Disclaimer: Neither House MD nor X-files belong to me.
A/N: Here we go… I have to honestly say that I'm glad this is over. I shall remember that writing fanfics following a pre-existent plot equals torture.
Chapter 10
An old gramophone begins playing "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" as Cameron slowly opens her eyes and gingerly begins dragging herself out of the room.
Have yourself a merry little Christmas,
Let yourself be light
From now on,
our troubles will be out of sight
House is stumbling down the stairs, bleeding heavily.
Have yourself a merry little Christmas,
Make the Yuletide gay,
From now on,
our troubles will be miles away
He manages to reach the foyer where he notices a trail of blood across of it. Cameron is a few feet away, also crawling towards the door.
Here we are, as in olden days…
"Cameron," he calls her.
…happy golden days of yore.
Faithful friends who are dear to us
Gather near to us once more.
"Cameron," House gasps painfully. She doesn't respond, but keeps crawling forward, her face contorted in pain.
Through the years, we all will be together...
Cameron rolls over painfully and points her gun at House, who manages to point his gun at her.
Until then, we'll have to muddle through somehow…
"Ah... I'm not going to make it," whispers Cameron, desperately trying to stay awake.
House struggles to reply, "No, you're not... Not without me, you're not."
He keeps crawling towards her.
"Are you afraid, House?" she asks him.
"I am," she admits as she lowers her head back on the ground.
"I am, too," he says, if for no other reason than to make her feel she's not alone in this.
Faithful friends who are dear to us
Gather near to us once more
They both drop their guns and House rolls over painfully.
"You should have thought of this," he blames her.
"You should have."
"You shot me first!" he accuses her.
"I didn't shoot you. You shot me," she answers angrily.
If the fates allow
Until then we'll have to muddle through somehow...
He looks at her and then lifts his head, realising something.
"Cameron," he calls to her as he rolls back on his stomach.
"What?" she pants.
He all of a sudden gets up on his feet with only a bit of trouble due to his leg. A smile crosses his lips as he covers his wound with his hand. It doesn't hurt.
That's when he looks at Cameron who is still lying on the floor, struggling with the pain.
"Get up," he orders her.
"I can't," she chokes out.
He walks over to her and repeats," Get up… We're not shot."
He holds his blood-soaked shirt away from his stomach.
"What?" she questions, unable to form any complex thoughts.
He holds out his hands and drags her on her feet saying, "Come on. It's a trick. It's all in your head."
Faithful friends who are dear to us
Gather near to us once more
She feels a strange absence of pain then, as if she wasn't just shot. Seeing that Cameron is frozen in place, House places his hand on her lower back and guides her out of the creepy mansion.
The doors open with ease this time.
Through the years, we all will be together
They both look down at their now clean shirts, no traces of blood left.
If the fates allow
They quickly walk towards the car, wanting to get as far away from this nightmare as possible.
Hang a shining star upon the highest bough
They enter the car and drive away as fast as possible.
And have yourself a merry...
Inside, the clock begins striking midnight.
…little Christmas now.
* * *
Meanwhile, Maurice and Lyda are sitting on the comfortable armchairs in the library. Fire in the fireplace is sparkling and casting a pleasantly warm glow on the couple.
"You hear that?" says Lyda, "It's Christmas."
"One for the books," grumbles Maurice.
"We almost had those two, didn't we?" comments Lyda regretfully.
Maurice chuckles, "Almost had them."
"Two such lonely souls," sighs Lyda.
"We can't let our failures haunt us," Maurice tries to reassure her.
"You wonder what they were really out here looking for," Lyda muses out loud.
"Hard to say. People now... This is just another joyless day of the year," Maurice answers.
"Not for us," Lyda says.
"No," Maurice agrees, "We haven't forgotten the meaning of Christmas."
They clasp their hands and fade away, the fire still crackling cheerfully.
"That's all folks!"
A/N: In case you're wondering where is House/Cameron romance in this fic, you're not the only one. Next one will be better, I promise! It will be long and happy-ish with a lot of House/Cameron scenes as opposed to my first two stories. I already have one plot in mind, but I'm still debating on the issue of smut/no smut (I won't even try asking you guys for an opinion on that matter) and I also need some time to rest and regroup. I should start it by the end of this year.