Anything-Can-Happen Thursday, for Wizefics (TBBT, PG13) (3/4)
Title: Anything-Can-Happen Thursday (3/4)
Author: lilyayl
Recipient: wizefics
Fandom: The Big Bang Theory
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 13,264
Spoilers (if applicable): General show
Warnings (if applicable): None I can think of.
Summary: After the boys accidentally cause aliens to invade the Earth, Penny helps start the Resistance to save the world.
"It's just the damp of the first spring rain."
~Faramir, RotK (film)
Reaching Leah was easy. After they'd decided to leave the Cheesecake Factory and start their Resistance, they had first gone to Leah's family home up in Stonehurst. Apparently her parents had money, though Leah had never wanted any of it. Their home was a large, multi-storied affair near a sprawling golf course. After Penny left to start up Cafe Norah within the shadow of the ships, Leah had remained behind.
Penny drove up the 210, exiting in Stonehurst. Leah's home was still unshadowed, but the Woods grew everyday, soon Leah would be swallowed up just like Pasadena, Los Angeles, and all the suburbs and cities in between. Where did they even get all the new ships, she wondered. If only they could stop the expansion, then maybe they might have a chance to do some real damage or rally support for their cause.
Pipe dreams.
"Melon," Penny replied to the muffled request through the door.
A woman with spiked blond hair opened the door. "Name?" she asked, seemingly bored.
"Eowyn," Penny said, taking some joy in the micro-fraction of shock that twitched the girl's face. "Get Miss Gandalf. We have a problem."
"You're serious?"
"The city has fallen silent," Penny quoted. "There is no warmth left in the sun." Everyone had a few unique quotes to prove their identity or intent when needed. It wasn't a perfect system, but they'd not gotten around yet to making a better one.
"It's only the damp," the girl said, stepping back and allowing Penny to walk inside.
Penny shook her head. "Not this time. Where is Gandalf?"
"Upstairs. Plotting. She got some bad news earlier this morning, I think." The girl shrugged.
"Thanks."
Noon-day sun poured in through all the large windows, teasing streams of gold from the long wooden banisters lining the stairs. Penny paused in a pool of light, soaking up the warm rays. She was standing there, eyes closed, when she heard her name.
"Penny? What are you doing here?"
Penny turned around and looked up the last half-flight of stairs. Leah, in sweats and messy hair, stood at the top. Penny held up her computer. "We have a problem," she said.
"What else is new? Come on, you can tell me over lunch."
As Penny explained about the coffee, Leonard, and jump drive over their peanut butter-and-jelly sandwiches, which were all Leah had to offer for food, she got the sense that Leah wasn't really paying all that much attention.
"So what are we going to do?" Penny asked. "My computer is trashed. Leah?"
Leah laid out her crusts into a square, a frame for a sandwich of air, and then looked up at Penny. "Jeff didn't make contact this morning," she said in a monotone.
Penny gripped the edge of the table, suddenly unable to breathe. "Is he--" she couldn't even say the word.
Leah shook her head. "I don't know. It could be nothing, but he has never missed making contact before, especially on dangerous missions like this one."
"Why?" Penny asked. "Why did you have to send him?"
Leah looked away. "A rescue. Some genius who knows all about Belkirs."
"The Pennyblossom files," Penny said.
"Yeah."
It was Sheldon then, Penny thought. It had to be. Sheldon and Jeff. Penny put down the rest of her sandwich and stood up. She knew she should stay in her seat, finish her lunch, and then figure out more about the virus that destroyed her computer. She should contact Dr. Phillips and let her know she suspected that the Elves were after her. She needed to get connected again and do her job, but she couldn't. Not while Jeff and her boys were in danger. They were far more important than passing notes.
"Penny?"
Penny turned back in the doorway. Leah was watching her, guarded, confused. "I have to know," Penny said. "I can't-- not anymore." She was tired of mourning and hoping at the same time. She wanted answers, concrete proof of life or death. She wanted to see all of her boys again, even Leonard.
"I will send someone," Leah said, her expression beginning to soften with what looked like understanding.
"No; I think I need to handle this one on my own."
"Good luck."
"Thanks."
Not until she was an hour away did Penny realize that she'd forgotten to give Leah the jump drive. She considered turning around, but then decided that saving Jeff was more important. Besides, she'd left her computer behind; they could analyze that, instead. As Penny drove back south, the sky began to darken, not only from the city, but from clouds gathering, low and thick. Getting into the Woods would be tricky. The only people allowed on the transports were those who had work on the ships or who had special day permits signed and sealed. The latter could be forged, but Penny didn't have that kind of time. She passed Pasadena and continued to Moria and their stolen transport.
She didn't have a plan yet.
Suddenly, a spike of lightning stabbed down through the sky, splitting it open. In its wake, thunder rumbled and rain began to pound. Penny flicked on her headlights and drove faster. Finding Moria in the dark was tricky, but Penny knew all of their secret places. She'd drawn quick maps in spilled flour for new Rangers, brave men and women who had done well memorizing the major locations, but quickly got lost if Penny mentioned the City of Bells or Nindamos, or one of the other weird Tolkien names the Resistance used.
By late dinner time, when the sun was setting and the winds were keening, Penny turned down the last of the twisty roads to the underground facility they had commandeered, their Moria. Penny parked in a large, abandoned building. A large section of one wall had been knocked out, allowing her inside the hidden lot. Inside, cars waited in long rows. Several had sets of keys sitting in the front seats, ready for instant use if needed. Penny tucked her own keys into her pocket. David would kill her if she didn't bring his car back for him.
Oddly, Moria was the one place where they didn't use the traditional 'let me in' pass phrase. Penny typed a code into a door panel and then bent down for a retinal scan. Moria held many of the their secrets; it was their only safe place to do so.
When the doors opened, Balin, the man in charge of Moria, waited on the other side. "Lady Eowyn," he said, huffing slightly. Penny wondered if he'd run to the entrance. "To what do we owe the pleasure?"
"I need to get to the Woods," Penny said, not wanting to waste anymore time.
"You?" Balin asked, his voice rising in pitch. "But you're--"
"Compromised. Maybe. I don't know." Penny gathered her hair up, squeezed hard, and let it fall back to her shoulders. "Balin," she said, calmer or, at least, trying to be, "we should talk."
He nodded. "This way."
Moria had changed since Penny's last visit, back when it was new. She'd heard, of course, of the renovations, the news rooms being created and tunnels connecting to other facilities and mines, but she had never been quite able to imagine the differences.
When she saw a stall selling sandwiches, Penny realized what she was looking at. "You're creating a city."
"Just in case," Balin said.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Penny asked.
Balin looked back at her, one brow quirked. "I sent you reports."
"You shouldn't send people puzzle pieces without, at least, a hint of what they're making."
He laughed. "Maybe we just wanted to surprise the all-knowing Eowyn at a later date. Here, we can talk here." He slid open a panel and, half-bowing, motioned her inside. "My office, for now," he explained, pulling a string and turning on a light.
Penny looked around the small room. Maps and charts covered every surface of the walls. "What if there is an earthquake?" She traced a jagged line on one large map of southern California, the eventual reach of Moria, she supposed.
"We're taking precautions," Balin said. "We had a cave-in early on and learned to be careful from that."
"Did anyone die?" Penny asked.
"One."
Penny dropped her hand from the map and turned to Balin. "All right," she said, "this is what's going on."
"Do you still have the laptop?" Balin asked.
Penny shook her head. "No, I left it with Gandalf. I figured she could have her wonder-geek look over it for me. Besides, I wasn't really thinking clearly when I left."
Balin made a face. "I don't trust her."
"Gandalf?" Penny asked, incredulous. "Why not?"
"She isn't honest," Balin said, crossly. He refused to elaborate. Penny stuck her tongue out at him, feeling exceptionally immature and lightened by the act. She also decided to hold out on giving him the jump drive. He didn't need it and, bizarre as it sounded, Penny was getting used to it pressing against her in constant warning.
"Fine, I won't pry. In exchange, however..."
The corner of Balin's cheek pulled. "You want to get to the Woods."
"Bingo."
"Which ship?"
"The central one," Penny said. "Strider was pulling a rescue on someone even the Elf pets thought was dead."
"Another pet scientist?"
Penny laughed. "Trust me, they probably have him locked away precisely because they can't own him. He's a complete whack-a-doodle. Brilliant, sure, but crazy-making."
"I see. So, you want to sneak onto the most guarded ship in all the Woods and rescue an insane genius and a possibly-dead Ranger?"
"Just not a Ranger," Penny corrected quietly. "Strider. Jeff. My Ranger. As for the scientist, he is my friend. I can't leave him there, not after he might be alive."
"I can't give you the transport," Balin said after a long silence. "The mechanic you sent me has it in pieces at the moment, but I have another idea. You're an actress, right?"
"Yes. Why?"
"Well, Ramona has blond hair like yours and, from the virus story, I bet the Elves would like to find her."
Penny started to smile. "You want me to become Dr. Ramona Phillips?"
"Can you do it?"
"Maybe. She'll have to teach me some Elvish though so that I can pass as a linguist-extraordinaire."
"The Kirran language," Balin said, as he lead her down deeper into Moria, "is apparently easier than one would suspect."
"Is it really?"
"For a linguist, maybe. Even with the communicator I can't make sense of it."
"Great."
All around them, Moria buzzed with activity. Carts with supplies pulled past them and down long tunnels. In one chamber, Penny could hear music. Someone, with a voice as clear as hand chimes, was singing an old song from the mid-90s, giving Penny a flash back of a trying-too-hard prom dress and clashing corsage. Balin directed her to the side. "Ramona will be working here," he said. "She always is."
Dr. Ramona Phillips proved to be nothing like Penny had imagined her. She looked to be about the guys' age, but wore her pale, blond hair in two thick braids, which she'd pinned up messily against her head. She wore jeans and a boat-necked three-quarter sleeve shirt. The shirt was dark blue, like her jeans. Her socks were yellow.
"Dr. Phillips, this is Eowyn. She's going to steal your identity."
"Is that so?" Penny winced at the strong British accent. She'd not expected that. "Well, I hope it grants you better luck than it ever did me. Blasted useless, really."
"Is that so?" Penny said, trying to get the tones just right.
"Charming. I can hear an echo already. Well, come in. I'll lend you some clothes and words."
"Charming, but first--" Penny yawned. "Sleep?"
"I will guide you to a bed," Balin said, but Ramona shushed him.
"I've a cot she can use. I'll even turn on a word tape for her. It isn't an efficient way to learn a language, but it may help her hear the sounds."
"Fine by me," Penny said, forgetting to practice the accent. From the moment she lay down, Penny was asleep. The stress and worry of the day had finally caught up with her. Threading through her dreams and nightmares, was a strange, discordant music full of half-steps, odd tones, and, eventually, words repeated again and again. There was a rhythm to them and that rhythm carried her deeper and deeper into sleep.
When Penny awoke, Ramona immediately began to pummel her with Kirran. Through the communicator, Penny was able to sense the logic of the language, which helped. She could also hold the words in her head longer and has less trouble making them fall off her tongue. When she put a sentence in the wrong order, she knew it, even if she didn't know what she'd done wrong.
"Amazing, isn't it?" Ramona asked.
"What?" The word sounded like a cough.
"All the ----- of a ------- speaker, with none of the -------."
"I don't understand."
Ramona repeated herself, this time pausing to give the English after each word. "All of the instincts of a native speaker, with none of the knowledge."
"Yeah. I mean, yes."
For the rest of that day, Penny stayed with Ramona, learning her mannerisms and Elvish, while Balin arranged her 'return' to the Woods. Shortly before dinner, Ramona made her remove the communicator and practice without. Penny felt the loss immediately. Words blurred together in her hearing and she had trouble lining up sentences in her head.
"This is hopeless," Penny said, lapsing back into English. "They'll never believe I learned their language."
"They are idiots," Ramona said, enunciating each word. "They do not think we can learn their -----, but they are afraid of being wrong."
Penny tried to repeat the word she had missed. "Language?" she guessed.
Ramona corrected her pronunciation. "Yes."
"They are fear of us."
"Yes," Ramona said after correcting her again. "I think so."
Penny repeated her query, frustrated and angry. She hated feeling stupid, but she had to get better. If the Elves were not convinced that she possessed enough knowledge to be a threat, they would put her with the rest of the pets. She figured that her only ways onto the main ship were brains or sneaking. Only Jeff and, maybe, Hal knew the sneaky route, so she was left with acting like she knew more than she did. Later that evening, Ramona returned the communicator to her.
"Time away helps you learn," she said. "If I had a month, I could make you fluent."
Ramona was right. Penny's time not using the communicator did help. She could recall her own mistakes and see why they had been wrong. For the rest of the night, Penny and Ramona talked, with and without the communicator. By morning Penny knew how to recognize command phrases, directions, and very basic conversation-- greetings and the like. Ramona advised her to stick to short phrases and taught her some traditional words that would give Penny's knowledge the illusion of depth. According to Ramona, she had mastered two or three weeks worth of lessons in a single 24 hour period. Penny just hoped it was enough.
Part Four
Author: lilyayl
Recipient: wizefics
Fandom: The Big Bang Theory
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 13,264
Spoilers (if applicable): General show
Warnings (if applicable): None I can think of.
Summary: After the boys accidentally cause aliens to invade the Earth, Penny helps start the Resistance to save the world.
"It's just the damp of the first spring rain."
~Faramir, RotK (film)
Reaching Leah was easy. After they'd decided to leave the Cheesecake Factory and start their Resistance, they had first gone to Leah's family home up in Stonehurst. Apparently her parents had money, though Leah had never wanted any of it. Their home was a large, multi-storied affair near a sprawling golf course. After Penny left to start up Cafe Norah within the shadow of the ships, Leah had remained behind.
Penny drove up the 210, exiting in Stonehurst. Leah's home was still unshadowed, but the Woods grew everyday, soon Leah would be swallowed up just like Pasadena, Los Angeles, and all the suburbs and cities in between. Where did they even get all the new ships, she wondered. If only they could stop the expansion, then maybe they might have a chance to do some real damage or rally support for their cause.
Pipe dreams.
"Melon," Penny replied to the muffled request through the door.
A woman with spiked blond hair opened the door. "Name?" she asked, seemingly bored.
"Eowyn," Penny said, taking some joy in the micro-fraction of shock that twitched the girl's face. "Get Miss Gandalf. We have a problem."
"You're serious?"
"The city has fallen silent," Penny quoted. "There is no warmth left in the sun." Everyone had a few unique quotes to prove their identity or intent when needed. It wasn't a perfect system, but they'd not gotten around yet to making a better one.
"It's only the damp," the girl said, stepping back and allowing Penny to walk inside.
Penny shook her head. "Not this time. Where is Gandalf?"
"Upstairs. Plotting. She got some bad news earlier this morning, I think." The girl shrugged.
"Thanks."
Noon-day sun poured in through all the large windows, teasing streams of gold from the long wooden banisters lining the stairs. Penny paused in a pool of light, soaking up the warm rays. She was standing there, eyes closed, when she heard her name.
"Penny? What are you doing here?"
Penny turned around and looked up the last half-flight of stairs. Leah, in sweats and messy hair, stood at the top. Penny held up her computer. "We have a problem," she said.
"What else is new? Come on, you can tell me over lunch."
As Penny explained about the coffee, Leonard, and jump drive over their peanut butter-and-jelly sandwiches, which were all Leah had to offer for food, she got the sense that Leah wasn't really paying all that much attention.
"So what are we going to do?" Penny asked. "My computer is trashed. Leah?"
Leah laid out her crusts into a square, a frame for a sandwich of air, and then looked up at Penny. "Jeff didn't make contact this morning," she said in a monotone.
Penny gripped the edge of the table, suddenly unable to breathe. "Is he--" she couldn't even say the word.
Leah shook her head. "I don't know. It could be nothing, but he has never missed making contact before, especially on dangerous missions like this one."
"Why?" Penny asked. "Why did you have to send him?"
Leah looked away. "A rescue. Some genius who knows all about Belkirs."
"The Pennyblossom files," Penny said.
"Yeah."
It was Sheldon then, Penny thought. It had to be. Sheldon and Jeff. Penny put down the rest of her sandwich and stood up. She knew she should stay in her seat, finish her lunch, and then figure out more about the virus that destroyed her computer. She should contact Dr. Phillips and let her know she suspected that the Elves were after her. She needed to get connected again and do her job, but she couldn't. Not while Jeff and her boys were in danger. They were far more important than passing notes.
"Penny?"
Penny turned back in the doorway. Leah was watching her, guarded, confused. "I have to know," Penny said. "I can't-- not anymore." She was tired of mourning and hoping at the same time. She wanted answers, concrete proof of life or death. She wanted to see all of her boys again, even Leonard.
"I will send someone," Leah said, her expression beginning to soften with what looked like understanding.
"No; I think I need to handle this one on my own."
"Good luck."
"Thanks."
Not until she was an hour away did Penny realize that she'd forgotten to give Leah the jump drive. She considered turning around, but then decided that saving Jeff was more important. Besides, she'd left her computer behind; they could analyze that, instead. As Penny drove back south, the sky began to darken, not only from the city, but from clouds gathering, low and thick. Getting into the Woods would be tricky. The only people allowed on the transports were those who had work on the ships or who had special day permits signed and sealed. The latter could be forged, but Penny didn't have that kind of time. She passed Pasadena and continued to Moria and their stolen transport.
She didn't have a plan yet.
Suddenly, a spike of lightning stabbed down through the sky, splitting it open. In its wake, thunder rumbled and rain began to pound. Penny flicked on her headlights and drove faster. Finding Moria in the dark was tricky, but Penny knew all of their secret places. She'd drawn quick maps in spilled flour for new Rangers, brave men and women who had done well memorizing the major locations, but quickly got lost if Penny mentioned the City of Bells or Nindamos, or one of the other weird Tolkien names the Resistance used.
By late dinner time, when the sun was setting and the winds were keening, Penny turned down the last of the twisty roads to the underground facility they had commandeered, their Moria. Penny parked in a large, abandoned building. A large section of one wall had been knocked out, allowing her inside the hidden lot. Inside, cars waited in long rows. Several had sets of keys sitting in the front seats, ready for instant use if needed. Penny tucked her own keys into her pocket. David would kill her if she didn't bring his car back for him.
Oddly, Moria was the one place where they didn't use the traditional 'let me in' pass phrase. Penny typed a code into a door panel and then bent down for a retinal scan. Moria held many of the their secrets; it was their only safe place to do so.
When the doors opened, Balin, the man in charge of Moria, waited on the other side. "Lady Eowyn," he said, huffing slightly. Penny wondered if he'd run to the entrance. "To what do we owe the pleasure?"
"I need to get to the Woods," Penny said, not wanting to waste anymore time.
"You?" Balin asked, his voice rising in pitch. "But you're--"
"Compromised. Maybe. I don't know." Penny gathered her hair up, squeezed hard, and let it fall back to her shoulders. "Balin," she said, calmer or, at least, trying to be, "we should talk."
He nodded. "This way."
Moria had changed since Penny's last visit, back when it was new. She'd heard, of course, of the renovations, the news rooms being created and tunnels connecting to other facilities and mines, but she had never been quite able to imagine the differences.
When she saw a stall selling sandwiches, Penny realized what she was looking at. "You're creating a city."
"Just in case," Balin said.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Penny asked.
Balin looked back at her, one brow quirked. "I sent you reports."
"You shouldn't send people puzzle pieces without, at least, a hint of what they're making."
He laughed. "Maybe we just wanted to surprise the all-knowing Eowyn at a later date. Here, we can talk here." He slid open a panel and, half-bowing, motioned her inside. "My office, for now," he explained, pulling a string and turning on a light.
Penny looked around the small room. Maps and charts covered every surface of the walls. "What if there is an earthquake?" She traced a jagged line on one large map of southern California, the eventual reach of Moria, she supposed.
"We're taking precautions," Balin said. "We had a cave-in early on and learned to be careful from that."
"Did anyone die?" Penny asked.
"One."
Penny dropped her hand from the map and turned to Balin. "All right," she said, "this is what's going on."
"Do you still have the laptop?" Balin asked.
Penny shook her head. "No, I left it with Gandalf. I figured she could have her wonder-geek look over it for me. Besides, I wasn't really thinking clearly when I left."
Balin made a face. "I don't trust her."
"Gandalf?" Penny asked, incredulous. "Why not?"
"She isn't honest," Balin said, crossly. He refused to elaborate. Penny stuck her tongue out at him, feeling exceptionally immature and lightened by the act. She also decided to hold out on giving him the jump drive. He didn't need it and, bizarre as it sounded, Penny was getting used to it pressing against her in constant warning.
"Fine, I won't pry. In exchange, however..."
The corner of Balin's cheek pulled. "You want to get to the Woods."
"Bingo."
"Which ship?"
"The central one," Penny said. "Strider was pulling a rescue on someone even the Elf pets thought was dead."
"Another pet scientist?"
Penny laughed. "Trust me, they probably have him locked away precisely because they can't own him. He's a complete whack-a-doodle. Brilliant, sure, but crazy-making."
"I see. So, you want to sneak onto the most guarded ship in all the Woods and rescue an insane genius and a possibly-dead Ranger?"
"Just not a Ranger," Penny corrected quietly. "Strider. Jeff. My Ranger. As for the scientist, he is my friend. I can't leave him there, not after he might be alive."
"I can't give you the transport," Balin said after a long silence. "The mechanic you sent me has it in pieces at the moment, but I have another idea. You're an actress, right?"
"Yes. Why?"
"Well, Ramona has blond hair like yours and, from the virus story, I bet the Elves would like to find her."
Penny started to smile. "You want me to become Dr. Ramona Phillips?"
"Can you do it?"
"Maybe. She'll have to teach me some Elvish though so that I can pass as a linguist-extraordinaire."
"The Kirran language," Balin said, as he lead her down deeper into Moria, "is apparently easier than one would suspect."
"Is it really?"
"For a linguist, maybe. Even with the communicator I can't make sense of it."
"Great."
All around them, Moria buzzed with activity. Carts with supplies pulled past them and down long tunnels. In one chamber, Penny could hear music. Someone, with a voice as clear as hand chimes, was singing an old song from the mid-90s, giving Penny a flash back of a trying-too-hard prom dress and clashing corsage. Balin directed her to the side. "Ramona will be working here," he said. "She always is."
Dr. Ramona Phillips proved to be nothing like Penny had imagined her. She looked to be about the guys' age, but wore her pale, blond hair in two thick braids, which she'd pinned up messily against her head. She wore jeans and a boat-necked three-quarter sleeve shirt. The shirt was dark blue, like her jeans. Her socks were yellow.
"Dr. Phillips, this is Eowyn. She's going to steal your identity."
"Is that so?" Penny winced at the strong British accent. She'd not expected that. "Well, I hope it grants you better luck than it ever did me. Blasted useless, really."
"Is that so?" Penny said, trying to get the tones just right.
"Charming. I can hear an echo already. Well, come in. I'll lend you some clothes and words."
"Charming, but first--" Penny yawned. "Sleep?"
"I will guide you to a bed," Balin said, but Ramona shushed him.
"I've a cot she can use. I'll even turn on a word tape for her. It isn't an efficient way to learn a language, but it may help her hear the sounds."
"Fine by me," Penny said, forgetting to practice the accent. From the moment she lay down, Penny was asleep. The stress and worry of the day had finally caught up with her. Threading through her dreams and nightmares, was a strange, discordant music full of half-steps, odd tones, and, eventually, words repeated again and again. There was a rhythm to them and that rhythm carried her deeper and deeper into sleep.
When Penny awoke, Ramona immediately began to pummel her with Kirran. Through the communicator, Penny was able to sense the logic of the language, which helped. She could also hold the words in her head longer and has less trouble making them fall off her tongue. When she put a sentence in the wrong order, she knew it, even if she didn't know what she'd done wrong.
"Amazing, isn't it?" Ramona asked.
"What?" The word sounded like a cough.
"All the ----- of a ------- speaker, with none of the -------."
"I don't understand."
Ramona repeated herself, this time pausing to give the English after each word. "All of the instincts of a native speaker, with none of the knowledge."
"Yeah. I mean, yes."
For the rest of that day, Penny stayed with Ramona, learning her mannerisms and Elvish, while Balin arranged her 'return' to the Woods. Shortly before dinner, Ramona made her remove the communicator and practice without. Penny felt the loss immediately. Words blurred together in her hearing and she had trouble lining up sentences in her head.
"This is hopeless," Penny said, lapsing back into English. "They'll never believe I learned their language."
"They are idiots," Ramona said, enunciating each word. "They do not think we can learn their -----, but they are afraid of being wrong."
Penny tried to repeat the word she had missed. "Language?" she guessed.
Ramona corrected her pronunciation. "Yes."
"They are fear of us."
"Yes," Ramona said after correcting her again. "I think so."
Penny repeated her query, frustrated and angry. She hated feeling stupid, but she had to get better. If the Elves were not convinced that she possessed enough knowledge to be a threat, they would put her with the rest of the pets. She figured that her only ways onto the main ship were brains or sneaking. Only Jeff and, maybe, Hal knew the sneaky route, so she was left with acting like she knew more than she did. Later that evening, Ramona returned the communicator to her.
"Time away helps you learn," she said. "If I had a month, I could make you fluent."
Ramona was right. Penny's time not using the communicator did help. She could recall her own mistakes and see why they had been wrong. For the rest of the night, Penny and Ramona talked, with and without the communicator. By morning Penny knew how to recognize command phrases, directions, and very basic conversation-- greetings and the like. Ramona advised her to stick to short phrases and taught her some traditional words that would give Penny's knowledge the illusion of depth. According to Ramona, she had mastered two or three weeks worth of lessons in a single 24 hour period. Penny just hoped it was enough.
Part Four