Disclaimer: All is Chuck's...
Part LIII...
White Sands National Park...Visitor's site for the missile testing range...
"So, you actually invented a new rocket fuel?" Summer eagerly, to Leonard as Raj nervously followed the pair beside Ms. Glau's aunt.
Who seemed to have an endless reserve of questions about India yet was not much bothered by Raj's monosyllabic answers...
"He will..." Raj noted. "I mean it's still in the development stage..." as Leonard turned back, eyeing him.
Raj? Just trying to keep her happy. I want that free ride.
"I've pretty well worked it out." Leonard noted. "It's even attracted some attention from abroad."
Like in the form of Joyce Kim trying to seduce it out of you in twelve or so years? Raj stared.
Still, I suppose it is nice to know a pretty spy really wanted what you got. Not all that much interest in exosolar planetary bodies since the first dozens were found.
"Wow." Summer nodded. "Of course, the real breakthrough will be in ion drive, I'd say. That could be an interstellar propulsion system that could make flights feasible, to the nearest stars."
"I'm actually working on an ion system...I just got...Well, will get...A grant to develop one..." Leonard nods.
"Really?" beam. "Rajesh? What star system would you send a probe to?" she looked back, eager smile.
"Oh...Uh...There are several..." he choked out.
"Proxima Centauri." Leonard, archly as Raj glared.
Stepping on my province here, dude.
"Proxima?" Summer eyed him, curious. "But it's a multiple star system, isn't that likely to be too unstable?"
"I'm convinced there's a planet or two there and it will be proven in the next, oh, 20 or so years." Smile at Raj.
"Yeah..." scowl.
"Raj is working on some new methods to detect them." Leonard to Raj's slight thawing.
Ok, thanks...
"Really, Rajesh?" Summer, rather excited.
"Uh...Yeah...Sort of...Ways to go yet."
"Is it really so crowded in India you can't sit down in some cities?" the aunt suddenly asked him.
Uh...
"Auntie..." Summer frowned. "That's not true...Oh, look, they're ready to fire!" she turned and taking Raj's hand, pulled him along to the large window overlooking the test range area.
"Oh, sorry..." she apologized to a short boy peering out over the test range as she nudged past him.
"No...Problem...Beautiful." The boy eyed her with leer.
"HOWARD! Come and tell me how the rocket works!" a small and beautiful blonde woman summoned the boy.
Raj and Leonard staring...
"Coming Ma! Just wait a second will ya! Be right back, honey. Just keep lookin' the way you do." He told an amused Summer, hurrying off.
"HOW COME IT DOESN'T HAVE WINGS?! HOWARD?! HOW DOES IT STAY UP?!"
"I TOLE YA, MA...IT DOESN'T NEED WINGS!" The boy fuming at his slight mother...
"Oh my God..." Rajesh blinked, looking over. "I completely forgot. He told me his mother brought him here, some time in '96."
"My God...She's..." Leonard stared at Bernadette, in rather more stylish clothes, complete with flamboyantly colorful scarf...
"Oh, my eyes!..." averting gaze. "Leonard? We pledge right now to never say a word." Raj noted. "Though I'd say now I got the wrong reprogrammed guardian terminator."
Leonard, eyeing carefully young Howard and his mom as Howard explained the mysteries of what keeps a rocket up...
Nah...Couldn't be...
On the other hand....It would explain a lot...
Oh, come on...It's just coincidence... I mean I could just as easily say that Penny...
"Dude...I know it's coincidence...I hope...But we are the first time-travelers/multiverse sliders..." Rajesh hissed.
"Guys! They're about to fire!" Summer called, catching sight of the source of their interest and locking eyes with Mrs. Wolowitz a brief moment as she in turn noted the two thirtyish men eyeing her.
As did... "Hey, buddy." Howard glared Rajeshward. "You want my fist to guide you away from my mom's boobs?"
...
Penny's CCU room...
"You guys can't stay here all day. You need to get on the trail of that bitch Stein." Penny insisted to Sheldon and Amy as they sat on bench, rather exhausted.
"Or at least go get some sleep." She eyed them. "You look worse than I do..." slight grin. "Musta been an even better night than I heard up here."
"Magical." Sheldon tersely. "But you may be right. Now's the time to ferret out our nemesis and pounce like the jungle cat." Yawn...Crushing yawn...
"I'm here! What's happening?!" Amy, suddenly waking, her head jerking off Sheldon's shoulder.
"Guys. You need to get some sleep." Penny sighed, shaking head. "Go to Sheldon's and get some rest. You should check on the little dude anyhow."
"I called him. He and Kripke are just fine. And the building janitor will recover."
"Right..." Penny sighed. "But I'd feel better if you were with him. Amy? Amy!" Amy snapping up, then groggily staring.
"What did I miss? Is Susan here?!"
"Amy...Sheldon needs to sleep. Take him to Sheldon's. I'll be fine. And you should check on mini Sheldon in any case. No offense to Kripke but..."
"'Mini'...?!" Sheldon stared. "I'll have you know, Penny, I was on the mean percentile for height at twelve."
"And at the top of the chart for cuties, next to ma lil' honey." Penny beamed, a bit wanly.
"Are you trying to send us away?" Amy eyed her. "Cause I'm staying right here, by my..." yawn... "Bestie's side."
"Penny...? I'" Sheldon eyed her. "You'd never do anything to hurt Amy?" careful look. She smiled at him...
"Never...It'll be fine. I promise." Firm stare at which he nodded.
"Hurt me?" Amy, a bit woozy.
"It's nothing, come on, Amy. We'll call you soon as we get to my counterpart's." he nodded to Penny. "And we'll be back or send Team 'mini' Sheldon soon." Slight frown.
"Mini-Sheldon..." Amy giggled a bit woozily. "I love that. Ok, I guess we better go. Penny? You promised Sheldon, don't hurt him either." Sudden hard stare.
"No way." She nodded, smiling.
...
"You really think she'll be ok?" Sheldon, nervously, outside the room, in corridor.
"She promised." Amy shrugged. "And she'll keep that promise till we settle with Susan. After that..." sigh.
He nodded. "What can we do, Amy? Leonard would be so hurt if I fail her. And she's my friend too. I'm afraid for her."
"Keep her busy...Let her grieve." Shrug.
"She's not going to make it." Sheldon shook head. "I know Penny. She's too serene...Penny doesn't do serene unless she's made up her mind."
"We'll work out something...Either we'll find a way to get her back home...Age young Leonard or deage her...Or convince her it would be the neatest tribute to him if she became the world's leading experimental physicist. A process certain to take considerable time and provide mucho distraction." Amy shrugged.
"Seriously? I mean I know she'd do it somehow but easier to find a way to send her home." He noted.
"And 'deage'?" he eyed her.
"I'm very tired." Amy sighed.
"Dr. Stein?" Sheldon looked to see Stein in suit, entering...
"Cooper...How is Dr. Hofstadter?"
Time to debunk that fraud... "Mrs. Hofstadter is much better, but..."
"I understand. Sheldon? I have news. Xavier came to see me early this morning."
"What?"
"What? What?!" Amy looking round.
"She's very tired." Sheldon noted. "Ummn...Guard duty for Penny, you understand. He came to see you? What did he want? And is he still breathing?"
"Yes to the last, and I'll explain why..." Stein sighed. "He claims to want to help put things rights. Says he always intended to rectify things once he accomplished his goal."
"And just how would he do that? Given it's probably impossible."
"He wouldn't go further...Which is why I didn't try to restrain him. He may have knowledge that could actually help. At the very least he's Susan's partner of sorts and each may try to find the other. Though..." Stein paused. "He claims she and he are at odds now."
"No offense but I woulda whupped him and hogtied him, to borrow my daddy's colorful lingo." Sheldon noted.
"Hogtie? Who?" Amy blinked, trying to comprehend.
"It's ok, honey. I meant Dr. Francis not you." Sheldon noted.
"Rats..." she breathed. "Oooh... Hello, Dr. Stein. I was just thinking of my lab rats...Poor things...Blown to atoms with our world..."
"Of course, dear...Sheldon, I'm sorry but I was afraid if I did try to hold him, he'd refuse to tell whatever he knows...I've only pushed the theory so far in this era. Susan and he carried it much further."
"I suppose...But did you arrange some sort of contact method?"
"The man who broke my bestie's heart? I'll 'contact' him..." Amy, grimly.
"He offered one...Note in the key box at our hotel." Stein noted. "Says he'll have anything we leave picked up, to discourage us from keeping surveillance."
"I'll leave him something to 'pick up'." Amy, yawning.
Sheldon eyeing Stein ... "Very tired. Anything else?"
Sigh. "He told me adult Susan was sure to try and harm my Susan. She'd never be happy just clearing a path for her. And...Sheldon? This may be dangerous. He sent a quantum copy back, in the course of the first jump. To alter Margaret's fate."
"He what?" blinking. "Then he's done what he planned..." puzzled look. "Has it affected...?"
"No, Margaret's not alive here...And there are no alterations that I can determine." Stein sighed. "The multiverse theory is correct, only the timeline entered is affected. But you know the danger...?"
"Not your grandmother, Amy..." Sheldon, gently to Amy's sudden look of concern. "Dr. Francis' wife."
"Ohhh." Nod.
"More universes where the possibility of his actions having consequences exponentially increased..." Sheldon continued.
"Yes...But also, he's a free man now. If he's telling the truth and I believe from analysis of your data on the traces, he is. He has no reason to cooperate. In fact, he exposed his action unnecessarily to me...And Xavier is no fool. He had a reason for doing so. It might be he does wish to help in his twisted way. Or..."
"Or he wants to make sure we and Susan can't change what he's done." Sheldon nodded.
"I'm afraid that's the more likely possibility."
"We should call Sheldon..." Amy noted. "He's the focal point for Susan and therefore Xavier..."
Sheldon nodding, eyeing her.
"Yeah, I oughta know." She shrugged. "And no, I can't say I wouldn't have contemplated destroying my world to get you." Sigh. "But I wouldn't have done it...At least not after meeting all our friends..."
"And there, in a nutshell, is why I'm here with you and not Susan." Sheldon smiled at her.
"Really? Make me cry in front of your old advisor? Sheldon?" Amy, wiping tears.
...