Amy watched her boyfriend pace around. She had never seen Sheldon act this way and it worried her a little bit.

"Sheldon, whatever's bothering you, you can tell me. In fact our Relationship Agreement states that when one party is unhappy, the other must do something to relieve the feeling."

"I know, I know." Sheldon muttered. Finally he sighed and sat in his spot next to Amy.

"It's Howard."

"Has he been in another of your spots again?"

"No, he hasn't been near any of my spots." Sheldon fidgeted, before saying, "It's about Howard and Bernadette."

"Are they alright? Will I have to dig out my maid-of-honour dress in the future?"

"Oh, Amy, it was earlier today in the shopping mall..."

Amy didn't show emotion to Sheldon very often, but her face went from neutral to horrified as Sheldon told her the story. Telling it to her, he confided in her, something he'd never even told Leonard.

"My father drank a lot. He'd beat either my mother or me with his empty bottles. It was painful seeing what had happened to Wolowitz. My chest tightened, but it wasn't an asthma attack. He's my tertiary friend. I don't want him to be hurt like I was."

While explaining this to Amy, he felt a hot, prickling pain in his eyes. He felt as helpless as when he was a young child, being hurt or watching his mother being hurt by the giant of a man George Cooper had seemed. Amy cautiously put her arms around Sheldon. She felt terribly sad for her boyfriend, but knew she had to stay strong for him. Eventually Sheldon straightened up.

"Thank you." He always seemed so ashamed of showing human feelings. There was no doubt in the neurobiologist's mind that his father was to blame for that.

"It's OK." She reassured him.

"What do we do? Right now, Howard could be lying in a pool of his own blood."

"I'm sure he's not. We'll think of something. Perhaps a mind map will help us."

"Good thinking. Now, what should we start with?"

"Reasons for bruising. If we go to Bernadette and it's a mistake, it could have negative repercussions."

"Yes. Now.."

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Howard wasn't lying in a pool of his own blood. He had just showered and was dabbing his stomach dry. The door opened and Bernadette froze upon seeing her husband's markings. Her face crumpled and she ran out. Howard pulled a shirt on and went after her. She was lying on their bed, sobbing broken - heartedly into the pillow.

"Bernie, please don't cry." Howard said to her, awkwardly. He wasn't exactly good at comforting people at the best of times and he was a little afraid she'd hit him again. She continued weeping.

"Please, Bernie, I'm sorry."

"It's not you who should be sorry." Bernadette told him through her crying. Howard climbed onto the bed and made his way to her and gave her a hug. She clung to him and snuffled against his chest. Eventually, she calmed down enough to talk to him properly.

"I don't know why or how I can do this to you. I'm sorry, Howie. I'm so sorry!"

"Oh, Bernie. You didn't mean to. You were mad. It's understandable."

"It's no excuse to hit people. Nobody deserves to get hit, ever."

"I forgive you. Just please don't hit me again."

"I won't hit you again. I promise. I'm sorry."

"It's OK."

"I love you."

"I love you too, Bernie."

He kissed her head and she snuggled against him. They didn't let go for a long time.

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"Well, I can't understand it." Amy said, giving up.

"Neither can I." Sheldon told her.

They stared at the board, before Amy turned to Sheldon.

"We need help. Perhaps Penny or Leonard..."

"I don't know. Penny would go crazy and Leonard would probably go into 'I - blame - myself' mode."

"We need help. They are two of the more...sociable people we know."

"I suppose. You can ask."

"Fine. Come on, let's go and ask them."

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Penny and Leonard had just finished watching a movie. They were drinking white wine during it and both were relaxed. They started kissing and things were going reasonably well, until...

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

"Penny and Leonard."

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

"Penny and Leonard!"

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

"Penny and Leonard!"

Both groaned. They liked Sheldon very much, but sometimes they wanted to kill him.

"Yes?" Penny asked, not very politely, as she answered the door.

"We have a problem." Sheldon told her.

"Read the book!" Leonard called.

"Not that kind of problem!"

"It's about Howard and Bernadette." Amy explained to the annoyed couple. They looked less annoyed at that.

"What about them?" Leonard asked.

"It's gonna sound bad, but..."

I know, I know. I'm pure evil for what I'm putting Howie through and I'm even worse for ending on a cliffhanger! Thank you wonderful people for your equally great reviews! 5mississipis, nertooold54, shadyatem, and my first reviewer, monkeyleaf, I'm taking to you and anyone else who is wiling to take a few minutes to review! I hope this had good shamy for you, Shadyatem and all you other shamy fans. And if there's any Lenny fans out there, I had a bit of Lenny in there too, idk if you noticed. Well, I have to go! Hope you enjoyed it, guys and guyettes!

Love, Shania