"He's out like a light," House said. He had just taken a very sleepy Chase from the sofa, placed him on the air mattress, and tucked him in. It had not been easy for him to manage it physically, but he had gotten it done. He noted to himself that he needed to establish a firm bedtime instead of letting Chase stay up so late.

"A good bath and a good meal is what he needed." Wilson was drying the last of the dishes and House placed them back in the cabinets. Traces of the day's chaos had been straightened up, sorted out, or just tossed away so the apartment looked somewhat neat again.

"He needs a lot more than that," House said. He opened the refrigerator door, pulled out two beers, then placed them on the table. "Someone who has a clue how to deal with kids for starters."

"You'll learn," Wilson encouraged his friend. He sat down and opened the bottle.

"I don't know about that," House mused. "I've been trying to get him to eat all day. I got, 'I don't like pizza. I don't like Chinese food. I don't want a hamburger.'" House mimicked Chase's protests. "I finally got him to say he liked waffles, so I heated a waffle for him, put it on a plate, covered it in syrup. And guess what. He doesn't like syrup." House sighed. "What kid doesn't like syrup? Then you come along and he eats every crumb of an egg sandwich." It was frustrating that Chase had eaten for Wilson, but not for him.

"I'll let you in on a little secret," Wilson started. "When I gave him his bath, I told him that afterwards we were going to do something nice for you by cooking supper just for you. I figured scrambling an egg was easy enough that I could let him pretend to help with it. He was excited about doing something to make you happy. He might have been testing your limits today, but he really wants to make you happy."

House nodded. "I guess he's not pure evil."

Wilson shook his head. "He's a sweet kid. Give him some time to adjust. His whole world just disappeared and he's dealt with such abuse that he doesn't know who or what to trust."

House fully expected to have to deal with more tantrums, but he hoped Chase would soon start to feel safe with him. "When you were bathing him… were there any other injuries?"

Wilson shook his head, remembering the battered flesh. "How did--"

"I have no idea," House interrupted. "But it better not happen again."

"Do you think it's the response to a traumatic memory? There are documented cases of people having physical manifestations of memories of abuse. I've never heard of it being so severe though."

House sighed. "I hope that's what it is. Otherwise, I don't know what I can do to stop it. Maybe if I can make him feel safe, he won't have nightmares like that anymore. I didn't do the best job in the world of making him feel secure yesterday." Any child who had just been informed his entire family was dead and he had to go live with a stranger was due some bad dreams.

"He's lost his whole family. It's going to take a while."

"I'm going to screw it up," House said. "You know that, right?"

"Every parent screws up."

"He's not going to be Chase when he grows up though," House said. "So much of what made him who he is, I can't give him."

"Like years of physical and emotional abuse," Wilson supplied. "Did you know about his mother? I mean, when he was an adult, did you know he'd been abused like that?"

"I knew that she was an alcoholic."

"Growing up without her can't be harmful," Wilson reasoned. "You're saving him from whatever hell she put him through later. If she'll hurt a tiny four year old like that, what did she do to him when he was older? There's no telling just how vicious she was."

"You sound like Foreman," House said.

"On occasion, he makes sense."

House sighed. "You don't get it, do you? I know what Chase is supposed to be like when he's an adult. If I'm in charge of that little amnesiac in there, he won't be who he's supposed to be when he grows up. What am I supposed to do with that? Do I send him to church because I know he believes in God even though I don't? Give him sci-fi books because I've caught him reading them at work? How do I make that kid into Chase when he's lost every influence in his life? Odds are, he won't even remember Australia or speak with an accent in a couple of years."

Wilson seemed to be at a loss for words. He did not know the answer any better than House did.

"There's no way I can not screw this up."

Wilson took a deep breath, hesitant to say what he had to say. "I think that Chase is gone, at least the Chase we knew. We can't figure out how to make him an adult again. He's going to grow up--again--but with a different family in a different place and time. You can't make yourself crazy trying to do the impossible. He can't be who he was before."

"I know you're right," House admitted. "But Chase is… was… someone who could connect with patients, especially the kids. He had a gentle, comforting way in dealing with people who were scared. He's not going to learn that from me."

"I doubt he learned it from his mother either," Wilson said. "Don't sell yourself short, House. You were very gentle and comforting with him when you found out he had those injuries. You can be that kind of influence. He'll learn from how you treat him."

"Right. Yesterday I got frustrated and told him his entire family was dead and to get used to it."

"Not your best moment," Wilson agreed. "Learn from your mistakes."

"Do you have to do that?" House asked, annoyed.

"Do what?"

"Sound like Dr. Phil."

Wilson frowned. "I'm trying to make you feel better. I could stop if you want me to."

"I want you to."

"Fine. Wallow in your inability to be a parent," Wilson said. "But don't think that makes you special. Every parent in the world thinks they're a failure."

"And you know this how exactly?" House asked. "It's not like you have any kids to fail."

Wilson shrugged and finished the last of his beer. "Saw it on Dr. Phil."

AN: This story seems to be lending itself to shorter chapters than my others. Sorry about that. I guess it makes for faster updates though. Thank you for the continued support! All those comments really inspire me to keep writing and I appreciate everyone who has a comment!