Hey. Please have in mind that I have no experience of a trial, and I do not live in the US, so I have no idea how a US trial works. Please just ignore any glaring errors you see, or let me know if there's anything important. Thanks

4 months later- trial week

Rowan Chase turned to House and sighed. House's tie was badly done, skewed to one side.
"Let me" he said, batting the younger man's hands away. He'd come back to Australia the day before, having spent a month or so back with the other half of his family. He straightened the tie, and House mumbled his thanks. Today was the day. The trial day. Everyone was testifying, Peter and James Wilson, Rowan and House himself. Rowan had a feint memory of being told that a few others would speak too.
"I can't do it" House whispered
"Course you can. You've practiced this a million times. Your lawyer taught you all about the defence. Besides, you won't have to say anything today, you're the last witness. You can do it, Greg, I swear" Rowan hugged him silently.
"Come on guys, it's time" Wilson said, popping his head into the men's toilets where they had gone to hide out from the crowd for a while.
"You'll be fine" Rowan smiled. House contorted his face into what he hoped classed as a smile, but looked more like someone was stabbing him in the stomach, and followed them out into the hall. It was a grand wooden building, the hallway leading into an impressive marble floored courthouse. House gulped. Rowan put his hand on his shoulder and they walked out together. They walked briskly to the door of the courtroom, and entered. It was packed. What seemed to House like hundreds of army men, press photographers, kids from school, his mother's book group, everyone.
"I- I can't tell them all, Rowan, I can't!" House whispered frantically. Rowan squeezed his shoulder reassuringly but didn't speak. He felt a little nervous himself. But his nerves were nothing compared to the shaking, pale Peter Wilson's. He was up first. They all sat down in the front row, and Cuddy reached out for House's hand. She didn't have to testify, their lawyer wanted to keep the numbers down to just the people who could give fresh information, and since she and Wilson knew pretty much the same, Wilson was chosen to speak instead. The crowd went quiet suddenly as the judge came in. He was a large black man, a white beard matching his short white hair. He was around fifty five years old, his stomach round and his face beginning to wrinkle.
"All rise' Judge George Martin residing" came the voice in the corner. With a great scraping of chairs, they all stood up, and sat down when the judge took his seat. John House sat next to a weasel looking lawyer in a blue suit.
"Good morning everyone. Mr Gregory House vs General Jonathan House"
"Your Honour" House' lawyer, Jake Paterson, began. We want to bring a case of assault to the court today. It is our aim for John House to be found guilty, and serve a long and uncomfortable sentence"
"How do you plead?"
"Not Guilty" John House growled. He glanced back at his son, the disgust clear on his face.
"I would like to call my first witness, Peter Wilson, to the stand" Jake said, beckoning Peter up. Peter staggered over to the stand, swore the oath and sat down. "Sit closer to the microphone, Mr Wilson"
"Sorry"
"State your full name" the unidentifiable voice spoke again
"Peter Daniel Wilson"
"Good. What is your relationship to Gregory House?" Jake asked
"He's my son's best friend"
"How long have you known him?"
"Almost five years, since he was fourteen and James was fifteen"
"How well would you say you know him?"
"He slept over at my house a lot, since he and James got to be friends"
"Would you say that this was a normal amount of time to spend at your home?"
"No, I would not"
"Why did Gregory stay over so often?"
"Objection, your Honour, leading the witness" the weasel like lawyer said from John's side of the room
"Overruled, the witness will answer the question"
"Thank you" Jake continued
"He stayed over because his father wouldn't let him sleep at home"
"At fourteen years old, he was regularly barred from his home?"
"Yes"
"Did Gregory ever say much about why he wasn't allowed home?"
"No. He was a very private boy. But we had our suspicions"
"Oh yes, and what were they?"
"My wife Mary and I believed that Gregory was being maltreated by his father"
"What did you base these suspicions on?"
"He often had bruises, he was too thin, and he was regularly left to spend the night with us"
"Thank you. Now, if we can move to the night in question, when Gregory was hospitalised. How did you find out that he was injured?"
"Greg called James from his cell when he woke up outside his house, and James asked me to call 911"
"You did so?"
"Yes. As soon as I heard it was Greg, I called"
"Why was that?"
"We had taken him to hospital on several occasions. Once for a broken arm when he was fifteen, once when he 'fell' down the stairs and once when he passed out from hunger and dehydration when he was seventeen"
"So his injuries often led to hospitalisation?"
"Yes"
"Back to that night, when you had called the ambulance, what did you do?"
"I followed James to the House's home and helped him with Greg"
"What condition was he in at the time?"
"Bad. He was bleeding a lot, his arm was obviously broken badly, his chest looked as though it had been kicked in, and his torso was covered in bruises"
"Could he have sustained those injuries over time?"
"No. They were all fresh. Besides, he had been at my home the week before"
"Why was that?"
"He came back from spending a year in Australia, and his father didn't allow him to stay until he we to college. So he stayed with me"
"When he went home, and the incident occurred, did you have any concerns about his safety?"
"Yes. I was angry with my son for allowing him to go alone, and I was very worried that he would be hurt"
"You are certain that it was John House that inflicted those injuries on Gregory?"
"Yes, I am"
"Thank you. Witness to the defence" Jake sat down, smiling gently at Peter. He had done well.
"Peter Wilson" John's lawyer, Arnold Picks, simpered "I dare say you care about the prosecution very, very much"
"I- well, yes... He's James's best friend"
"So when this boy came to you with his story, you, without a doubt, believed him?"
"Yes. There was nothing to question"
"You admit that you allowed him to stay with you regularly?"
"Yes"
"The defence would like to offer this far simpler explanation, your Honour. Gregory House, tired of moving from place to place, rebelled against his father, an upstanding member of the community and defender of our country, by turning to drinking, drugs, easy sex and lying to his friends"
"Objection! No evidence!" Jake roared. House's eyes widened
"Defence would move to have all charges dropped!" Arnold said
"Silence!" The judge banged his gavel on the table "Mr Picks, you will remain within the bounds of the evidence and not make unsubstantiated claims. Do you have any further questions?"
"Yes your Honour"
"Then make sure they are above belt" Judge Martin said, waving a dismissive hand.
"To your knowledge, has Gregory House indulged in these types of behaviours?"
"Well, yes, but-"
"Do you believe that he has taken hallucinogenic drugs?"
"I don't know-"
"Then it is possible, is it not, that he could have imagined his father's 'cruelty'?"
"No, he-"
"Mr Wilson, on the night in question, did you see John House hit his son?"
"I did not"
"Did you see him inflict those injuries?"
"I did not"
"Did you, on any occasion, see John House being violent towards his boy?"
"No, but-"
"Thank you, Mr. Wilson. No further questions" Arnold sat down with a sly grin.
"Alright," Judge Martin said "Witness dismissed"
"I would like to call Cathleen Jenkins to the stand" Jake said. A petite, Asian woman stood from the row behind House. He gasped as he recognised her. Cathleen swore in and sat down in the witness box.
"State your full name"
"Cathleen Li Jenkins"
"Okay, Mrs. Jenkins. What is your relationship to Gregory House?"
"I taught him Literature in Japan, when he was twelve"
"Objection, this witness has no bearing on the alleged assault! I move to dismiss the witness"
"Overruled" Judge Martin said, not taking his eyes off Cathleen
"Thank you, your Honour. Now, Mrs Jenkins. What did you think of Gregory?"
"He was intensely intelligent. He arrived in my class unable to speak a word of Japanese. By the end of the third week, we were discussing politics and economics, all in perfect language. I was amazed"
"Did you ever discuss Gregory's home life?"
"He was very closed off, he didn't like to talk about himself. But after a while, he began to open up a little"
"What did he tell you?"
"There was one day when he fell asleep in my lesson. He looked as exhausted, and he was so far ahead of the others, that I allowed him to sleep. When the other pupils had gone, I woke him up. He looked awful. I asked him when he had last slept, and he told me that he had been awake for three days"
"A twelve year old had been awake for three days?"
"I was similarly astonished and concerned. I asked him why, and he told me that he had been doing drills all night for the last three nights"
"Drills?"
"Yes, pushups and the like. Physical exercise. He told me that his father wanted him to do it"
"Why would a father ask that of his son?"
"I don't know. He told me that he regularly stayed up all night doing similar tasks"
"Objection, this is going nowhere"
"Overruled, but hurry it up Mr Paterson"
"Certainly, your Honour. Mrs Jenkins, what were your suspicions at that point?"
"Weighing up what little I had, a bruise here and there, hidden under clothing, his constant exhaustion, how unhealthily thin he was, I suspected that his father was going beyond traditional norms of discipline, even by my country's standards"
"Did you act on these suspicions?"
"I did. And I am ashamed to say that I did more harm than good there. I went to Gregory's house to speak to his father. I spoke to him, but he sent me away. I didn't see Greg for a few days, and when he came back to school, he had obviously been punished for my intrusion"
"How so?"
"He walked with a limp, he couldn't hold a pen to write in his beautifully well developed Japanese, his face was covered in fading bruises and he seemed withdrawn and distant"
"What did you do about this?"
"I am ashamed that I did nothing. Two months later, Gregory and his family had moved country again, and I lost touch with him completely. I prayed for his safety every day, and I missed him greatly"
"Thank you. Your witness" Jake said, sitting down with a small, encouraging smile to Cathleen. Arnold stood up, rubbing his hands together.
"Mrs Jenkins, when was the last time you spoke to Gregory House?"
"Just before he left Japan"
"Seven years ago?"
"Roughly"
"How much do you know about the night we are here to discuss, when he was hospitalised?"
"Only what I have been told"
"Right" he said dismissively "When you taught him, and you suspected his father, you did not report your concerns?"
"I did not"
"He moved around a lot, yes?"
"I believe so"
"So he had many teachers, friends, many different groups of people who met him?"
"Yes"
"And yet no one, not even his doctors, reported suspicions of abuse?"
"It seems not"
"Do you think that is in itself suspicious?"
"Objection!" Jake cried. House stared at Arnold in horror. It hadn't even crossed his mind that the very nature of his relationship with John House would be questioned. He had been certain it would all be about the one event.
"Sustained. Do you have anything you's like to add, Mr Picks?"
"No your Honour. I've got what I needed"
"Can I say something?" Cathleen said tentatively. The judge smiled and nodded slightly
"Make it quick"
"Thank you. I just wanted to tell you about one incident with Gregory. I caught him stealing another child's lunch once. When I talked to him about it, after a while and a couple of hours of detention, he admitted that he stole the food because he was hungry. He had not been allowed to eat a full meal that week. He was a small kid, then, and I felt horrible for stopping him. So I gave him my lunch and I didn't tell his father. But Gregory told him anyway. When he came in the next morning, his left arm was broken. He had been denied medical treatment by his father, and I took him to the hospital. When we got there, despite his only being in the country for a few months, the doctors knew him. They treated him as though he was mentally subnormal, and as though he regularly injured himself. I believed, and I still do, that John House was abusing his son. I am so glad that this trial is going ahead, and I hope that he is brought to justice. Thank you for letting me speak, your Honour"
"You're welcome. Please take your seat" Judge Martin said, looking scornfully at John House. "Right, court is adjourned until two o'clock for lunch. Please make sure you are back inside by five to. Thank you" in a collective release of tension, the court room quickly emptied. Soon, it was just House and his protectors in the large room. Their voices echoed.
"How're you holding up?" Wilson elbowed his friend gently
"I'm so sorry, House, I didn't know what to say to him!" Peter said desperately.
"It's okay. I'm okay. Who's up after lunch?"
"Rowan and your mother" Jake read from his notes
"My mother is speaking? For which side?" House said, dreading the answer
"John's. I'm sorry"