Moving adeptly through the darkened room, Cuddy found a box of matches. She began to light various lamps and candles sporadically throughout the room. Her movements were quiet and calm. Being in the home she had long ago abandoned, left her feeling peaceful albeit a bit mournful.
House watched her movements silently. Propped against the wall, he realized he was beginning to feel strange. Spotting a medium sized bed, he walked over to it. With each step, he noticed the ache in his thigh was worse than usual. They had been walking over uneven terrain for a while. It was no wonder he was sore. Pulling his vicoden out, it rattled as he begin to undo the top.
"Don't take anything," Cuddy said, as soon as the rattle of pills hit her ears. "What I have will work much better," she added, smiling sympathetically at him. Cuddy had noticed the extra effort it was taking him to move and stopped what she was doing. The room was nearly fully lit already, she could stop.
Laying on top of the bed, House waited. The silence between them didn't feel awkward. Had they been any other two people his questions would have already been asked and her answers given. Sensing the difference in her body language, House understood that what she was going to explain would not be easy.
Cuddy couldn't help feeling a little homesick at being in this world again. Despite her outer despise, it hadn't been all bad. There was a reason, after all, why it was called Wonderland. Moving to the small kitchen area, Cuddy began to gather the things that she would need.
Rubbing his thigh, House took in the details of the room. It was a large square room, completely open except for a bathroom in one corner. The three other corners were organized into a kitchen, bathroom, and living room. There were only two unusual features about the room, outside of it being underground. Instead of being in the bathroom, there was a large sunken tub in the dead center of the room. The other strange aspect, was the giant wardrobe next to the bathroom. It was immense, reaching all the way up to the ceiling. There were several locks on the doors, leaving House with more questions about Cuddy and her past.
Cuddy moved around the kitchen mixing the ingredients of various bottles. Her first disappointment came when she realized that she had neglected to replenish her own stash of the medicines this world offered. She had never planned to come back and therefore had never bothered to prepare things when she left. Now she would have to settle for mixing something to ease his pain for the night.
"Hey Cuddy?" House called out, sounding more relaxed than he should. Even though he was staring right at her, he failed to notice her cringe at his tone. "Why's the room spinning?"
"What do you mean?" she asked, worriedly. Despite her instinct to check on him, she finished what she was doing before walking over to her bed. As she finished filling the vile with the last ingredient, she made her way over to him.
"You're really pretty Cuddy," House said, grinning in a manner that was nothing like his own. He laughed goofily and reached out for her hand, missing it completely.
"Shit," Cuddy hissed under her breath. She rolled her eyes, as she watched House plucking at the empty air.
"Why are there flowers underground?" he asked confused. He turned to her looking worried. With a completely serious tone he asked, "We are underground, right?"
She stared at him in complete disbelief. She knew he didn't understand the severity of the situation they were in, but it still annoyed her. "You drank the rain didn't you?"
House looked up at her and tried to tug her closer. When she wouldn't budge, his face fell slightly. Trying to look both serious and innocent, he whined, "I was thirsty."
"Dammit House," she hissed, "The rain her has hallucinogens in it!" She sighed, resting one hand on her hip and the other covering half her face. Staring at him for a moment, she tried to access the damage.
"Well it's not like I knew. You didn't tell me," He whined, staring at the bed. He knew it was just the drugs, but it seemed like the blanket was inching, much like a worm, across her bed towards him.
"I didn't realize I had to tell you not to act like a child," she laughed bitterly. "Of course I should have realized. You always find trouble." Sitting down on the bed next to him, she felt defeated. Not only was she up against some of the toughest challenges in her life, she had House tagging along making her job twice as hard.
House sat on the bed silently, still distracted by the creeping blanket. It was now curled around both him and Cuddy. A corner moved out and wrapped itself around her wrist affectionately. House wanted to ask her about what he was seeing, but had a feeling it would only irriate her further.
"Here," Cuddy said dejectedly, "Take this." Handing him the vial of purple liquid, she said, "These will take care of the pain at least. We'll have to wait until tomorrow to fix your leg. I didn't have everything I needed."
House nodded, more transfixed with the color of the drink than her words. It looked almost electric with intensity. Shrugging it off as less strange than some of the other events of the day, he swallowed the mix in one gulp.
Cuddy offered House a feeble smile. The events of the day were catching up to her and she was beginning to feel a little overwhelmed. When House kept staring at her dreamily, she groaned, "Go to sleep House."
House tried to watch Cuddy move through the room, blowing various candles out. However, he was constantly distracted by the multi-colored stars rushing at him. The only light left in the room, was the lamp hanging over the sunken tub. It basked the room in a soft glow.
Cuddy climbed into bed, as House watched the blanket once again appear to climb over onto her body and snuggle around her. "I miss Rachel," she said, a little defeated. Things were not supposed to get this complicated. Curling into an almost fetal position, she was surprised to find House placing an unsure hand on her hip.
House didn't know how to react, when she smiled at him gratefully over her shoulder. She had seemed stronger that day than he'd ever seen; she had been almost unrecognizable in manner. Now, in the dimly lit room underground, he saw that she was the same Cuddy as always albeit a little broken. "Sleep Cuddy," he said, gruffly. He couldn't handle her teary grey eyes any longer.
Smirking lazily, Cuddy turned back onto her side and lay her head on her pillow. Her hand covered his, keeping it trapped on her hip. As she mentally planned out there next day in Wonderland, House counted the clouds bouncing around inside the room. As both parties relaxed, Cuddy tugged House's hand down on to her belly and fell into an exhausted but tense sleep.