"Let's try to talk quietly, Ayden is napping." Missy whispers at the entrance to her room but when she opens up the door Ayden is standing up in his crib.

Smiling at them he claps his hands. "Get me out Mama!." He says reaching out to Missy

"Little man, you should be asleep, we got a busy day ahead of us." Missy tells him lifting him out of the crib.

"I am not sleepy!" he says as Missy sets him down in a chair and hands him her phone.

"Here sugar booger why don't you watch some cartoons while Mama talks to Miss Penny."

"OK" Ayden says and he sits quietly watching something on Missy's phone.

"So tell me everything you know." Penny tells Missy sitting down on her bed.

"You go first." Missy says

"Why, your information is more exciting!" Penny tells her.

"Yes, but yours has already happened my information is just guesswork by my Mama and my Memaw at this point."

"Alright, well there is not much to say other than Amy told me that they finally, you know, did the deed. I'm sorry I don't know how much you want to hear about your brother that way."

"Honey I grew up with George Jr. Where Sheldon never tells you a thing about his life, Georgie has a bad habit of telling you everything! Even things you never wanted to know about your brother."

"George is rather, how shall we say, open… He really frightened Amy earlier this week."

"Oh Georgie just likes to play. What did he do? I know he slapped her on the ass. I have to say I have never been so shocked in my life than when I heard Shelly call Amy his woman."

"Oh that's nothing I've heard him call her 'dear Amy', but that is beside the point. It was more than a slap on the bottom that scared her. Penny recounts the story that Amy told her including her own first encounter with George. Missy listens shocked.

"Well I never! I am going to have to teach my brother a lesson in manners." Missy says getting up, but Penny stops her.

"I am all for that, but first you have to tell me what you know." Penny pleads.

"Oh right, well where should start? See my Memaw's engagement ring that my Pop gave her was truly beautiful, a real heirloom. Memaw had that ring for fifty years and she never took it off. When she was in the hospital, I asked her if she might leave it to me but she said that it had been on her hand for fifty years and it would be on there a hundred more."

"Sounds like true love." Penny says.

"It was, my Memaw never got over my Pop dying, well at least now they can be together again." Missy says getting misty eyed and Penny wraps her arm around her.

"As I was saying, Memaw had no plans on giving that ring to anybody, but when my Mama and Sheldon went to the lawyers to see about the will, they found out that she had left the ring to him. Now I can tell you that I was pretty bent out of shape about it at first but then my Mama told me that right before she died Memaw had it in her head that Sheldon was about to ask Amy to marry him. Or at least she really wanted for Sheldon to ask Amy to marry him and she thought the ring would be like her blessing.

"Wow, so Sheldon has the ring?" Penny asks and Missy nods her head.

"Been carrying it around in his pocket since he got it. But don't tell Sheldon I told you okay? I really have no clue what he actually intends to do. I mean before, if you had told me that he even had a girlfriend I would have thought you were crazy. " Missy tells her.

"Don't worry, your secret is safe with me, as long as mine is safe with you." Penny says getting up.

"My lips are sealed, now I just got to think of what to do to get back at Georgie." Missy says tapping her finger to her mouth.

Amy rereads the letter, she has lost track of how many times she has read it at this point.

Dear Memaw,

I received your missive last week and have just now found the time to reply. I am glad that George Jr. will be down for such an extended visit however I regret to inform you I will be unable to make it as well. What with starting my research in dark matter and the sabbatical I took last summer it is just not an ideal time for a visit.

I understand that you are anxious to finally meet Amy. To tell you the truth I am eager for you to meet her as well. I know that you will love her as much as I do because you love me and Amy truly is my other half. I always found that term contrived until I met her, but she lifts me up in the few areas that I fail.

I am going to tell you something that I have not told anyone yet, mostly because you have always been my confidant but also because I know the news will excite you. Do you remember the advice about the weeds you gave me last year? Well I followed it and I am going to ask Amy to marry me. Now don't go shouting from the hilltops just yet! I don't know when, maybe in a year or two, when things get more settled here. Definitely after Leonard marries Penny and moves out of the apartment.

I cannot see myself being happy without her in my life or living with anyone else but her. I remember how happy you and Pop were together, how I wished my own parents could find that happiness with each other. I never thought I would find that for myself, because I never thought that I wanted it, until I met Amy.

I am confident that we can find the time to visit sometime next summer. Amy has never been to Texas and I am sure she would find the area fascinating. At our last relationship summit we discussed the idea of going on vacation together but never came to a firm agreement. Amy wanted to go to the Exploratorium in San Francisco and I to the Museum of Computer history however I think I can make a rather convincing case for Texas. I hope this letter finds you well.

Love,

Moonpie

Amy does not know how to proceed. Reading that letter has left her speechless. She does not know what she expected, certainly nothing as perfect as this. Though she was curious to know what Sheldon's last words to his grandmother had been, she had not expected this. It was like skipping ahead to the end of a book and it ending the way you had hoped.

When Sheldon had left on his train trip, Amy had been devastated. So many things had gone through her mind during his absence. Would this be the end of their relationship, when all she had done was suggest they live together, but then how would he ever know what she wanted if she never told him.

How could she go back to him after he walked out on her like that? How could she continue to be with him when he saw no future with her beyond what they already had. If she stayed with him she would never have her dream of spending their life together watching their children play and grow.

She thought that when Sheldon came back and they would pretend like nothing had happened and he would never change That he would want them to carry on like they were now, forever, getting older, but still meeting for tea after work, still having date night on Thursdays. Then it occurred to her that that vision didn't seem absolutely awful because at least she would still have Sheldon in her life.

Sure she could break up with him and try to date someone else, maybe Bert, though Amy knew in her heart that she would only ever be happy with Sheldon. Sure Bert, or anyone else for that matter, may be more willing to give her what she wanted but she had never wanted those things before Sheldon. Before they had met she saw her life as going on the forced one date a year until her mother died then living the rest of her years alone. Being alone had never bothered her before, in fact, she had welcomed it. Now the thought of being without Sheldon terrified her.

Amy had made the decision then, that she loved him, and she loved him unconditionally. There was no expiration date or special terms to her feelings for him. If it meant not living together or not being physically intimate with him then she would accept that. Amy would put the reins of their relationship into his hands and go at whatever pace that he felt comfortable with.

When he did come back they talked for a long time, he told her he was sorry for leaving the way he did. Amy apologized for overwhelming him with the living together situation when he was already distraught. She told him that she would never bring it up again, unless it was something they talked about together.

Now, here she was reading how he plans on marrying her and this before they had actually made love. Amy felt a little like she was dreaming. Had she been in a car accident on the way to Sheldon's apartment and this was some crazy coma hallucination. She pinches herself hard on the arm and stares at the pink welt it leaves.

"Looks and feels real." she mumbles to herself. Then she hears a knock on the door and she shoves the letter back inside her sweater.

"Amy? Are you in there?" Penny calls through the door.

"Yeah, just a sec!" Amy calls standing up and flushing the toilet to give the illusion that she was just using the bathroom.

"Are you alright, you have been in there for a while."

"I am fine." Amy says opening up the door

"Leonard was worried about you, he said that you were acting odd." Penny tells her as they walk down the hall together.

"What would he know? He is odd." Amy tells her and Penny just sighs and nods her head in agreement.

"Anyway come with me." Penny says walking ahead of her.

"Where are we going?" Amy asks.

"You'll see." Penny says mysteriously.

George Jr. is in the living room laying on the couch with his boots on. Missy, Penny, and Amy walk into the room with their arms crossed and stand in front of him blocking his view of the TV.

"What did Mama tell you about sitting on the couch with them filthy boots on" Missy says

"Well how are you doing sister, almost my sister, and hot damn I am glad you are not my sister." George says cracking his knuckles and sitting up.

"What's this I hear about you harassing Amy and Penny?" Missy asks putting her hand on her hip.

"I wasn't harassing nobody." George says moodily spitting into a cola bottle.

"Oh, really, hot damn you better be glad I'm not you're sister. If I was I would kick you in the nuts like I used to with my brother when he pissed me off." Penny tells him.

"If it got you to touch my nuts then maybe it would be worth it?" George laughs

"How would you like me to do to you what I used to do when we was kids?" Missy says angrily

"I really don't understand why you are so bent out of shape Missy." George tells her crossing his legs and putting a pillow in his lap.

"I am bent out of shape because you are being rude to Shelly's friends and I don't want you to go running off Shelly's first girlfriend."

"Oh please, if Sheldon himself has not managed to run her off then I don't think a little teasing by me is going to finish the job, am I right almost sis?"

"No you're not right, I mean, I am not leaving Sheldon, but you know it was more than a little teasing. You accosted me, scared me, and said you were going to tell me the truth about Sheldon. Like he is some kind of evil doer." Amy tells him.

"He is an evil doer!" George exclaims.

"George what are you going on about, yes Sheldon built a death ray when we were kids but we both know he couldn't have even killed a fly with it." Missy says.

"He broke up Mama and Daddy's marriage! Hell he killed daddy!"

"Georgie you are crazy as a June-bug! Sheldon did do either of those things."

"Mama and Daddy would still be married if Sheldon had just been normal. But Mama always had to go cart him somewhere, take him to some specialist, drive him to some college. They were always fighting about him and you know that! Daddy thought we should not give into him all the time and try to raise him up normal and Mama was always going against him. Putting all that science crap in his head, letting him put on airs"

"Mama and Daddy spilt up because Daddy was an alcoholic skirt chaser! If Sheldon had been a dumb good old boy just like you Mama and Daddy would still have spilt up. Because Daddy would still have been going through a six pack of Jack every week! How did Sheldon kill Daddy? Daddy died of a heart attack because he drank like a fish and ate nothing but steak and French fry's!"

"Daddy drank so much because all of Sheldon's quirks stressed him out! He would still be alive if Sheldon had never been born!" George tells her. Upset and angry Missy walks up to him and slaps him across the face hard leaving a red handprint. With tears streaming, she points an accusing finger at him.

"Don't you dare talk like that! Memaw is gone, Daddy is gone, Pop is gone and you would dare to wish Sheldon away too! Maybe you should point the blame at yourself. Do you think it was easy for Mama and Daddy to have to constantly bail you out? You don't think Mama said the same things about you to Daddy as he said to her about Sheldon. That maybe if you had a proper role model at home she would not be bailing a fifteen year out of jail! Sheldon is not the evil doer you are." Missy says turning on her heel and stomps out of the room, Amy and Penny follow her leaving George to stare after them in stunned silence.

Sheldon leaves his room a while later finding the house eerily quiet. Searching for Amy, he realizes that the house is empty. He glances at his watch wondering if they had gone out to eat, but it is only five o clock and not time for supper yet. Mary Cooper never ate supper before six o clock. Looking out the back door and sees Leonard sitting on the porch swing.

"Where did everyone go?" he asks joining Leonard on the swing.

"Well you missed a pretty interesting couple hours. Let me see, Amy locked herself in the bathroom for twenty minutes, Penny and your sister bonded, and decided to confront your brother. That culminated in her slapping him across the face…"

"Who slapped George across the face Missy or Penny?" Sheldon interrupts.

"Missy did the slapping but apparently Penny threatened to kick him in the balls." Sheldon makes an impressed face.

"Why did they do that though?"

"To defend yours and Amy's honor I think, or just because he is a colossal asshat." Leonard tells him.

"Where is everyone now?" he asks.

"George left and no one knows where he went. Your Mom went to try and find him and Missy and the girls went with her. I stayed behind to fill you in on what happened and now you are all up to date." Leonard says patting him on the back and Sheldon covers his face with his hands and lets out a soft groan.

"And they wonder why I never brought Amy to visit before!" Sheldon moans.

"Your family wanted to meet Amy?"

"Yes, especially Memaw, in fact in her last letter to me she was practically begging me to come down with Amy for a visit. In fact she even said "Don't even bother coming if you ain't got your little girlfriend with you this time." I wish I had listened, then I could have had more time with her, it's like Professor Proton told me appreciate them now."

"When did Professor Proton tell you that?" Leonard asks.

"After he died he came to me in a vision dressed like Obi Wan." Sheldon tells him, Leonard just nods his head and changes the subject.

"Why do you think she wanted you to bring Amy so bad?"

"Well, I would say because Amy is a big part of my life now and she wanted to meet her. Also it may have something to do with this." He says fishing the little black box out of his pocket and hands it to Leonard. Leonard takes the box, opens it and then stares at the contents with a dumbfounded expression on his face.

"Is this…" he begins.

"My Memaw's engagement ring, worn by her for fifty years, and left to me in her will."

"What did she think, that you were going to ask Amy to marry you?"

"That is exactly what she thought." He tells him taking the ring back and staring at it.

"Why? I mean what would give her that idea?"

"Because I told her that I was."