Chapter 11: Fight or Flight
House winced, pursing his lips. Shit. He looked at Foreman, who's dark eyes were round with fear. God, if Foreman's scared, we must really be screwed. House summoned his courage and stood up, holding his cane like a baseball bat again. Being a cripple comes in handy sometimes, he thought with dark amusement.
The Death Eater stood only feet away, a cruel toothy grin spread out on his bloody, contused features. His mask was broken, only hiding part of his face.
"Ready for round two?" House asked, hiding the fear he felt. He squared his shoulders and took a step forward.
"You're a stupid Muggle, ain't you? Think you can beat me with a little stick?" he asked tauntingly, taking his wand out of his pocket.
"I did before," House pointed out with a shrug. Anytime now Foreman... He was hoping the neurologist would see that he was just trying to distract the Death Eater so Foreman could surprise him. He didn't really expect much from Kutner, and hoped the young doctor would just stay out of the way.
"Yeah, well, it won't happen again," The Death Eater grunted. He lifted his wand, about to attack when-
"HI-YAH!" a war cry behind House startled him, causing him to stumble backwards. In the corner of his eye he saw a shoe flying through the air.
It was Kutner's.
It hit the Death Eater directly in the face, and he jumped in surprise. House took this opportunity to dash forward with his cane. He swung upward from the ground, the handle of the cane catching the Death Eater in the groin. He let out a painful squeal and dropped to his knees.
House went to bring his cane down hard on the man's head again, but the hulking man grabbed House's ankle and yanked, causing him to topple painfully to the ground. House felt the slick, dew covered pavement underneath him soak his jacket. His leg, already in more pain than usual from the events of the day, was now agonizing. He clenched his teeth, trying to push himself up, but suddenly the Death Eater was on top of him, one arm at his throat, the other at his stomach.
"Think you're smart, do you?" House felt the man's moist breath on his face. "Well, I'll-"
The painful weight was lifted off of him as the Death Eater went flying backwards. House lifted his head, and with the help of the streetlights saw that Foreman and Kutner had tackled him together. They both backed up from the man, who was now on the ground, reaching for his wand. Foreman thrust his foot down on the Death Eater's hand, and House heard a painful snap and a yowl.
Foreman reached down and picked up the wand, shoving it in his pocket. The man was struggling up, but Kutner aimed a kick to his stomach and he was on the ground again. Foreman jumped on top of him to ensure he couldn't rise, and put him in a head lock. He struggled, trying to throw Foreman off. He rose onto all fours, and Foreman stayed on, trying to keep him down. Kutner quickly dropped on his knees and punched the Death Eater in his already broken nose. Once. Twice. Three times.
The man stopped struggling, dropping onto the ground, his limbs shaking as blood oozed from his face. Kutner brought his leg back like a soccer player and kicked the Death Eater hard in the head. His trembling stopped, and he stilled, finally. Foreman let out a ragged breath, and Kutner gulped, looking at House.
"You okay?" he asked. House stared at him in slack jawed amazement.
"Kutner," House said.
"What?" he asked, his brow creasing.
"That was totally badass," he informed him, trying to regain his footing. Foreman stepped forward and pulled him up by the arm, not bothering to ask him if he needed help. House eyed him, removing his arm from his grip once he was standing again.
"Uh... thanks," Kutner said, smiling goofily at his praise. House closed his eyes for a short moment, massaging his leg before turning back to look at the space behind the dumpster. Tonks, Fred, and George were still nowhere to be seen.
"What do we do if they don't come back?" Foreman asked, crossing his arms. A chill was starting to creep into the evening air.
"No clue," House answered, biting the edge of his lip. Foreman sighed.
"House, we could be stranded in a foreign country with no money, no place to stay, no explanation as to why we're here if we need help getting back-"
"Thank you for that dose of optimism, Mr. Storm Cloud," House replied edgily. "We-" He was cut off as a large crack sounded behind him. Thank God. He turned away from Foreman, but was shocked to see that it wasn't Tonks, Fred, or George standing behind him.
She was tall, with dark, heavy lidded eyes, and thick black tresses. She smiled at him. Her whole demeanor, clothing, and make-up all screamed, "I'm evil!" loud and clear.
House took a wild guess that she wasn't one of the good guys. Next to her stood a short, lumpy looking man with an odd, lopsided leer. The woman swished her head around, her icy gaze coming to rest on him.
"Now, why would three Muggles be hiding in an alley next to an unconscious Death Eater?" she asked sweetly as she strolled forward. House remained silent. Her eyes had locked with his, and he refused to shy away and drop eye contact. She stopped when she was only mere inches away from him. She looked up at him. She was tall, but not as tall as he was. "Where is he?" she asked in a deadly whisper.
"House-" Foreman said, but House held up a hand.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," House answered, his voice low. The lumpy man cackled wildly behind her.
"Silence, Amycus!" she shouted, before returning her attention to House. "Oh, you don't? Well then..." She made a move to look like she was turning away, but instead tore out her wand. "Crucio!" She screamed.
No, no, not again! Was all that House managed to think before the spell hooked it's claws into him, sending him sprawling to the ground. Fire burned through him, and he writhed on the ground, trying to find some semblance of sanity, of reason amidst the intense, all consuming pain that tore through him.
"Answer me, Muggle! Where is he?" she asked. He screamed something inaudible back, no words forming on his lips like he intended. He thought he heard sounds of scuffling. "AMYCUS, DEAL WITH THE FILTH!" she shrieked in consternation.
"Do you want me to kill them?" he asked, his voice a high pitched wheeze.
"YES, YOU OAF-" She paused, her wand held to the side, torturing House as if it didn't matter. He twisted on the ground, groaning, pleading with whatever powers that be to make it stop, to please, please make it stop.
But he wouldn't beg this woman, and he wouldn't tell her where Harry was. He didn't know why he had suddenly chosen this moment to be honorable, but something inside of him formed a hard shell around the information about where Harry was. She could do whatever she wanted to him, he wasn't going to give him or the Order up. He had only known these people for about two days, but it didn't take much to see that they were the good guys... and these guys, they were definitely the bad ones.
"Wait, no. Don't kill them. This is exactly what we need... leverage," she savored the word. She dropped her wand to her side, and House collapsed on the ground, tears threatening to leak out of the edge of his eyes. The curse had stopped... for now. He looked up at Bellatrix, fear coursing through him. Don't do it again. He pleaded with her silently.
Foreman and Kutner were frozen in place, only their eyes moving. There was something so unnatural about their stillness that House guessed that he had missed Amycus or Bellatrix hexing them.
"What do you mean?" Amycus asked, slouching forward to hover over House. House eyed him, watching each move he made carefully. These Death Eaters, they were unpredictable and dangerous. If he let his guard down for one second he'd end up like Lupin. Amycus' dull eyes flared when their eyes met, and he kicked House in the ribs. "Don't look at me, you scum!"
House groaned, rolling on his side and away from Amycus and Bellatrix, so his back was to them. Bellatrix hissed.
"Leave him be, for now. We'll take them to the Dark Lord. We can get the information from them there, find out where Potter is... and..." She paused, laughing maniacally. "We can hold them hostage. Say if they don't turn over Potter, we'll kill them all. The Order are Muggle lovers, they'll rush into save them... and then we can capture a couple of Dumbledore's lackeys! Use smaller fish to catch bigger fish."
"They might not know where the boy is," Amycus reasoned.
"Yes, but the Order will, you dolt. And we'll lure the Order to us with the Muggles!" she exclaimed, seeming frustrated that Amycus wasn't realizing the brilliance of her plan. "Not to mention they might not even know where the boy is, I wouldn't trust Muggles with that kind of information."
"So, we'll take them directly to the Dark Lord?" Amycus asked.
"Yes," Bellatrix breathed ecstatically. "Looks like Cissy will be having a few extra guests."
"Let's get going then, before ol' Dumby figures out we've got some of his precious Muggles." He yanked House up by the collar. House didn't resist, his whole body soaked with either due or sweat. His cane was on the ground, and Amycus kicked it away. He shoved House against the cold wall of one of the buildings that line the alley. "I don't think this one will be fighting anytime soon, eh?"
Bellatrix snorted. "I'm amazed he's still sane. Most Muggles are so weak they only last a few seconds." She moved forward towards the huge Death Eater.
"Wake up! Wake up!" she said, kicking him in the side. The Death Eater groaned, and she dragged him up, unnaturally strong for a woman her size. "Get it together and handle one of the Muggles. We're taking them to Malfoy manor." He groaned again, looking around with confusion. "Don't ask questions!" she commanded shrilly. She strode forward and grabbed Kutner's collar, snapping her fingers and disappearing all in one swift movement. No... House thought blearily. Got to stall, got to stall.
He urged his weakened body to act. He threw his elbow back, and by the sound of Amycus' sharp intake of breath, he hit his target. He wasn't trying to down the Death Eater, just stall so Tonks, Fred, and George had time to get back. The tall Death Eater stumbled forward, seizing Foreman and roughly pulling the neurologist to himself. With a crack, he was gone, and House seethed. He was unable to save Kutner and Foreman, but perhaps he would still be able to save himself.
In reaction to his attack, Amycus slammed House hard into the wall.
"Why you got a cane, eh? You messed up, Muggle?" He tangled his fingers in House's thin brown hair and knocked his forehead against the wall. Black crept into the edge of his vision. House struggled against Amycus. The man was shorter, if he could just get him off of him long enough to get away-
"HOUSE!"
Several things happened at once. House turned to see Tonks, Fred, and George gaping at him from behind the dumpster. He saw all three of them lift their wands, and he saw three jets red light fly towards him.
Two of them hit Amycus.
He felt the third jet nail him in the chest, and he sagged against the wall, darkness overwhelming him.
The first thing House was aware of was a slightly familiar bed underneath him. He shifted his legs, wondering how he got here. Judging by the feel of the paper thin sheets and hard mattress, he was in his borrowed bed at Grimmauld Place. He slowly opened his eyes, the dim light of the oil lamps unobtrusive to his gaze. Wilson was on his bed next to House, but he was awake, leaning against the head board and staring at the opposite wall. House went to sit up, but a tight pain in his chest forced him back down. A small moan escaped his mouth, and Wilson's eyes darted to House.
"You're awake!" he observed, throwing his legs over the side of the bed and wincing. He was in a different shirt now, a green polo that was one of his favorites to bum around in. He saw that the burns on Wilson's arm and the gash on his forehead were bandaged.
"Yeah," House croaked, his voice weak.
"What the hell happened?" Wilson asked, now moving slowly towards him. He plopped down on the edge of House's bed. "Tonks said that when her, Fred and George got back, Foreman and Kutner were gone and some guy she called Amycus Carrow had you pinned up against the wall." House winced, realizing that he had failed to keep Kutner and Foreman from getting captured.
"Get the Order in here, I don't want to have to repeat this story eight different times," he said, massaging his forehead with his hand, trying to piece everything back together in proper order in his memory. Wilson nodded, but House stopped him before he reached the door. "Is the kid okay?" he asked.
"Yeah, he's in Ron's room. He's stable," Wilson told him before hurrying out the door as fast as his injuries would allow.
Within a few minutes, Wilson returned. A teary eyed Tonks led Molly, Arthur, Sirius, Bill, and Kingsley into the guest room. House guessed that they had purposely excluded the twins from the conversation, not wanting them to get involved with the Order.
"Oh, Dr. House, we're glad you're awake. We were beginning to worry," Molly said, smiling at him, though the smile didn't reach her eyes. He was sure they were all mourning Lupin's death in their own way.
"What happened after you guys showed up?" House asked, motioning at Tonks. Tonks picked absent- mindedly at her shirt, her face red and blotchy from crying.
"We saw Amycus had you pinned... we all sent stunning spells at him at the same time, but one of them hit you. I think it was mine, I'm really sorry..." she trailed off, sniffling slightly. "You collapsed, and we Apparated back to Grimmauld Place. That's about it."
"Why did it take you guys so long to get back?" House asked.
"There were two Death Eaters watching the house, and one of them managed to hit George with a body bind curse before we could get inside. Hermione, Fred and I managed to fight them off, and they ran off. It was some kind of curse I hadn't seen before, and I couldn't dissolve it. We had to wait for it to wear off to come back and get you. We thought you'd be safe. I guess we were wrong," she muttered forlornly.
"Can you tell us what happened to you, Dr. House?" Kingsley asked in his deep voice. House nodded, finally managing to push himself into a sitting position.
"After you guys left, Biggie found us. We managed to knock him out, but a few seconds later some bitch named Bellatrix and that Amycus guy showed up. They were going to kill us, and Bellatrix used some kind of torture curse on me, trying to get me to tell her where Harry was."
"Did you?" Sirius asked sharply. House rolled his eyes.
"Of course I didn't tell her. Anyway, then she decided that we'd be more useful as hostages. They wanted to use us as bait to lure in Order members. They were going to offer us up in exchange for Harry. You guys obviously wouldn't give him up for us, so you'd come and try and rescue us from Malfoy manor, whatever that is. That's where Kutner and Foreman are," he explained, sighing deeply. He ran a hand through his messy hair. "I tried to stall, but I didn't pull it off well enough to save them," he said quietly.
Although he wouldn't admit it to anyone, he cared about his employees. In some weird, really screwed up way, they were kind of like his kids. So yeah, he pretty much just let kidnappers run off with his children. Albeit one of those kids was a two hundred pound black man with a six pack who was more than capable of watching out for himself, but still. House felt responsible.
"We'll get them back," Kingsley assured him. "We need to summon the rest of the Order here, first thing tomorrow. We need a plan." The others nodded. "Arthur, can you handle that?" Arthur nodded stiffly.
"I want to be at the meeting," House said immediately. Wilson shot him a questioning look, and Sirius frowned.
"Dr. House, no offense intended, but this is our area of expertise, not yours," he said, seeming like he was struggling to keep the condescension out of his voice. House scowled at him.
"They're my people," he said simply. "Cameron, Thirteen, Wilson and I- we're in this deep now. Might as well help any way we can."
"Sirius," Tonks said firmly. "He and his team managed to take out four Death Eaters by themselves, one of which was Lucius Malfoy. They deserve some credit." Sirius shrugged, sighing.
"Molly, better make a big lunch," he said. Molly nodded, smiling slightly.
"What time is it?" House asked the room at large.
"Around two in the morning," Bill answered. House nodded. The Order members bid him a solemn goodnight and filtered out, all of them leaving except for Molly.
House made a move to get up, but Molly pushed him lightly back down.
"No, no, you need to stay in bed. Stunning spells are a nasty bit of business, especially if you're hit in the chest." She stood back up. "You should just rest, dear." House laughed.
"Yeah, I'm going to be able to sleep like a baby knowing those psychos have two of my employees," he said sarcastically as he swung his legs over the side of the bed and forced himself to stand up. He gripped his ribs, which were throbbing painfully. His leg was much worse than usual as well, with all the abuse it had been through in the past day. "Is Cameron awake?" he asked. Molly nodded.
"Yes, she woke up about an hour ago. I don't know if she's fallen asleep or not-" She hasn't. Cameron cared about Foreman, and Kutner. Hell, Cameron cared about everyone. There was no way she was asleep. Without a word, he slipped from the room, leaving Wilson and Molly behind with confused looks on their face.
House limped slower than usual to Cameron and Thirteen's room. Without his cane and adding in his injuries, he was about as fast as a turtle dying of cancer.
He paused outside their door, not knowing whether to knock. Not knowing what to do. He sighed, gripping the brass doorknob and opening the door. Cameron sat cross legged on her bed in sweat pants and a tank top. Even when she was underdressed, House couldn't help but notice how beautiful she looked. He searched the room for Thirteen. She was nowhere to be seen.
"Where's Thirteen?" he asked. Cameron looked at him, pale blue eyes dark with worry.
"She's in the bathroom," she answered. She tilted her head, a long blond lock falling into her eye. "What's up?" she asked.
House paused, unable to answer the question. Why had he gone to Cameron's room?
"I guess... I just wanted to know that you're still here. Still alive."
A/N: In case you haven't already guessed, the pairing for this is Hameron. Sorry Hilson and Huddy shippers! Honestly, Hameron isn't my favorite ship, but I thought it fit for the story.
