Title: Succumb (15?)
Pairing: House/Cameron
Summary: We have to succumb to the feelings we can never face.

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House examined the patient's MRI, tapping his cane absently against his chin. It was the hundredth time he had referred to it in the last hour, and he knew nothing new would jump out at him—he would have seen it by now, and if he hadn't, the three other specialist doctors on his team certainly would have.

It didn't stop him from trying through. It also acted as a welcome distraction from the many turbulent thoughts fighting for recognition in his mind.

Medicine was a controllable puzzle. There were unpredictable twists and turns along the way, but the destination was eventually attainable. He liked to think that human beings were the same way. Their baser instincts dictated their actions. Their passions, deceptions and lies were ultimately predictable.

Allison Cameron defied that fundamental logic. She was sweet and pure, but she had a faint manipulative streak and she could rise to his sarcastic quips and respond with equal fervour. Her feelings were completely indecipherable, and that bothered him more than anything else. He understood people. He didn't like them, but he understood them. He read them with an accuracy that was startling. He couldn't get a hold on her, and he couldn't trust himself around her because of it.

He stroked his thumb over the edge of the smooth wood, pursing his lips solemnly. Their latest case was the kind of mystery he enjoyed puzzling over. Patients had often called him obsessive, and he wasn't one to argue with that assessment. If there was one thing he could be confident in, it was his ability as a doctor.

He felt a gentle tug at the leg of his pants, and gazed down sharply, jarred from his musings.

Brooklyn stood at his feet, gazing up at him with her ridiculously wide brown eyes. Everything about her was so clearly Cameron; it was like looking in a distorted mirror. To him, there didn't appear to be a single trace of her father in her, whoever that might be. He didn't ask himself why he felt glad about that.

"What are you trying to do, give House a heart attack?" he demanded, fixing the MRI scan back on the board before turning to give her his attention. He frowned, glancing at the open door and then out into the hall, rolling his eyes heavenward. Whoever had babysitting duty was doing a bang up job.

"Bwa wat," Brooklyn chirped, grinning up at him innocently. He felt an unwilling smile tug at his lips, and then quickly suppressed it.

"Sure," he jeered, striding over to his desk. "Just let me get my babble translator."

He placed his cane by his chair, turning to carefully lift Brooklyn onto the nearby armchair. She was nearly weightless and lifted effortlessly in his arms. He grabbed his tennis ball, hesitating before placing it into her tiny hands. He just hoped she wouldn't chew it or anything.

He considered calling Cameron, then decided against causing her unnecessary panic. If she had been with her mother, she wouldn't have wandered off. He scowled at human stupidity, slumping in the chair beside the little girl, and waited silently.

It didn't take long.

Chase came rushing into the room, lab coat flapping behind him. His long hair flicked in his eyes and he brushed it out of his face, scanning the inside of the office frantically. "Hey, have you seen—?"

He stopped, spotting her perched quite contently on House's chair. He swallowed his words. "Uh, I was just looking for her."

"I see that," House said flatly, narrowing his eyes almost imperceptibly. "Bit hard to lose a human being, isn't it?"

Chase puffed up nervously. "I looked away for a split second and she was gone. The angio showed that Kaitlyn doesn't have vasculitis. The nurse needed to know to take her off the Medrol."

House pursed his lips, unimpressed with his reasoning. "And a two year old wandering around an infectious ward by herself doesn't strike you as wrong?"

Chase opened his mouth in defence, and the adjoining door opened, admitting Hudson into the office. He glanced between them uneasily, perceiving the noticeable tension in the room. "Oh, uh, what's going on?"

House threw a few Vicodin in his mouth, scowl deepening. "Oh, we're just marvelling at Dr. Chase's unfathomable stupidity. So far I'd rate it a seven or eight, but there's extra points depending on what comes out of his mouth next."

"I told you, it was an accident," Chase protested, clearly unused to having to defend himself in the face of House's protective instincts. "It could have happened to anyone! She's safe, isn't she?"

House pulled himself to his feet, eyeing the intensivist scornfully. "Yeah, I'm sure Cameron would love that explanation."

"You have to admit, she's a bit of an unnecessary burden," Hudson spoke up unexpectedly. He stepped forward, folding his arms grimly, evidently prepared to stand his ground on the matter. House shot him a dirty look. He wondered if he had gone whimpering to Cuddy yet. It wasn't exactly going to mar his record, but Cameron certainly didn't need those kind of complaints. "We can't treat a patient with a little kid on our heels all the time. The liability alone…"

House's cold blue glare rendered him silent. "I'd prefer her to you right now. They're so much better when the only talking they do is incoherent babbling."

Hudson glowered. "Look, I'm sorry, Dr. House. But if things go on like this, I might have to file a complaint with Dr. Cuddy."

Chase lifted his eyebrows over his shoulder, discreetly lifting Brooklyn out of the chair and awkwardly in his arms. House knew having Hudson around deflected a lot of the jabs he usually sent Chase's way, but the other doctor still didn't seem to appreciate him. None of them did. House didn't even have to pretend to hate him.

"So," House said, greatly amused by Hudson's sudden confidence. "Finally thought you'd threaten me face to face before you went scampering off to Mama? Nice. I'm almost impressed. Course, doing it at the expense of a little kid kind of exnays the toughness factor."

Hudson set his jaw. "I've stood by and accepted these working conditions for long enough," he said firmly. "You can't treat people like this."

House glanced idly at Chase, whose eyes were darting rapidly between them. "I haven't heard any other complaints."

"You're joking, aren't you? Both Dr. Foreman and Chase tell each other how much they hate you every day."

House smirked, unbothered by Hudson's attempts to jostle him. "Yeah, but they love me deep inside."

Hudson shook his head disbelievingly. "I can't—I can't work like this!"

Then it struck House. He was reminded of the very perfect solution staring him right in the face. At the moment, anything was preferable to this twattering idiot.

"You're right," he said slowly, twisting his mouth in thought. "You can't."

Hudson blinked, clearly surprised that House was relenting so easily. Chase looked amazed as well, but the apprehension was far more apparent on his face.

House would savour this moment for months to come. "You're fired."

Hudson stared at him wordlessly, straightening in indignation. He took several moments to summon his words, spluttering unsteadily. "You can't fire me! I have a five-year contract!"

House lifted an eyebrow back at him, sighing impatiently. "Right. Do you want another synonym? I can do that. You're out. Discharged. Cut. Booted. Liberated. Freedom is yours."

"I'll report this!"

House rolled his eyes. "Could you really be any more overdramatic? I hear there's an opening in Immunology. You might not want to mention the 'fired' part though. Employers are really picky about that kind of stuff."

Chase's eyes were practically popping out of their sockets. House leant back on his cane, eyeing Hudson expectantly.

"You don't have anyone to fill my position!" he squeaked. House was slightly embarrassed to hear such a sound emerge from another male.

At that moment, Foreman and Cameron conveniently entered his office through the adjoining door. He indicated Cameron bluntly, ignoring the pang in his stomach at the sight of her. "Dr. Cameron. Want a job?"

Cameron blinked back at him uncomprehendingly. Foreman frowned as he slowly scanned Hudson and House, taking in their defensive positions.

House met her gaze squarely, reluctantly allowing her soft green eyes to connect questioningly with his. The unresolved tension electrifying the air between them was overpowering, but he attempted to convey to her some quiet level of sincerity. Things certainly weren't right, but when had they ever been? He needed her back. He knew that, and so did she.

Tentatively, she nodded and appeared to come to an inner decision. "Sure."

A wide grin burst over Chase's features, and Foreman laughed loudly, slapping her jubilantly on the arm.

House turned back to Hudson, a subtle smirk flashing over his features. There was no way of hiding his satisfaction.

Hudson shrunk slightly, attempting to retain the last vestiges of his dignity. "I want a letter of recommendation," he finally insisted.

House inwardly scoffed at his gall, jabbing his cane pointedly in the air. "Seriously, were you not listening just now?"

Hudson opened and closed his mouth incredulously, clearly clueless as to how to handle the situation. Slowly, he turned. He was confronted head-on with Chase holding Brooklyn tightly in his arms, and shot her a deeply murderous glare before stalking through the glass doors, stiffly holding his gait.

As soon as he disappeared around the corner, Foreman let out a loud cheer, for once looking entirely impressed with House and not bothering to hide it. Chase was similarly stunned, smiling widely.

"That was awesome," Foreman declared, touching Cameron again victoriously on the back.

Chase continued to grin, nodding his agreement. "Definitely."

House shrugged indifferently, but he found his gaze unwillingly drawn to Cameron standing in between them. A small, modest smile graced her features, and House found himself strangely pleased. So pleased, he momentarily allowed them their fun, standing back as they embraced her in celebration.

He had his team back.

Finally.

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