Sooo, stories progressing ne? This chapter, fun realizations. Enjoy.

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Disclaimer: I own nothing but the hopes that someday a Sheldon will magically appear in my life.

Sheldon's Invitation

Three days had passed since his conversation with Penny. He couldn't believe how completely un-phased she'd been by his revealing the need for female companionship to his sister's wedding. He'd been under the impression that Penny thought he held no interest in females, as his friends did. But it seemed almost as if she'd been wondering how long it would take for it to happen. Sometimes Penny surprised him with how perceptive she was. Perhaps it was her female's intuition, if that really existed at all. Much like psychics, Sheldon wasn't convinced.

He started down the stairs to collect the mail as he did every afternoon, leaving Leonard in the apartment above. Thankfully after Penny had left that fateful night Leonard didn't come out of hiding in his room, and the next morning simple questions were asked, but of course no information was shared. The idea of Leonard knowing this semi desperate situation brought an uneasy feeling he wasn't familiar with to his stomach.

He had just rounded the last landing when he heard the lobby door open below. He saw a strikingly familiar pair of loafer shoes and a long denim skirt swish past, and knew it had to be his blonde neighbor from next door. She'd arrived home exactly thirty seven minutes early from work, and by the soft humming he head echoing off the stone walls and the marble floor, he was sure she was in a relatively good mood. When he appeared she'd just turned away from her mailbox, looking up from her letters with a smile.

"Hi Sheldon." She said cheerfully, her bright green eyes glinting slightly in the overhead light.

He'd never noticed before how lovely her eyes could look in the right light. Was it perhaps the angle? Or was it in fact the type of light, because he'd noticed a change in the contrast of certain colours under the new energy saving bulbs. Did it also have an effect on the sparkle in ones eye? He wasn't sure but he figured he could probably formulate a hypothesis upon further study.

"Good afternoon Penny." He responded, tipping his head slightly downward in a general nod of greeting.

She stood there waiting as he inserted the key into his mailbox and opened the door. The usual things all almost tumbled out, his Physics Quarterly and the various bills that would soon enough need paying, but a large white envelope tumbled into his awaiting fingers, catching his attention immediately. Placing the other less important things under his arm, he closed and secured his mailbox door before turning, the envelope in hand, and stared at it a moment.

Heavy white ivory linen, the envelope was a masterpiece. His name, Dr. Sheldon Cooper PhD, was scrawled in loopy lettering on the front, and he noticed the intricate silver foil vines that bordered it. He knew exactly what it was that he was holding, and part of him wanted nothing more than to shove the thing back into the mailbox and walk away as if he'd never seen it. But it was too late, Penny had seen the envelope and was at his elbow in a moment, peeking over it, her body closer to him than he'd like.

Taking a step to the side he turned to look at her, until her green eyes shifted to meet his own, then he looked away noticing that the elevators 'Out of Order' sign was missing once more. A cruel joke the teenagers in the building sometimes played on the visitors or new tenants. Sheldon could still feel her watching him, neither of them saying a word.

"Well, are you going to open it?" she asked quickly.

"I'd prefer not to."

"I thought we went over this." She said taking a step closer to him. "You have nothing to be nervous about."

"I do not recall you mentioning any reasons at all as to why I shouldn't be nervous, while I on the contrary mentioned a fair few examples of why I should be."

"Sheldon, open the envelope." She said flatly, looking at him pointedly.

Suddenly Sheldon felt that the wrath of his sister was nothing compared to that of the blond standing, her weight positioned completely on one foot, a very unhealthy habit. With lithe fingers he opened the envelope, and extracted the thick paper within. Skimming the words he noticed that it was just like any other invitation, with the date and time of the wedding and reception to follow, not to mention the locations. But there was one large, almost completely unneccisary add on at the bottom. His sister had penned, in her own childlike writing: "Shelly, you WILL bring a date. Love, Missy"

He guessed that had only been penned in there recently because he could still smell the acrid smell of the Sharpie marker she'd used. And in true Missy fashion the 'plus one' box was already checked. He should have known that she would have already planned this out. It would be useless calling his mother now, for if she wasn't in on the entire situation to begin with, she'd definitely not force her soon to be wedded daughter to change any part of the wedding so late. So plan A was ruined.

"How long would you be in Texas for?" Penny asked, as they started for the staircase side by side.

"A grand total of three days I believe. I spoke to my mother the day after Missy called, and she didn't allude to knowing anything about the bride-to-be's call by the way, but she did request that I come a day early and stay a day later to help with the clean up. Apparently she feels I'd be good at that." He rolled his eyes.

"You can miss three days." Penny stated waving a hand. "You'll be fine."

"I might be, but it's not me I'm entirely worried about Penny." He reminded. "My work will suffer, not to mention what ever female I can find to come with me. She'll be trapped in Texas with my family for three days."

He noticed that at his words Penny had to turn away from him, possibly to hide the giggles, he wasn't completely sure. All he knew was that when he turned back to him, her eyes were once again glittering. He looked away promptly.

"Well, what if I can help you find a date?" Penny offered. "Someone who would be happy to go. Would you be more inclined to go along with it?"

"But my work Penny. Nobel Prizes don't just win themselves."

"Can't you take a board with you?"

"Oh don't be silly," she rolled her eyes. "I already have two boards there."

He noticed as they rounded the landings that she was letting out short breaths of air, almost grunting noises. He wondered if there wasn't something wrong with her respiratory system. He questioned her about it, but she only responded by laughing.

"There's nothing wrong with me Sheldon, I'm making that sound on purpose. I just can't believe how selfish you're being."

"Selfish? I fail to see how I'm the person being selfish when she wants me to bring someone, a stranger to her no doubt, to her own wedding."

"That's not selfish Sheldon. She wants you to be happy, like her, she wants to see you with a girl, settling down, getting married. When she was here last time you were all she'd talk about, aside from Raj that is."

"I'd prefer not to hear what my sister said about Raj thank you very much." Sheldon said as they reached their floor.

"Sheldon, your sister is only trying to help. She wants you to meet a woman that you can fall in love with." Penny said, and he noticed a strangely almost daydream like state in her eyes, like whatever it was she was looking at was not really there.

"Love." It came out as more of a question than he'd intended. "But it's only a date."

"Oh Sheldon."

He watched her lift a hand and gently pat his cheek, shaking her head in much the same way you would at a child who'd just spilled spagetti on their shirt. The feel of her fingers on his cheek were foreign but oddly enough he didn't cringe away as much as he'd thought he might. The sensation was pleasant, in a mild way, and before he knew it the contact was severed and she was gripping her door handle. They'd arrived to their floor.

"See you later Hun."

"We're having a movie night. Would you care to join us?" Sheldon asked before he realized what he was doing.

"Who is we?"

"All of us. Leonard, Raj, and Howard. Possibly even Dr. Stephanie. I know Leonard has been frequenting her apartment once again as of late."

"So they're back together?"

"I don't believe so." Sheldon stated.

"Maybe. I'll let you know. I've got to shower though."

"Oh, all right then. We shall begin at exactly seven o' clock."

Then he turned away, listening to the sound of her laughter as she entered her apartment, the door closing behind her with a snap. Sheldon wondered as he opened the door to his own apartment, why it was that Penny had taken such an interest in this situation he was having with his sister. He wondered why she cared, but didn't have the heart, or a reasonable way to begin the conversation to ask.

Leonard was in the shower when he entered. He dropped the mail on the table beside the bowl where he left his keys and moved to the couch, the invitation still clutched in his fingers. He could picture the church it would be held in, for the place was a constant in his childhood, the high steeple that towered over the street below, the noisy bell that chimed the beginning of each service. He could picture the stained glass windows that would gleam brightly in the sunlight, throwing a kaleidoscope of colours across his Sunday's best as he sat in the pew, the preacher spilling out his gospel words, while Sheldon's mind was spewing out the latest in the scientific community.

He could picture his sister in the pew beside him, fiddling with the edge of her dress as she eyed the simpering little boys in pews around their own. He'd caught them staring, her staring back, the seemingly unspoken conversations. He could see that same girl, grown up, wandering down the aisle behind a child throwing petals, and approaching whatever second rate mind it was that she'd settled for. How he hoped that the precious DNA within her wasn't compromised.

He slipped the invitation back into the envelope, ignoring the bold black words, his instructions, his threat. He wondered how he would find someone that would be willing to journey to Texas with him on such short notice. None of the females he knew would be up to it, he knew. But of course, the list was rather short. He didn't even bother to name them. It would be a complete waste of valuable seconds.

But then he realized something, and he wondered why he hadn't figured it out earlier. There was one female that he could take, one that he could trust, who knew him well enough. He felt comfortable enough around her, and wouldn't have to mask his habits and peculiarities with her, because she had first hand experience with most of them. Plus, if he went with her he wouldn't have to fly.

Yes, he'd ask Penny to accompany him.

Leaving the envelope on the couch he wandered to the door, his hand on the handle when something stopped him. Something she'd mentioned to him earlier made him stop in his tracks. His sister had been talking to Penny about him, and how she wanted him to fall in love. But why would she pick Penny to reveal that to? And why, when his sister knew that Sheldon had very few, actually only one real female companion, would she demand he bring a date?

Had her intent all along been for him to ask Penny?

He glared at nothing in particular at the cunning of his sister. Perhaps she wasn't as completely ordinary as he'd predicted. She seemed to have a clever mind, one well versed in manipulation and scheming. Thankfully she'd not fallen into the wrong hands, or he was sure the entire world, and many sets of male testicles, would be in danger.

His sister was using her command as a way to force him to ask Penny to go with him. But how'd she know that Penny would say yes? Obviously she'd had to know that Penny would say yes because why else would she make him ask at all. She wouldn't put him through rejection like that, they might fight a lot, but he was still her brother.

Sheldon's mind was completely wired with the plots and plans of a bride to be. There was a reason for everything she'd done at one point or another when it came to this situation, and Sheldon refused to let someone with an IQ much lower than his own beat him at mental warfare. If she knew that Penny would say yes, then did that mean…

Did that mean that on some level Penny had feelings for him?

Perhaps he was getting ahead of himself? But Dr. Sheldon Cooper was never wrong. The only logical explanation for this entire 'date' situation, was that Penny subconsciously had feelings for him, something his sister picked up on, and was now forcing to come to fruit.

He could almost pat himself on the back. It wasn't getting ahead of himself at all, it all made perfect sense. He was smiling one of his rare genuine smiles as he stood there, still before the door, the sound of the shower turning off waking him from his theories and hypothesis. Leonard would soon be emerging from the bathroom, and if he saw him standing by the door he would enquire about where Sheldon was going, a question he didn't feel like answering. Turning the handle he stepped into the hall, closing the door softly behind him. He crossed the hall in three long strides, but stopped his hand midair, letting it hover there before the door.

Sooo what'd yout think then? Lemme know please. Thank you.

Starry