Happy season premier day, everybody! This is kinda short, but I couldn't let this day go uncelebrated.

NATIONAL COMIC BOOK DAY

"Isn't this great?"

Amy looked around the empty comic book store and then back at her overly-enthusiastic boyfriend. "Yeah, great," she said dryly. "Wanna tell me again why we're here?"

Sheldon raised his arms. "It's National Comic Book Day, Little Lady. Where else would we be?"

"I thought you came here on Wednesdays."

"That's new comic book night," he said, his face showing his disappointment in her. "But this is National Comic Book Day. It's a big deal."

"Right. I can see what a big deal it is," she said as she once again surveyed the room.

"Well, that's Stuart's fault," Sheldon sniffed. He is clearly unqualified to operate such an establishment."

"Did I hear my name?"

Both Sheldon and Amy jumped at the sound of Stuart's voice.

"Way to celebrate a major holiday, man?" Sheldon said, shaking his head. "You of all people should know how important today is."

"What should I have done, Sheldon?"

"I don't know. Throw a party or something. Costume contests, door prizes, that sort of thing."

"Okay. Welcome to the party. Refreshments are over there," Stuart said, pointing to a bag of chips and a bottle of Coke by the cash register. "And congratulations, you won the costume contest."

Sheldon looked down just in time to see Stuart slap a sticker on his Flash t-shirt.

"A sticker? Really? No wonder you can't draw a crowd. Do I need to remind you of the rich and celebrated history of comic books? Or that the medium of storytelling through sequential art dates back-"

"No, I know … 17,000 years. Cave paintings. I've heard it all before."

"It appears you need to hear it again. Clearly you aren't sufficiently grasping the material. No doubt due to your art school education."

"Spoiler alert, Sheldon. Nobody cares!"

"Of course they do."

"Yeah, I can see folks are devastated," Stuart said to his mostly-empty shop.

"Maybe you need to consider a new line of work."

"So, Amy," Stuart began, turning his back to Sheldon in an attempt to silence him, "How did he like the-"

"What art school did you attend again?" Amy said, interrupting Stuart. Her raised eyebrows and steely glare told him she hadn't given Sheldon his surprise yet.

"How did I like what?" Sheldon asked.

"Oh, he's asking about the new Star Wars sheets I got you," she said, trying to bluff her way out of the situation.

"How does he know about our bedsheets?" Sheldon furrowed his brow and lowered his voice. "Amy, I don't like you speaking to practical strangers about the intimate details of our life."

Amy nodded. "Understood. It won't happen again." She breathed a sigh of relief, happy that he had bought the implausible lie.

"Good. I should hope not." Sheldon was not ready to let the subject go, which meant Amy was once again forced to steer the conversation into safer waters.

"Are we here to gab about sheets or to buy comic books," she said, her voice to little too loud.

"But he doesn't have anything for me to buy," Sheldon whined. "I've seen all of these."

"You know the new stuff comes in on Wednesdays," Stuart interjected.

"Yes, but today is National Comic Book Day."

"I don't know what to tell you, Sheldon." Stuart's eyes suddenly lit up with an idea. "How about the one I did for Amy. You could always pay me for that one."

"Stuart!" Sheldon shrieked.

"What?" Amy said.

"Are we here to gab or to buy comic books," Sheldon said, borrowing Amy's earlier transition. He, too, spoke a little too loudly in his desperation to change the subject.

"Not this again," Stuart said, tossing up his hands and walking away.

"Some National Comic Book Day," Sheldon said, his shoulders slumped in defeat. "What a disappointment."

"Maybe I can help? Let's go. I've got a surprise for you."

"Amy, you know I don't like surprises."

"I think you'll like this one."

"Is Harry Potter gonna make it hotter again?"

"Maybe later."

Stuart stuffed another chip into his mouth as he watched Sheldon and Amy walked out of the store.

"So I guess nobody's gonna buy anything, huh?"

#

On their way home, Amy stopped off at Howard and Bernadette's house.

"What are we doing here?" Sheldon asked. "I thought we were going home so you could give me my surprise."

"This is your surprise."

"Here? In the car? I think I might be too tall for-"

"Not that," Amy said. "What I mean is that Howard is part of your surprise."

Sheldon's jaw dropped. "I know our relationship has become more physical, but I don't think I'll ever be ready for-"

"Not that! Just get out of the car."

Before they could even knock, Howard opened the door and shoved a box at Sheldon.

"What's this?"

"Just open it." Howard shifted uncomfortably, unable to look Sheldon in the eye. He rolled his eyes when Sheldon opened the box with a gasp.

"Flash 123," Sheldon said breathlessly. "The classic Flash of Two Worlds issue." He looked back and forth between Howard and Amy, waiting for one of them to explain. "What's going on?"

Amy remained silent, but nudged Howard.

"It's yours," Howard muttered. "I'm giving it back to you."

"But why?" Sheldon turned the book over in his hands, studying it carefully. He was certain Howard must have damaged it in some way. Why else would he be returning it?

"Because it's National Comic Book Day and you're my friend," Howard offered. "I know how much these holidays mean to you."

Amy cleared her throat, causing Howard to continue.

"And because Amy won it back." His voice was lowered, but Sheldon's Vulcan hearing picked up every syllable.

"How?" he asked.

"The karaoke bar held a Name That Neil Diamond Tune contest and I beat the tiny little pants off of him." Amy laughed, but Sheldon didn't care for her choice of words.

"I hope you aren't being literal," he said, glancing down at his friends tiny pants.

Howard brushed off Sheldon's comment and went straight for Amy. "You cheated!"

"You just keep telling yourself that, second string." Amy said as she turned to go. "Come on, Sheldon. Let's go home and read your new comic book."

Sheldon fell in step behind her. "Technically it's an old comic book. And we really shouldn't read it. We could damage it."

"Can we just go?"

#

"So what was Stuart talking about?" Amy asked as soon as Sheldon got in the car.

"Oh, who knows?" he said, looking around nervously. "Stuart is such an odd fellow. There's no telling what he meant. Let's just go home and forget about him."

"Sheldon…" she warned, taking her hand off the ignition.

He looked at her and knew she was not going to let him off the hook. "Fine," he said. He reached into his messenger bag and pulled out a box similar to the one Howard had just given him and placed it hesitantly on her lap.

When she reached for it, he stopped her by touching her hand.

"I wasn't going to give this to you because I wasn't pleased with the way it turned out. But since the cat is already out of the bag … here you go."

Amy lifted the lid to find a comic book of her own. Her eyes shot to Sheldon's when she read the title: Amelia and the Time Traveling Physicist.

"How did you know about this?"

He leveled his gaze at her.

She nodded in recognition. "Penny. Of course."

"Are you angry?"

"With her? A little. With you? Not at all. Embarrassed maybe. But why didn't you want me to see it?"

Sheldon became agitated. "Because Stuart made such a mess of it. I'd love to know the name of that art school he went to." He used air quotes around the words "art school" just to emphasize his displeasure.

Amy picked up the custom-drawn comic book and started gently leafing through the pages. "What's wrong with it?"

"First of all, the drawing is terrible. Amelia doesn't look like you and Cooper doesn't look like me."

"How so?" Amy asked, studying the pages more closely.

"He's turned you into a pinup while making me a total dweeb."

"Well, I'm sure that's just artistic license," Amy soothed, secretly liking Stuart's version of her.

"But your bosom looks like a flotation device. I thought you didn't like that."

"Creative license."

"And I don't even wear glasses."

"Creative license."

Amy turned a page and saw Stuart's rendering of one of the sexier scenes in the story.

"See," Sheldon shrieked, tapping the page, "I told him to leave out the tawdry parts."

"Artistic license," Amy repeated, smiling slyly. "Besides, I like the tawdry parts. Don't you?"

Sheldon looked down at his lap as his cheeks turned pink. "Yes," he whispered. "But I don't want Stuart picturing you that way," he added with more conviction.

"Forget about Stuart," Amy said. "A drawing is all he'll ever get. But you can have the real thing."

Sheldon looked up at her, unsure of what she was suggesting.

"Are we talking about Amy or Amelia?"

"Sheldon can have Amy anytime he wants," she teased. "But how often can Cooper have Amelia?"

"I don't understand. Aren't we Cooper and Amelia?"

"For a man who spends so much time in costume, you aren't catching on too quickly." She leaned over and whispered into his ear. "It just so happens that I have a prairie girl costume, as well as a time-traveler's suit hidden in the closet at home. I was saving them for a private Halloween celebration, but I'm not sure I want to wait." Her voice was soft and low and her breath tickled his ear as she spoke.

She pulled away and looked into his eyes, liking the way his pupils had already begun to dilate.

"Cosplay?" he whispered weakly.

She nodded slowly.

"Oh, Amy, you know how I love cosplay." His voice cracked with anticipation.

She continued to nod. "Don't you mean Amelia?"

He leapt from the car, ran around to the driver's side and flung the door open. "Move over, Vixen. I'm driving!"

Amy giggled as she slid across the seat, then laughed outright when he squealed out of Howard's driveway and sped down the street.