Thank you again for your opinions, they do rub my ego very much the right way ;D.

As for Cuddy getting pregnant straight away – my original plan was to make them do it again, but then I realised that Cuddy would not be pregnant when I need her to be. And of course there is nothing (humanly possible) House can't do – he is House!

----------------------

House and Kasumii had worked out a routine of sorts within a week. Once House found out that Kasumii was an experienced biker – she had used one most of her time in England – he loaned her his bike. So every morning round 8 o'clock Kasumii rode to House's apartment, got in with the key he had given her and started Aiko's morning routines while House tried to get a little more sleep. Then they got to the hospital together and Kasumii spent the day looking after Aiko, when House did his job – more or less. They got back home together, and Kasumii rode the bike back to Cuddy's, unless House needed her to stay longer like when Aiko had another bout of colic and Kasumii stayed to help. House had insisted that she take the next day off to recuperate.

Usually Aiko was about to wake up when Kasumii got in and though House did stir a little when she came to get the baby from her crib, he rarely woke up. At least after the first morning. The first morning Kasumii had gone quietly into the bedroom to check on Aiko and as the baby was stirring she went to the crib to take her. As she bent over the baby – but before she actually had lifted her – she heard House's sleepy voice from the bed.

"You are so seriously not wearing that anywhere near the hospital!"

Kasumii checked her biker outfit: thick, black, protective cowhide pants and equally thick and protective pink cowhide jacket. Her pink helmet she had thrown on the couch as she came in. "Is there something wrong with my outfit?" She asked puzzled.

"Not a bloody thing," House growled. "And that is the problem." He turned on his back in the bed, pushed himself in a sitting position and took his Vicodin bottle from the night stand. He took one and dry swallowed it. Kasumii picked Aiko from the crib and cradled her in her arms wondering what House was talking about.

"I don't understand."

"Do you know those Tomb Raider movies?" House asked.

"Yes, I've seen one," Kasumii nodded – none the wiser. "Angelina Jolie, I think."

"Yep," House agreed. "You look hotter in that get-up than she did as Lara Croft. If you show up in the hospital looking like that, Wilson will have a heart attack and Chase and Foreman will be useless for a week," House paused for a ponder. "Actually, Chase would probably end up in the dog-house for a month with Cameron... Nah, I still don't want Wilson to have a heart attack. As for Grey, well let me put it like this: never, ever, ever, wear that outfit anywhere near him unless you really, really, really want to give him ideas."

"But it's just protective gear!" Kasumii insisted. She had never given it a second thought – except to think that she looked rather nice and the colour was fun.

"By all means wear it when you drive!" House agreed. "I'm glad you have it. But when off the bike, you need to be aware of the effect you have. Your hour class figure – I didn't even realise you had an hour class figure till now – in leather, would give any man some seriously disturbing ideas."

"Any man except you, of course; I suspect I could parade here naked and you wouldn't get any ideas," Kasumii muttered a little miffed at House. Not because of his apparent indifference to her looks – that she actually found very comforting – but at his patronising tone and assumption that all men (but him) would just drool after her in this gear. If they did, she would have noticed, she wasn't that blind.

"Grhm," House cleared his throat. "What was that first rule again?"

Kasumii stared at him for a moment in incomprehension, but then – thinking back to the subject at hand – she ventured: "All men are pigs?"

"Yep, that was the one," House nodded. "It's true they are not all the same, some are Berkshire Blacks, some Vietnamese Potbellies, there are a few Gloucester Old Spots even a Chester White or two, some are miniature pigs some are real hogs, but even so ..." House looked at Kasumii to finish for him.

"Even so, a pig is a pig is a pig," Kasumii obliged. "So no parades?"

"No parades," House nodded. "I may not be into infants, but let's not foolishly try and find out what would make me change my mind about that. Better safe than sorry." House yawned and blinked his sleepy eyes. "I still have an hour to sleep, have coffee ready for when I wake up." He burrowed back under the covers leaving Kasumii to glare at him in amused exasperation. She didn't waste her time in prolonging the glare, though. She took Aiko to the other room and got on with their morning. She did have coffee ready when House crawled out of bed.

--------------------------------

The day after Aiko had turned one month old, Kasumii stayed home because Aiko had had a bout of colic the night before and House had insisted that Kasumii – who had stayed with them and been up all night – take the day off and catch up on her sleep. Because of that House spent most of the day with his daughter, except when he did his clinic hours at Cuddy's insistence. Cuddy was more than happy to watch over Aiko for those hours. The rest of the time House watched Aiko himself.

Chase had a patient in the clinic with symptoms indicating a problem with her kidneys, so he needed to consult House. As usual, when Aiko was in, House's office door was locked, so Chase entered through the conference room. The blinds were drawn and the room was dim and his eyes needed to adjust to the dimmer light in the room so Chase didn't see House immediately. When he did see him – and Aiko – he got the surprise of his lifetime. Or at least yet another one to the series of surprises that had been coming fast and furious since House had got back from Tokyo.

House had used pillows and blankets to make a sort of reclining nest for the two of them. His feet were on a chair and Aiko was cradled against his chest. Aiko was wearing just her diaper and House had taken his shirt off. They were listening to music and House was moving Aiko's hands – or alternatively her feet in time to the beat. They were both obviously having fun.

"I need a consult," Chase said trying to avoid looking at House.

"Fine, shoot," House responded turning down the music a little.

"Won't you put your shirt on?" Chase suggested a little uncomfortably.

"Why?" House asked. Then a hint of mischief entered his eyes and Chase knew he should have kept his mouth shut. "Or are you afraid that you will suddenly be overcome with lust and attack me?"

"No!" Chase tried to shrug nonchalantly. "Suit your self. I don't mind."

"Then why bring it up?" House asked gleefully. "Or is Cameron standing outside peeking through the curtains? It must be galling that an old guy like me can get her more hot and bothered than you – even when you are sleeping with her."

"Cameron is over you," Chase insisted. "Nothing about her feelings for you bothers me."

"Somehow that didn't convince me," House mused kissing Aiko's head while he sort of jiggled her gently in time to music. Chase couldn't help but stare. He wondered if either of his parents had ever played like that with him when he was a baby. He doubted it. House startled him out of his wonderings stating: "I have seen Cameron look at me again with the same light in her eyes that she has had before."

"No she isn't," Chase insisted, though he wasn't that convinced himself.

"Yes she is," House repeated. "Not that I think it's personal. Mostly wishful thinking on her part; you know, all the what ifs that she can think of. What if she had managed to connect with me and give me a baby? What if she had managed to make me as happy, happy, happy as I seem to be with Aiko? What if she had been the one to, apparently, heal me. All useless and unrealistic. She is also brooding, by the way."

"Brooding?" Chase asked suspiciously.

"Yep," House confirmed. "In the original meaning of that word; Cuddy is pregnant, I have a baby; Cameron is getting ideas."

"Well, I see nothing wrong in her wanting to have children one day," Chase wondered how they had got to this subject. He was quite sure he had had something else entirely in his mind when he had entered the office. If only he could remember what it was! House playing with his daughter was something so darn endearing and yet something Chase had never expected to witness and he still didn't know if he should just shrug and accept it or check if the world was still revolving!

"One day," House accepted. "I'm sure nobody would have a problem with that. However, that is not what I'm talking about. She has already convinced herself that while she is waiting for Mr. Right you will do as a Mr. Right-Now. Knowing her, it won't take her that much to convince herself that having you as the father of her baby will work out, too, as she is now pretty much at the ideal age to have children but is still not in a steady relationship."

"You are imagining things," Chase told House. "She has said nothing that would even hint that she wants a child right now."

"She won't," House insisted. "She will most likely have an accident, and she will quite possibly even convince herself that it really was, almost certainly, an accident. So when she tells you that as she is on the pill and neither of you are currently engaging in any other risky behaviour you could leave off the condom: don't! - unless you want to hear the pitter-patter of little wombat feet."

"She would never deceive me like that!" Chase exclaimed. "She is Cameron."

"What did she give you as a reason why she chose you?" House asked. "And I mean why you, specifically, not the drivel about there being no point in waiting for the right guy."

"I really don't see how that is any of your business," Chase said.

"Did she tell you that you are the one person she will probably not fall in love with?" House smiled. Chase refused to meet his gaze but his cheeks flamed. "I'm sure she believes that, but the truth is that she chose you because she is attracted to damaged people. She does not see it consciously, but that is the reason why she is drawn to you. That was my attraction to her, and you are possibly even more damaged than I am. Sure, it may be a draw, but that is still why she chose you. She just doesn't know it. She is an idealist. She wants to heal, and not-hurt people, but she is as capable of lying to herself as the next person."

"Really," Chase tried to give a non-committal answer.

"Really," House nodded. "And the next person being you, I can only assume that you are lying to yourself too. Especially about that it would not bother you if she actually did find that elusive Mr. Right and left you. Of course you are both entitled to your lies, who am I to tell you to live in reality, but I just thought I ought to give you a heads up."

"Yeah, thanks so much," Chase muttered feeling considerably less than grateful.

"However, I'm fairly sure you didn't come here to either ogle my beautiful body or to get advice on your relationship with Cameron," House wondered. "So what was it? You said something about a consult?"

"Yeah," Chase suddenly remembered the file in his hand. "I have this patient."

"Ok," House turned the music off completely. "Hand me the file. Only you better first take Aiko."

House handed Aiko to Chase and took the file from him. Chase cradled Aiko in his arms and whispered sweet nothings to her ear.

"You can dress her," House pointed out as he got up from the floor and reached for his own shirt. "Her clothes are on the changing table."

"Sure," Chase agreed – again trying for a nonchalant tone. In truth he was happy House allowed him to do this. He could not help it; he loved Aiko – like they all did. Had Tritter succeeded in taking her away, they would all have mourned. Maybe the pitter-patter of little wombat-feet was not such a very bad idea.

"She cried all through the night last night," House interrupted Chase's musings. "It's not all fun and games, being responsible for someone so small. She has taken over my whole life. Everything is secondary to her needs. Before you think Cameron's might be a good idea, you need to think are you really ready to take on the responsibility. It's my job to see that Aiko is happy. For the rest of her life. If I fail... Think about it. You know who pays the price when parents fail."

"Yeah," Chase grunted. Maybe he needed to think some more.

"I think we need to do some more tests with your patient," House changed the subject. "It is probably just kidney stones, but we have to make sure there is no tumour."

"Ok, I'll ask Foreman to help me with them," Chase nodded lifting Aiko from the table. She was now all dressed up in a pink onsie and looking adorable – as usual. He handed her to House.

"Right," House said sitting down on his wheelchair, "let's go and see what we can do with your patient."

----------

Later that day Chase bought an extra package of condoms, just in case. He was so not ready to heat the pitter-patter of little wombat-feet as House had put it. Though he did feel foolish, there was no way Cameron would try to deceive him about something so important.