Sheldon Swifties LIX: "The X-Advisors…"
Summary: Like my Immortal Beloved bits in my Buffyverse stories, these are fragments and short bits, some longer…Just to fiddle with ideas, possibly forming longer tales later.
Disclaimer: All is Chuck's…
Part XIV…
"You know…" Howard smiled as the group waited in the ER waiting room for news that Leonard had been sent upstairs. "In the ole days, back in Europe and such places, the bride and groom would be escorted to their chamber by their closest friends from the wedding party…Who'd make a racket and tease the hell out of them…And in general, see that things were done right. Not just my guys, you understand…Most of yours, too. And I believe it holds true for Raj's fellas, right?"
"It corresponds…" Raj, sage nod.
"Meaning…This was just right…We're doin' it just right…" Penny, beaming… "Howard?! How do you keep managing this? It's beginning to scare me, all this good and wise stuff coming outta you these last years… Bernadette, you are a lucky, lucky girl."
"I know." Proud nod.
"But not as lucky as…PENELOPE HOFSTADTER!" she cried…Wagging finger…
"A ring?" Amy stared… "Leonard had a ring…?"
"He's been keepin' it handy…It's just one he picked up, and he didn't really mean it to be my real ring but I don't care. It's fine and it's mine…I'll have to get it engraved but…" she beamed.
"This is my wedding ring…And here it's gonna stay…"
Raj, Howard, Sheldon…Glaring…
The Ring!
"I knew it!" Sheldon fumed. "Even when we all went to the post office to mail it to Peter Jackson, I knew he'd pulled a switch."
"Well…It's mine now." Penny noted, a bit smugly… "Aren't you mine, Precious…?" stroking it.
"Pardon me…Is that what I think it is?" Dr. Stein eyeing the ring…
"I'm a huge Tolkien fan…From the days when there only the books and no one thought of Elijah Wood and that Shakespearian fellow Susan always says I resemble as Frodo and Gandolf…" he smiled.
"It's one of the original prop rings…" Raj sighed. "We found it one day, one ordinary day…Lost among trivial things…It gleamed like a burning molten fire. One ring, to rule them all…"
"Our Precious…" Howard, Raj, Sheldon…Awed tones…
Lucy eyeing Bernadette…Bernadette shrugging…
Our nerd boys go gaga over a piece of costume jewelry…Accept it, girl.
"And now it be my Precious…" Penny smiled. "See how it gleams…" she held her hand up to the light.
Well…Greater love hath no nerd…Bernadette sighed.
"Mrs. Hofstadter?" a nurse came out to them… "I can take you up now…And three…No more than three…Of the rest of you…To say goodnight."
"I'm stayin'…Right?" Penny, anxiously…
"Right...There's a sleeping couch in the room." kind nod. "But lets do this, ok? He should get to sleep."
"Ok..Uh…Bernadette? Amy? If it was me…" Penny, a bit sheepishly.
"No…The original gang does the Hofstadter wedding night honors, it's traditional, as my honey says…" Bernadette, warmly… "Howie and Raj will give us all the details and Sheldon will provide commentary…Go on, guys."
"Amy…" Penny went to her. "I'm so glad this idiot…" she nudged Sheldon… "… got things straightened out…And if Leonard helped…"
"He did…And he did…" Amy beamed…Hugging her, then a kiss on cheek. "Congratulations, Mrs. Dr. Hofstadter…Leonard's made such a wise choice…And so have you." She hugged her again, Penny wiping tears. Hugging Bernadette as Amy released her…
"Ok…" Penny, smoothing… "Lets go see my husband…"
"You'll be ok?" Raj, to Lucy who nodded.
"You bet she will…" Bernadette smiled… "While you give Leonard a hard time, we'll be dishin' the dirt here…"
Penny led Howard, Sheldon, and Raj in following the waiting nurse to the elevators…Waving as the doors closed…
"Was Dr. Stein still there?" she asked. Raj frowned…"Yes…And I think Lucy hit the nail on the head. He didn't come about Leonard."
"You think he came to speak to me?" Sheldon, puzzled. Then a bit concerned. "About Susan?"
"Not you, I think…" Raj shook head. Howard eyeing him…
"Well…" Dr. Stein had risen from his seat… "I should be getting along, now that Dr. Hofstadter is settled."
"Thank you for coming, doctor. Sheldon appreciated it." Amy nodded.
"Before I go, Amy…" he eyed her… "Could I have a word?"
Bernadette, Lucy, glance to each…Amy, calmly. "Certainly." She rose, letting him lead her out of the ER to the patio just outside.
Bernadette and Lucy hurrying over to peer out…
"What do we do?" Lucy whispered.
"We leave it to Amy…But if she seems in distress or trouble, we take Frankenstein out." Bernadette, grimly.
"I imagine you've guessed I didn't come simply to see about Dr. Hofstadter…" Stein eyed Amy.
"Of course…" she nodded. "Your daughter asked you to speak to me. What did she ask you to say? Please give up Sheldon?" calm stare…
"No…" he shook his head. "Though I would ask you to, if she hadn't told me not to."
…
"It's really all my fault…" Stein sighed as they stood on the ER patio. "I brought them together…The year I came to Austin and I became Sheldon's adviser."
"That was the year he lost Dr. Brown, his first adviser…" Amy sighed. "He loved Dr. Brown, more than anyone but his mother and his grandparents, I think. It really hurt him."
"Yes…Cooper's never forgiven me for not being Emmet Brown…There's nothing I can do about that, though I did see a lot of myself in him and tried to help him, he wouldn't let me in." Stein sighed. "Thank God he had you though, eh?" calm stare.
I…Amy blinked…
"Like young Cooper, I also have an eidetic memory, my dear…" Stein eyed her. "I never forget a face…And was you that day in my office, pretending to be Sheldon's twin sister, telling me you were worried about him and could I please go and see if he was all right." He noted calmly.
"You were a student at Austin…And you knew him. Though he didn't know you, did he?" he eyed her. "You've been in love with him since then, at least, right?"
"No…And yes, but even longer." Amy shook her head. "I came to Austin because I knew he was there. And when I heard crazy Sheldon Cooper had locked himself in his room and wasn't coming out except to class…And I saw him, looking like…After Dr. Brown had died. I had to do something, I had to…"
"I'm glad you did…" Stein nodded. "I knew young Cooper had problems but I'd just started there and barely knew my students, mostly inherited from Emmet Brown. It saved his life, I think, poor strange boy. I never met anyone so like my own younger self…I'm just sorry I couldn't connect with him as ole Emmet did."
"There was more between your daughter and Sheldon than he's told me yet, wasn't there?" Amy eyed him.
Stein shrugged… "For him, probably not…I'm sure he's not lied to you, dear girl. He's incapable of it. But for Susan…" sad look…"You see, Amy, in a way…You're my nemesis…" he noted sadly. "The obstacle to my poor girl's hopes for happiness…" he looked away.
"He's her angel…The one pure thing in her life." Amy, calmly. "I know the feeling…And no, whatever my friends say about me…I am not noble enough to give him up."
"I didn't expect you were…" he smiled. "Not Maggie Fowler's granddaughter…No, she'd die for her love, fight for it, cherish it…Kill for it…But give it up? Never…No, the moment I saw you tonight, Amy, I knew Susan's hopes were a fantasy. Still, they've kept her going since she lost Sheldon to Physics all those years ago."
"That's why…" Amy stared. "She became a physicist to please Sheldon…"
"God knows not to please me. Not that I ever wanted her to be one. I'd've been happy for her to stay doing what she did, if she'd loved doing it." Stein smiled wanly. "Not the attitude many would say marks a good father, I suppose…But…"
"Why does Dr. Francis hate you and Susan so?" Amy looked at him. "You and he were like Sheldon and Leonard once…But he's been telling me…"
"Beware the fiendish Stein…Yes. With good reason, from his point of view." Shrug.