Sheldon carefully adjusted his tie in the mirror. It wasn't really compromise, he mused, if two people both got what they wanted. One could even call it serendipity. He and Penny were getting married, and she was going to have a baby - his baby. She made him swear he wouldn't tell anyone until after the wedding, but he was so excited that it was one of the most difficult things she'd ever asked of him. Fortunately, the ban would be lifted soon, less than two hours by his calculations, and then he was going to tell everyone.

Leonard came up to his side and gave his shoulder a quick pat. "Are you nervous?"

"No," Sheldon replied. "I just wish it were already over. I calculate there's still approximately a three percent probability that Penny will bolt halfway down the aisle."

Leonard shook his head. "She wouldn't do that. She loves you too much." He tilted his head up to look at his best friend and grinned. "Wow, I can't believe it. You're getting married."

"It's your turn next," Sheldon said with a glint of humor in his eyes.

"Don't be so sure. Howard and Bernie could go first, you know. They haven't set a date yet."

Sheldon frowned. "Of the four of us, Raj is the only one not involved in a serious relationship. Do you think he's dissatisfied with his current bachelor status? Penny thinks he's lonely."

"I think he'll be glad he's the only single guy in the wedding party. Something about weddings makes girls' hormones go crazy. He'll have his pick of all the bridesmaids…. except for Bernadette, of course."

"I still have no idea what could possibly be appealing about the prospect of a casual sexual liaison with different women," he objected with a moue of distaste.

"I guess it's not for everybody. You're just a one-woman man," Leonard said with a shrug.

Just then, Missy stuck her head in the door. "Ten minutes, little brother. Oh, you look so handsome!" With a squeal, she sidled into the room and threw her arms around her brother, who tolerated the embrace with unusual sufferance.

"I can't believe you're gettin' married first," she exclaimed, brushing invisible lint off Sheldon's suit coat.

"Junior was married," he pointed out equably.

"For all of five minutes. That doesn't count. I know you, Shelly. You're never gonna let her go, are you?"

His face softened as he thought of the woman he loved. "No, never."

"Sheldon, it's almost—eep!"

He turned to see Raj staring wide-eyed at Missy. Raj pointed emphatically at his wrist and then retrieved a silver flask from his pocket, uncapped it and took a swig.

"Well, hello again, cutie," Missy drawled.

Sheldon glanced back and forth between his friend and his sister. Then he scowled. He recognized that honeyed tone of voice that Missy used when she was on the prowl like an alley cat in heat. He just never thought he would hear it directed at one of his friends.

"Raj, under absolutely no circumstance whatsoever are you to attempt to initiate coitus with my sister," he snapped.

Missy seemed to inflate like an angry toad. "I seem to recall we've been through this before, Shelly. And the only reason I'm not junk-punching you right now is because that would be a cruel thing to do to Penny on her wedding night." She smirked at him. "Assuming you can figure out what to do with what God gave you."

Riled, Sheldon glared at her. "Given that Penny is approximately six weeks pregnant, I can assure you that I am not deficient in any way." In a split second, the reality of what he's done hit him. He never could keep a secret. Good Lord, Penny's going to kill me, he thought. They all gaped at him: Leonard, Raj and Missy.

Raj found his voice first, his tongue perhaps loosened by the alcohol. "Dude, that's awesome. Congratulations."

Leonard echoed Raj, but his voice squeaked and his eyes were big as saucers. Missy just grinned wickedly and asked, "Does Mom know?"

Another knock at the door, and Howard stuck his head in. "Hey guys, we're up…" He faltered as he saw their faces. "What's going on?"

"Penny's pregnant!" Raj sang out.

Howard's face took on a gloating look. "Oh, yeah, that." He shrugged in a studiedly casual manner while his eyes danced with glee. "I've known for a couple of weeks now, but Bernie swore me to secrecy."

Sheldon sighed noisily. "I promised her that I would keep it a secret until after the wedding, although apparently, she has neglected to hold up her end of that deal. As long as the four of you can manage not to gossip during the wedding ceremony, I suppose I can consider my side of the bargain met."

"Another one?" Leonard protested belatedly. "But your apartment's not big enough…"

Sheldon waved his hand like he wass shooing away a fly. "Gentlemen… and sister… I have no intention of keeping my bride waiting. I am going to get married. You can either stand up beside me as my closest friends, or I will wait for her alone, but none of you will deter me." There was that fierce light in his eyes again, the one that caused Raj to once say that Sheldon in love was a little scary. He tugged on his tuxedo, making sure it was straight, before striding from the room. With startled glances at each other, his friends quickly followed. Missy whispered something in Raj's ear that made him blush before heading in the opposite direction to take her place as one of Penny's bridesmaids.

The only hitch in the ceremony involved Caleb. Sheldon had argued that his son was far too young to act as ringbearer, but it was hard to deny his future bride anything she wanted, especially when she bravely struggled through morning sickness each day without complaint. In fact, what he had feared Penny would do was exactly what his son did instead: turn and run when he was halfway down the aisle, flinging aside the pillow to which the rings had - thankfully - been securely attached. With his long legs, Sheldon caught up with his son in a few strides. Caleb fussed and squirmed in his arms. Undeterred, Sheldon quickly pulled a lollipop out of his pocket and offered it to his son. Instantly, all Caleb's attention was on the candy. As he stuck it in his mouth, Sheldon asked him, "Do you remember what we talked about?" Hoisting his son on his hip, he picked up the pillow and showed it to the toddler. "Remember what I told you about these rings?"

"Maddick!" Caleb cried.

"That's right; these are magic rings. When Daddy and Penny put these on, then Penny will be your mommy."

"Mama Penny!" he shouted loudly.

There was laughter and a few adoring sighs from their friends and family. Sheldon ignored them. "That's right, but the magic will only work if you go give the rings to her." He set his son on his feet and held out his hand. "Shall we go give them to her together?"

"Yeah!" Caleb grabbed the pillow, leaving sticky red smears on the white satin. Sheldon glanced up to find Penny quivering with suppressed laughter. Caleb all but hauled him down the aisle and then pressed the pillow against her leg. "Are you my mommy now?"

She picked him up and hugged him. "When your daddy and I say 'I do', then I'll be your mommy." She glanced over at Sheldon, and they shared a private look, knowing that she would be a mother soon in more than one way.

When Missy came up and tried to take her nephew out of Penny's arms, he immediately started fussing again, clinging to her neck. She shrugged and laughed. "No, it's all right. Actually, it's perfect. Shh, sweetheart, it's okay. You can stay right here with me and be part of the magic." With brimming eyes, she looked at Sheldon. "You'd better hurry and put that ring on my finger because I can't wait to kiss you."

The minister read through the rest of the ceremony in a relatively short period of time. When Penny slid the unadorned platinum band on Sheldon's finger, she deliberately rubbed her thumb over it, and his eyes lit up.

The minister intoned, "I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the-" He stopped, looked at the couple locking in an embrace, and chuckled. "I guess they don't need me to tell them what to do."

Sheldon had already pulled his bride into his arms before the minister had finished speaking. While his kiss was chaste, it was also passionate.

As they led the procession down the aisle with Caleb still clinging to his new mother, Missy sighed. "I wish someone would love me like that." Then she cast a speculative glance over at Raj.

Penny had been dreading telling Sheldon's ultra-religious mother about her pregnancy, but since they had just gotten married, and especially since she wasn't even showing, Mary's response was to throw her arms around her new daughter-in-law and cry.

"I never thought I'd see the day when my little Shelly got married," she cried. "You make him so happy, darlin'. Promise me you'll take good care of him."

"I promise," she answered with a huge smile.

"And you-" This was to her son. "If you mess this up or hurt the feelings of that lovely new wife of yours, you'll have me to answer to,"

"Yes, mommy," he said timidly.

"And don't you think it's high time you called me 'Mom' instead?" she asked, giving him a gimlet stare.

"Yes, Mo- Mom."

Penny took her new husband's hand and led him toward the dance floor as the band started playing the first song. (What would Sheldon like to hear?) She cut off his protest before he could even begin. "Howard told me all about those dance lessons at the senior center," she said, laughing. "So don't even try to tell me you don't dance."

"Drat," he said, but he was smiling as he did so. He was, as Penny discovered, a passable dancer. His dread of anything that required physical coordination was, in her opinion, undeserved. As the next song began, he handed her off to her father with a slight bow.

"Are you happy, slugger?" was the first thing her father said to her.

"You have no idea," she replied, beaming. She waited a good thirty seconds after that to tell him he was going to be a grandfather again.

After that, she danced with Sheldon's older brother George, and then Leonard, Raj and even Howard in turn. Sheldon was sitting on the sidelines, deep in conversation with his Meemaw, who cuddled a sleepy Caleb on her lap. Every so often, he would glance up, and his whole face seemed to light up whenever he saw her.

Sheldon watched his bride, glowing with happiness, as she danced with almost every single one of her guests. Finally, he claimed her from the dance floor, and with a furtive look around, led her away from the noisy crowd and down a dimly-lit corridor.

"What are we doing back here?" she asked, laughter in her voice.

"I just wanted some privacy-" Whatever he was going to say next was cut off as Penny wound her arms around his neck and planted a kiss on him that he felt all the way down to his toes.

"Woman, you are messing with forces beyond your ken," he said with a lopsided smile. "And I promise my ken will kiss your barbie… later."

Penny giggled. "Why, Dr. Cooper, did you just make a dirty joke?"

"Did I?" he asked innocently, but there was a twinkle in his eyes. Then he reached into his pocket. "I have something for you. I understand that it's a tradition for the bride and groom to exchange presents on their wedding day." Her mouth dropped open in dismay, and before she could respond, he continued, "You have already given me a gift of immeasurable value - your love. My present can't possibly compare, but…" He handed her a small box, about the right size for a pin or brooch. She lifted the lid.

"A key? I don't understand."

"The night you told me you wanted to have a child, my child, I looked around our apartment and realized that it was entirely inadequate for the needs of a growing family. Not to mention that I want to wring the super's neck every time I think of my pregnant girlfriend - now my pregnant wife - climbing four flights of stairs. So I found us a new place to live. It's got four bedrooms, and a real backyard with a swing set. The kitchen is rather small, but since neither of us cook often…" He shrugged. "It's rent-to-own, so if you like it, it can be ours someday." He pulled out his phone and quickly showed her some pictures he had taken. To his relief, she beamed.

"It looks great. I can't wait to see it in person." Then her eyes widened. "A house, one kid and another on the way… it's kind of crazy, but in a good way," she hastened to add.

His face took on a furtive, almost guilty look. "I… might be adding a little more craziness to our existence," he confessed.

"What? What did you do?" she demanded.

"I know we were both concerned about how Caleb would react to our absence, and I know you said we didn't need a fancy honeymoon, but I thought you deserved one, so…" He took out his phone again and swiped to the next photo.

She stared in confusion. "Honey, that's a dog."

"Yes. It's a Pomeranian-pug hybrid, to be precise. They are said to be good with children, highly intelligent, adaptable and easy to train. Plus, this one is a puppy, so he'll have lots of energy… the perfect companion for a young boy. My mother is planning to stay at our apartment with Caleb. Hopefully, a new puppy will be enough of a distraction that he won't miss us terribly. I booked us a suite in a hotel right on the beach. If he does miss us, she'll bring him by during the day, and we can take him to the beach."

She let out a soft cry and put her arms around his neck again. "Now I know how much you love me if you're willing to move, and buy a puppy, and honeymoon on the beach…" She pulled back and looked at him, her eyes dancing with suppressed laughter. "What are you even going to do on the beach?"

"I imagine I'll retreat under a very large umbrella and read scientific journals on my phone," he answered.

"And maybe build sand castles with your son?"

"And maybe watch my wife stretch herself out in the sun like a pampered housecat… and build sand castles with my son," he conceded with a smirk.

She grinned at him. "Look at the two of us. You, actually choosing to bring all this chaos into your life and me, up to my eyebrows in commitment. It's crazy, in the very best possible way."

His smile echoed her own. "I've rarely been accused of being sane. Why not embrace the chaos?"

She pulled his head down to hers. "You know what? If this is crazy, then I love crazy." She kissed him again, and he knew that he could weather anything life could throw at them, as long as she was by his side.

A/N: If any of you are like me, you just about fell off your chair laughing the first time you saw Frozen, when Prince Hans tells Anna he loves crazy. ("Said no guy ever!" I instantly had to point out to my husband.) Somehow, that line worked its way into the end of my story, since Penny obviously loves crazy if she loves Sheldon. Hope you enjoyed reading my latest craziness.