Everyone thinks I'm the craziest person alive. I spend so much of my time bailing you out of one situation after another and letting you get away with things that would have kicked doctors out of practice long ago. People don't understand why in the world I do it. I'm not sure I even understand. Aside from prolonging an otherwise exceptional medical career, I don't think I have really helped you at all. I have enabled you. I probably do it partially out of guilt. I'm the one that screwed up with your leg. I'm the one that sent you spiraling into self-pity and drug addiction. Sure, you forgave me; you told me it is the nature of medicine to screw up. I'm not sure I have ever forgiven myself though.

Despite your brilliance, you have become a much better doctor since you found your current team. You have grown to rely on all of them and are desperately trying to hold on. I often wonder if you cling to them because they are your last hope of not losing complete touch with reality. That has to be it. Otherwise, why would you fight so hard to keep Chase? Sure, he was the first person to actually survive two years with you, but you went to huge lengths to secure him a position even though you never indicated there was any respect. You do not perform such acts because of loyalty.

Without your team and Wilson we would have lost you long ago. Maybe it wasn't enough. Maybe we lost you already.

"Dr. Cuddy?"

Cuddy snapped out of her thought to see Dr. Brown, a pediatric attending.

"Yes, Dr. Brown," Cuddy replied.

"How's Dr. House?" she asked.

"He's doing much better, but I have a feeling that you didn't come here to ask me that."

"I have a patient that needs your attention. Actually, this is perfect for House's team, but I didn't want to go straight to them given the circumstances."

Cuddy grabbed the file and started examining it. Her mouth hung open as she read the lurid details. "Why does the family want to do this?"

"They are clinging to hope that there is a small chance. It's not my job to convince them otherwise, at least not until all possibilities have been considered."

"Okay," Cuddy agreed. "I'll talk to Dr. Chase in the morning."

"Thanks Dr. Cuddy," Dr. Brown said. She left the ICU with an overwhelmed Cuddy still holding the file.

"You are one incredibly lucky bastard," Cuddy said to House.

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

Chase arrived in the ICU the next morning to find Cuddy buried behind a huge stack of papers and files.

"I suppose taking a night shift is a great way to get work done," he said as she was too involved to notice his arrival.

"You will have to try it," she replied. "Your department's paperwork is starting to stack up. You will be wishing for this opportunity."

Chase walked over to the bed and stared at a peacefully unconscious House. He had to admit, he was looking much better. He picked up House's chart and examined it. "I see he had an excellent night."

"Yes, he didn't stir once and vitals are stronger," Cuddy said as she got up. "He sorely needed this." She looked at Chase with all indication that she was about to tell him something, but then she stopped herself.

"Is there something you need to tell me?" Chase asked.

Cuddy decided she might as well just get it out. "I hate to do this to you, but you have a new case."

Cuddy's statement got a rise out of Chase. "You can't expect us to do this. We can barely handle the case we have now, we are already down the most pivotal member of our team, we have one doctor who still is unable to perform delicate medical procedures, and I'm in the ICU most of the day. We will likely do in whoever you are giving us."

"She's already done in," replied a solemn Cuddy as she handed over the file. "She has a bullet lodged deep in her frontal lobe. Hope of even a modest recovery is slim."

Chase opened the file, very curious as to why they would be getting such a case. His heart sunk as he read the information. The team has had to endure so much already so he wasn't sure how ready they were for this. "She's only eleven. She's dying of something other than a bullet in her brain?"

"The family has hope of recovery, even if it is remote. They have asked for heroic measures. We don't get more heroic that our diagnostics team."

"We are already riding on fumes here. Our trademark hero is having his own issues with bullets these days." Chase protested.

"Where do you stand with your current patient?" Cuddy asked.

"I gave the case to Foreman. He arranged a lymph node biopsy and we are waiting for the results."

"Give this case to Cameron then. I'll take full responsibility for her. You will be the primary attending but you have my word that I will take full responsibility if anything goes wrong."

"So you want her to run a "girl in a coma under tragic circumstances" case after the trauma of her boss getting shot in front of her, not to mention all the other turmoil over the last few months. That has emotional disaster written all over it."

"I'm willing to take that risk. Come on, heroic measures aside, we aren't exactly going to be improving this girl's quality of life. Cameron is the only doctor left who can take this. Think of it this way, this will be a great opportunity for her to prove House wrong."

"Or right," countered Chase. "Not dead is a quality of life improvement. We should to at least go for that."

"I wonder myself if that is for the best, but luckily it's not up to me to decide."

"Be careful, because if Cameron is left to choose, you might not like the end result."

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that," replied Cuddy. "If it does, I'm sure you and Foreman will help her make the right decision. Anyway, as soon as Cameron and Foreman get in you can go discuss this with them. I'll cover for you"

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

Cameron and Chase waited patiently in their temporary space for Foreman to arrive. Chase was involved with reviewing and signing a stack of files that were patiently waiting for him this morning. "I see you took my advice," he said to Cameron.

"I did sleep well, but I would have done that without your advice. You check on House this morning?"

"Yes, he had a very good night. Things are looking up."

A deep expression of relief fell over Cameron. "I wonder where Foreman is. He is never late."

A few minutes later, a very happy Foreman arrived. His face wore a huge smile and he was humming something unrecognizable to himself.

"Wow someone had a good evening," said Cameron. "Why are you so happy?"

"Isn't it obvious?" said Chase. "He got laid."

"Well it figures you would know that," Cameron snarked. "So, who is she Foreman?"

"Not telling. Let's just say a friend." Foreman then looked at Chase very strangely. "I don't ever remember House having that much paperwork."

"Neither do I," replied Chase. "I checked it over though and it's all legit. I'll have to get his secret when he comes to. Anyway, now that you are here, we have a new case."

"You were crazy enough to take another case?" asked Cameron.

"This came from Cuddy herself, and it is officially yours." Chase handed the file over to Cameron.

At first Cameron had a look of pleasant surprise on her face, and then she started reading the file. Her face changed to a look of deep heartbreak for the patient. "This is tragic. She and a cousin were playing with a loaded gun. The poor family."

Cameron took a second to pull herself together and then examined the issues further. "Fever, chills, mouth ulcers, low white count, unusual redness and swelling around her gunshot wound. Sounds like neutropenia. Of course why she would have that from a bullet to the brain is beyond me."

Foreman got very curious. "Let me see that," he said to Cameron and reached for the file.

"She had a subdural hematoma and developed tension pneumocephalus. They did a ventriculostomy. She has no hope of normal brain function, but judging by what they have done she shouldn't be developing any hematological disorders or blood infections."

"It could have been a parasite that was there before her wound," Cameron responded. She got the file back from Foreman and shook her head. "I understand the parents' need to keep their daughter alive, but it is possible the body doesn't want to fight anymore. I'll get another CBC and an ANC. I'll also try to get a deeper patient history."

"How about your patient?" Chase asked Foreman.

"Still waiting for the biopsy results, but his fever is down to 101. That is something."

"Okay, I'll be in the ICU most of the day along with this stack of files," Chase said as he quickly wrapped up the meeting. "Let me know any test results as soon as you get them. If you need me for anything, I will make the time."

As they were leaving Cameron decided to follow along with Chase. "Thanks for giving me a chance," she said with a look of gratitude.

"Thank Cuddy. It was her idea. I know you can do it but don't think you are in this alone. Please don't hesitate to ask for help."

"I won't hesitate," Cameron said as she went in the direction of her new patient's room.

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

I'm not ending up like you. Sure, I have had to cut myself off emotionally in many ways but for me, it was a survival instinct. For you, it had less to do with survival. Or did it? Where along the way did you shut people out? What led you to believe that time shouldn't be wasted on emotional impact and feelings because they can't be measured scientifically? What instability in your life caused behavior that is considered to be sociopathic in some ways?

My dad was the same type of sociopath. He never cared about his family or what really mattered. No, he did exactly what mattered to him. Being a brilliant doctor was all he wanted to do. How does a man like that even consider having a wife and a child? Was it for status? For legacy? Was it an accident? At least you were smart enough to realize that if you were going to be screwed up you weren't going to let others get close enough to make them suffer too. At least not a wife and child.

I have no idea why you hired me. Sure, I was furious at my dad for calling and asking you to consider my application. He had no right and he wouldn't have found out if a doctor friend of his that I stupidly used as a reference told him. That call only got you to look at the application. What did you see that I still to this day do not see in myself? Maybe you saw that I was miserable like you, that I shut out pain in the same way, by not caring. Maybe you liked the internal conflict between the good pious seminary student and the sycophant doctor living the wild and fast life. You have a strange fascination for those that are damaged and leading double lives. We aren't boring.

The question should be, why did I choose you? What did I think I would get out of this? This fellowship was sure to make me a better doctor. Was that what I really wanted? I guess I have never really wanted anything. Everything I do is by reaction. I have explored the good and I have explored the bad. Neither is fun. You have been accused of not being able to tell right from wrong. I know it isn't true for we are both alike there too. We can tell the difference but most of the time we don't give a damn.

People don't like you. That's okay, they don't like me either. I wonder if in 20 years I turn as abrasive and cranky as you. I doubt it, since I have been trained since birth to bite my tongue when thinking bad thoughts. I'll never be able to overcome that. Maybe that was a big reason for wanting to work with you. I admire anyone that can be so straight-forward and not be afraid of the consequences. Oh Christ, my dad was that way with people. Could it be all along I wanted to work for my dad and saw how much you were like him? No, I'll never be able to accept that.

"Chase?" the voice asked.

Chase sprung out of his deep reminisce to notice House looking at him with a bleary gaze.

"You aren't seeing giant rats, are you?" Chase asked.

"Sure, I'm looking at you, aren't I?"

Chase smiled. House is having a good moment right now.

"Something isn't right. I'm experiencing symptoms that are usually not related to gunshot wounds." House said with a dry voice that hadn't been worked much for a few days.

"I'll let Cuddy talk to you. She knows the whole story."

"Don't give me that. You are a rather good doctor or I wouldn't have hired you. You know exactly what is going on. Afraid of hurting Cuddy's feelings?"

"You were given ketamine," Chase replied. He knew by this point that it was never beneficial to keep the truth from House.

"So you are my babysitter then. When is Wilson's turn?"

"In a few hours,"

"I'm going back to sleep. I already survived bullets; I don't want to die of boredom talking with you." House then drifted back to sleep

Chase had a deep breath of relief. House was sounding like himself again.

A/N: The plot should start to move a little more from this point. House starts getting stronger and will be causing trouble for everyone. Thanks for reading! For those Chase and Cuddy fans out there, are the moments of internal reflection satisfying?