn't care about them, right now. What he care about was getting answers, now.

"Sheldon, where are you going?" Howard called from the stage as Leonard trotted after him. "Sheldon! Hey, what's wrong?"

Bailey lifted her gaze from her phone as Sheldon skimmed past her and Gregg. "Dr. Genius! Where are you going? The show isn't over!" Gregg stood from his seat, watching as Sheldon passed through the various rows of chairs. "Sheldon! The hundredth episode hasn't started, yet! Where are you going?"

Sheldon ignored them, focusing on leaving the place to find the answers he was looking for. He was stopped when he felt a hand on his arm, and turned to see Leonard panting. "Sheldon, what's wrong? Where are you going?!"

Jerking his arm back, he stepped back from his roommate and sent him an intense glare that made Leonard flinch. "Don't touch me!" He snarled, an arm in the air just in case Leonard tried to touch him again. He wasn't going to tell them the truth since none of them did that for him. They all acted as if the gravity of the situation was nothing to worry about. Like he'd just cheer and throw confetti around all of them when he discovered that he was possibly the twins' father, and they'd all play HALO as if they didn't do anything wrong. He asked them countless times about the truth, but all they ever answered him with was vague hints. He had never felt so angry at his friends as he was now, much more than the North Pole incident, and all of their mistakes combined. He was even angrier at Penny, but that would be settled when she came back. For now, he was going to find the answer to this conundrum.

He was going to find out the truth.

He needed to know the truth.


To see how the hell everything happened, read "Alcohol Leads to Cicatrice" which will explain everything!