Still angry. Angry brunettes are a force of nature.

When Priya saw that Sheldon had fallen asleep on the couch she packed his bags for him figuring that he would appreciate sleep after all the activity of the evening. She got him to lie down and then covered him with a throw and kissed his cheek before leaving to pack her own bags.

In-flight

Sheldon sat beside Priya who was staring out the window thinking about all the nasty things she'd ever thought about her father and regretting each and every one of them. Her father was a bit of a bigot and each boy that Priya had brought home was 'substandard' in his eyes and she'd hated him for it.

Sheldon had held her hand since takeoff after completely reviewing the emergency escape options with her. 'Priya, it will do no good to read the safety brochure if the cabin is in flames, so pay attention'.

She smiled when she remembered his fear when the plane took off. His grip on her hand was rather painful but she wouldn't have let go of his hand for anything.

He had booked all three tickets in first class and Priya had taken him to task for being foolish with his money.

"Sheldon, the entire plane goes first to DC and then to Heathrow. You must not be so profligate with your money. How am I to say 'Sheldon-jaan paid for the flight, Daddy'? It makes me look unable to handle my own – "

"Did I ever tell you about the blonde woman who left her coach seat and took up residence in First Class because 'she was blonde and beautiful and deserved it'? No? Well, a blonde was flying from LA to NY and since coach was cramped she took an empty seat in first class. When the attendant told her she had to be in her own seat in coach she responded that she was 'blonde and beautiful' and thus she was flying to NY in First Class because she deserved to."

"Sheldon – " They were walking through Customs and people were starting to listen to their conversation.

"Hush, jaanam. So this went on until finally the captain came back and whispered something in her ear and she practically flew herself back to coach."

"Why? What did he say to her?"

"He whispered that First Class was going to Boston."

Priya laughed at the story but didn't understand the inference and said so.

"You aren't blonde but you are incredibly beautiful and intelligent and you deserve to fly first class…"

They were an hour into the flight and Priya yawned and put her seat back but Sheldon stopped her.

"Here, let me put the armrest up and you can put your head in my lap and stretch out a bit." He was having a hard time dealing with Priya's sadness and worry for her father but he hadn't released his grip on her hand since takeoff. If she slept, he could use the time to center himself.

"You don't drool, do you?" he asked Priya.

"No, Sheldon, I took a class at Cambridge on drool-control and aced it."

"That's a relief." The sarcasm went over his head and Priya just smiled. Life with Shel-jaan was certainly interesting and a constant learning experience. There were many, many layers to him as she was slowly finding out.

He spent an hour doing nothing but gently rocking her while she cried quietly for a few moments and then fell back to sleep. She'd awakened from a nightmare about her father and soon she was almost sitting in Sheldon's lap with her arms around his neck while he rocked her and rubbed what he hoped were soothing circles on her back.

"Is she asleep? Poor thing." a flight attendant whispered to Sheldon. "Is there anything I can get you? A blanket or a pillow?"

"Both would be nice, thank you. She's upset because her father has had a heart attack and we're flying there so she can be with him and her mother."

"They live in the UK?" The flight terminated in London's Heathrow airport so it was a logical conclusion for her to make or so Sheldon thought.

"No, Delhi. We're catching another plane after a lay-over." He hadn't taken his eyes off Priya even to acknowledge the attendant's words.

"You must love her very much. A blind person could see it. Especially how you've been holding her for hours." The attendant returned with the pillow and blanket but Sheldon was mulling over what she said and ignored her.

"Do you, Sheldon?" Raj asked quietly a few minutes later. He was sitting behind his sister and friend and now was squatting down in the aisle checking on her.

"Do I what, Raj?" He didn't understand the question and he was tired and his back hurt and he wasn't up for an interrogation.

"Do you love my sister?"

"I wish I knew Rajesh, I wish I knew. You know how the emotions of others affect me. And why, after all this time, would you divulge our secret to Leonard and Penny?" He vaguely remembered Penny telling him that she knew he wasn't who he said he was. Then he remembered seeing Leonard's cheap engagement ring back on her finger just hours after she told him that she loved him.

"I have never, ever, discussed our situation with anyone, Sheldon. No one. You must have misunderstood her."

"You're probably right. I misunderstand women all the time. They are truly a mystery that not even Physics can resolve for me."

Priya had awakened when Sheldon gently lifted her head and slipped the small pillow beneath it. She had fallen asleep to Sheldon's fingertips gently rubbing small circles on her back and she awoke to the same fingertips only this time they were lightly tracing her cheek and jaw.

It was very erotic to her and she wished this were a night flight so that they could kiss and whisper to each other. She'd heard her brother's question and Sheldon's response.

She couldn't help but wish he had answered the question one way or the other. Usually the men in her life were easy to understand and easier still to control but her jaan was unlike anyone she'd ever encountered.

Priya found herself responding and reacting rather than directing him. If she were really and truthfully honest with herself, the way he'd taken charge of the travel situation had been a turn-on for Priya. Sometimes she liked being dominated until she was nearly submissive to the will of her lover and Sheldon had demonstrated his abilities to dominate her in more than one setting.

The term 'Total Domination' flitted through her mind and it wasn't at all that uncomfortable a thought.

Their layover in the UK was long and Sheldon disappeared for a bit, wandering out of the customs area and out into the airport and then out of the terminal entirely. He needed fresh air that wasn't canned or compressed and shared and exchanged by 300 other people.

The terminal air had been 'fresh' but outside, even in the drizzle, was infinitely preferable. He sat on a bench under the swooping eaves of the international terminal building and let his mind roam free, something he rarely did except when truly stumped by a problem of Physics.

Love. Every facet of modern society, from music to social interaction, seemed to dwell on it. Everyone wanted to find 'true love' but Sheldon didn't have a clue what love was, let alone 'true love'. The phrase itself inferred that there was 'false love' and it confused him even more.

From his studies, he knew about Platonic love, like what he felt for his family and close friends. And he knew all about crushes – he'd had one on Mary Jane Finley in the 3rd grade, after all, but it ended badly when she started 'going with' Robbie Fenstermacher although he never quite understood it since they never actually went anywhere.

He and Amy had a 'love' of sorts but it was fundamentally flawed. She loved him. He loved – him, also.

He knew about 'lusty love' since he had three friends who spent more time thinking with their little heads than with their big ones. He was Homo Novus and had no use for it. It wouldn't last past the first morning after.

And then there were the last two types of love he'd identified through the years: Unrequited and Unconditional love.

His love for Penny was Unrequited. She was with Leonard (again) despite her own confession that she only wanted to be with him. It had been Unconditional but morphed into Unrequited by virtue of Leonard's 'first claim' and subsequent series of relationships with Penny that always seemed to predictably burn up like poorly designed and launched satellites.

No. If he were to fall into the Abyss of Love, it would be a long drop. Forever. He thought of Priya and felt his lips curve into a real smile.

He glanced at his official Batman Chronometer and cursed. He really needed to get his cranium out of his rectum and pay attention to things. He would have to hurry to go through Customs and go through the boarding process for the flight to Delhi.

Sheldon found Priya and Raj standing at the boarding concourse. Priya was arguing with the attendant when Sheldon strode up to the woman and handed her his boarding pass and ticket.

"Sheldon, where have you been? You almost missed the plane." Priya glared at him and stamped her little foot in anger. Sometimes he could be so aggravating…okay, most times…almost all the time, it seemed.

"I was out getting a breath of fresh air, clearing my head and reordering my Life Plan…nothing more, Priya. I apologize if I was thoughtless and didn't tell you where I was going. Blame it on the long flight and my fear of enclosed and of germ-laden spaces."

Rajesh smirked and then asked politely: "Who are you, sir, and what have you done with my friend, Sheldon Cooper who has never been known to spontaneously apologize for anything?"

Priya just rolled her eyes at her brother and then grabbed Sheldon's hand and led him along the tunnel to the aircraft. She was smiling broadly and feeling quite worry-free despite her father's condition. He looked tired but she would ensure that he took his pills and then he would curl up and sleep and she would trace comforting circles on his back and run her fingertips through his hair. It was only fair.