A/N is at bottom this time.

Penny wasn't on cloud nine most of the time. How could she be? Sheldon was her boyfriend, for a whole two weeks. Not that he wasn't trying to be a good boyfriend, he was. He rarely spoke down to her anymore although he still enjoyed correcting her. He complimented her decisions instead of her appearance, and he went to bed at 10:00 on weeknights. She could live with all of that. Penny would even dare to say that she enjoyed it most of the time. What was always in the back of her head was what Leonard had deemed 'the situation'. She called it proof Sheldon was human. That proof was sitting in the oversized white chair eating Chinese food just as meticulously as her father.

Penny couldn't help it, she started looking for traits of herself in Marie. Tall, skinny, way to smart, a slightly obsessive love of comics and science fiction. That was all Sheldon. But, if Penny squinted hard enough, she could see parts of herself. No ability to sing whatsoever, kind until it was no longer an option, and easily puts others in their places. Maybe? Penny couldn't tell yet.

Sheldon broke her out of her thoughts with the biggest yawn she had ever seen. "Tired sweetie?" She asked with a smirk on her face. While they haven't gotten to sex yet, there were some heavy make out sessions that made her apologize to every high school boyfriend that she had ever had. Teasing was no fun the other way around.

"Slightly yes. But, I do believe that I have made some excellent progress." Penny blushed while Marie looked like she was going to be sick at any given moment.

"So what are you doing at night Sheldon?" Leonard asked. "I thought that you might be stuck on another problem, but you haven't been acting any crazier than normal."

"No."

"No what?"

"No, I'm not stuck on a problem. At least not anymore."

Leonard gave a small smile. "Well, that's good. What was the problem?"

"About whether or not to change my social paradigm with Penny." Sheldon replied. Penny's scared eyes met Marie's startled ones. "I had been considering it for quite some time, and had decided to let things fall where they may, so to speak. However recent events have been disclosed to me and I have been forced to accept what I have been trying to deny for quite some time."

"Did you guys get into another fight then? If so it was a quiet one. I haven't seen any undergarments hanging from a telephone wire." Was Leonard's response.

"Why would I do that to Penny? That hardly seems appropriate in a romantic relationship. Perhaps this is why your relationships don't last much longer than an episode of Dr. Who."

Leonard's face went blank. "Are you telling me that you are in a relationship with Penny? A romantic one?" At Sheldon's nod he continued, "How is that even possible?! You don't have a deal. And there is no way that your deal is Penny!"

"I resent the fact that you think I do not have a deal, as you say. Just because I chose not to indulge in the more carnal aspects of life doesn't mean that I did not have the desire. I just didn't see the need until now. As for why Penny, I ask instead why not Penny? Is is compassionate to a fault, she is trying to listen when I have something to say, she sings me Soft Kitty when I'm ill, and she defends me against what she perceives as a threat" Sheldon answered. Then, almost as an after thought he added, "And she is quite attractive."

"But Penny Sheldon?"

"What's wrong with Penny? You didn't have any problems with Penny when you were dating her." Asked Sheldon.

At this point Penny realized she was apparently struck mute. Every time she was going to comment, Sheldon answered instead. She realized he was defending her in his own way. If she had any doubts that she loved him, it went away with that epiphany.

Leonard was looking at Sheldon as if he was waiting for a bazinga. When none was offered, he seemed to get mad."Look at your daughter Sheldon!" Leonard pointed at Marie, who looked like a cross between a deer caught in the headlights and a warrior thirsting for blood. "Do you really think that she is Penny's daughter?"

This caught Marie's attention. "What on earth is that supposed to mean?" At this point, Penny didn't know if she should be offended, insulted, pissed, or all three.

"Your just as pretty as Penny, but everything else is Sheldon. The comics, the cleaning, the condensation, the brains, the -"

Sheldon interrupted him, "What are you implying exactly?" His tone was completely robotic.

"I'll tell you what he's implying Sheldon," Penny said. Her voice was as tense as Sheldon's was devoid of emotion. "He thinks I'm to stupid to have a kid like Marie. A smart kid. A kid who could knows about physics. A kid who understands things more complicated than the Cheesecake Factory's menu. Is that about right?"

"I –I – I just meant" Sheldon interrupted him.

"Penny is not stupid."

"I know that Sheldon." Leonard said in a patronizing drawl.

"Apparently you do not. Penny informed me earlier that you believe she is stupid and vapid. Those are synonyms by the way. You could have at least used more unique adjectives. Her beauty is a desirable feature, this much is correct, however it only enhances her inward appeal. Something that you seem to disregard out of hand because it fails to hold your very limited interest."

"She isn't as smart as us, admit it." Leonard was no longer in control of what came out of his mouth. Now it came down to what it always came down to in Leonard's mind, proving Sheldon wrong.

Sheldon abruptly stood. "You aren't as smart as me, admit that." With that, Sheldon grabbed Penny's arm and stormed out.

Marie got up to join them. "Piece of advice Leonard, never insult something that my dad considers important. And Penny is definitely important to him."

A/N: Ok, so this chapter might not make as much sense as the other ones'. I didn't want the relationship to be a secret because that is done a lot. I also want Leonard to start to turn into the bad guy. Pretty much a transition chapter because it is getting me where I want to go.