A/N: This chapter is only about Casey and House. I know what you're thinking - Finally! :)

Hope I managed to keep them in characters. I couldn't decide from whose point of view I'd want to look at their interaction, so here we are with both of them as storytellers. Tell me whose side of the story you prefer! ;) Maybe that will help me make my choice for the next chapter.

Thank you for being there for me and with me, read, review and enjoy!


Casey followed the guy toward his own home. It was just few hours ago that he thought that day couldn't get worse or stranger for that matter. Now not only had he the dirty cop on his back but that lunatic as well. One would think that there was no need in distinguishing but Casey just couldn't believe the older man was in the same boat with Voight. If anything he had been following him long before that spoiled brat crashed the car. Of course there was slight possibility for him to change the agenda still somehow Casey didn't want to believe that.

"Do you want to let me in? Or do I need to break in myself? Again, if I should mention." The man turned to him impatiently.

"Yeah" He muttered before the full meaning of his words registered to him. "What do you mean again?" he froze with keys in his hand.

"And what do people usually mean using that word?" His guest answered sarcastically.

"It's like one more time as in 'I will never be so foolish again.'" He continued in that annoying tone like he was talking to a child.

"I..." Casey started only to stop himself. He wanted to strangle the man right here and now but he wasn't going to let himself being lead by his anger. Not again. He cringed. Would he be able to use that word without hearing that annoying voice telling him 'It's like one more time as in I will never be so foolish again.'

"You… " He tried one more time but to no success.

"What made you think I'll let you inside?" He finally managed to ask.

"Again…" The man paused and chuckled. "Oh, this little word."

He didn't even know his name Casey realized suddenly.

"Again I have to remind you your lock isn't so hard to pick up." The man continued smugly.

Casey looked at him dumbfounded. During his job, well both of them, he had been meeting different people but he had never seen the one so confident about himself. After all he had no less than admitted in B&E and didn't even ponder the thought that Casey could go to the police with that.

"Well?" The cripple, no the man, Casey corrected himself, looked at him with obvious displeasure. "I'm not good with staying on the porch for so long if you haven't noticed" He shook his cane in front of Casey.

Now he really didn't have much of a choice. That man wasn't going away willingly and he wasn't going to even touch him, not now when Voight could use it against him, not ever.

"Okay, if that's what made you answer my questions." Casey shrugged finally turning back to the door. "Start with your name." He breathed in and out trying to regain his composure.

"Oh, dear mother had taught you not to talk with strangers."

That remark made Casey froze again. There was nothing offensive in that choice of words, well at least not to his mother, but he didn't take anything about her with good grace. Maybe it wasn't his best idea to let the man come in. Should he start looking for a place to bury the corpse? He laughed bitterly. At least he could still joke about that.

"House" The man suddenly announced reminding him that they were still on his porch.

"Don't push it" He growled but opened the door nevertheless.

"No, you can call me House."

"Seriously?" Casey didn't even have strength to be surprised. With all other remarks, this one just looked plain silly. "Of all the names you could give me?"

"What can I say; I don't like my official name." The man, House, shrugged.

"Do you want some beer?" Casey asked politely.

He didn't know why he still tried to behave. Just there was too much madness in his life right now and he desperately needed to at least get some answers.


It was easier than he had expected. The whole way House waited for the firefighter to jump at him yelling to get away from him or something like that but the boy just followed him quietly like a good trained puppy he had always been.

"And the point went to Dr. Robert Chase" He muttered under his breathe. With that rate he should start keeping score Chase vs. Foreman. For now Casey looked more like the dark one but who knew what was hidden inside the good guy.

"Do you want to let me in?" House turned checking in which state of mind his host were and was shocked to see that the guy looked almost fine with the whole situation. He was either still in shock or too naïve and easy with his trust. In both cases he had to be taught a lesson, House decided.

"Or do I need to break in myself? Again, if I should mention." He added waiting for some sort of an explosion.

"Yeah"

It looked like the boy was still shocked. That meant that he would yell at him in 3… 2… 1

"What do you mean again?" The expected question came right in time.

"And what do people usually mean using that word?" House wasn't going to take him off the hook that easily. After all he was more interesting out of control and House was planning to push him to that line.

"It's like one more time as in 'I will never be so foolish again.'" He quoted dictionary with as serious expression as he could manage.

"I… You… " He looked like a gaping fish. Definitely Foreman right now.

"What made you think I'll let you inside?" He asked in controlled voice.

Not the wittiest comeback but House could give him some slack for now.

"Again…" Though it didn't mean he was stopping his barbs.

"Oh, this little word." House paused enjoying the look on his face. He could bet he was just an inch away from being punched or at least yelled at.

"Again I have to remind you your lock isn't so hard to pick up."

House was waiting to be accused of breaking laws, to be told to fuck off, anything except for Casey to look at him like he suddenly got a second head. It was becoming awkward and uncomfortable.

"Well?" House asked realizing that it was the only way to move on. "I'm not good with staying on the porch for so long if you haven't noticed."

"Okay, if that's what made you answer my questions." He shrugged and finally turned his attention to the door. "Start with your name."

House was surprised by his reaction. He honestly expected some more hysteric shouts.

"I see dear mother had taught you not to talk with strangers."

He muttered not really thinking about the possible reaction forgetting it wasn't Chase he was dealing with here. He was reminded about that merely a second later when the boy froze with keys in his slightly trembling hands.

Damn! House thought looking at the troubled man in front of him. He didn't mean it like that. He didn't want to break him before he had a chance to learn how to rebuild him afterwards. Now he had to say something to make up for his mistake and he had absolutely no idea what exactly it should be. How would you say a shit like 'I'm sorry about your mother killing your father, I didn't mean to remind you about her, oh and don't be surprised I know about that' to the guy who didn't even know your name. His name! That would be the first step.

"House" He said.

"Don't push it"

That was House's turn to be shocked to a silence. How exactly telling the man your name was pushing it?! Only when the door was opened and he was invited inside did he realize what it was all about. It was really good! He got so used to be around people who knew him that he had forgotten how it could sound.

"No, you can call me House." He clarified still laughing to himself. Wilson would reprimand him for being too self-centered to claim that word only for himself, as a surname.

"Seriously? Of all the names you could give me?"

And now this boy didn't even believe it was his real name. Well, of course, it wasn't his name now. After all he was officially dead and they had had some good time in picking him a new one.

"What can I say; I don't like my official name." It wasn't even a lie just not the whole truth. It had worked for the wombat so well why not to try himself?!

"Do you want some beer?" He was called from somewhere inside the house.

"Not that Aussie shit you call beer" House replied automatically before he could even stop himself.

As expected the boy appeared and looked at him with confused expression and the word he almost got used to hear from him. "What?"

"Just get me what you have there" House muttered frowning at himself for being carried away with his memories.

It just felt so good to imagine for a moment he was back in New Jersey annoying Chase while Wilson was out of the town because of some stupid conference he felt obligated to participate in. 'You can't always get what you want' he singed under his breath.

"Now that you are all settled, you can start talking." Casey said giving him his bottle.

"No more pleasantries. I'm hurt." House tried to stall but the look on his new toy's face shut him up. He wasn't planning to push him so far so early.

"Okay do you have any questions or do you want me to start from the beginning?" House suggested as a peace offer.

But it wasn't in his nature to be reasonable for more than a few seconds and even if he could last longer with some efforts nobody had to know that.

"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth"