a/n: Another attempt at the author's note, since the last one was punched up quickly amidst mass confusion in my home and turned out to read rather absurd (Thanks Queen of Blank!). I don't expect people to compare this chapter with the unpublished one that I never shared. :)

I know I promised this new update rather quickly, but once I started to edit the chapter I realized how much it sucked. What you have here is a brand new rewrite. Since I spent all week bouncing around trying to figure how to make this one work, just let me know if you think it's great, it's okay or it sucks. I can handle comments either way! Thanks for taking time to read this.

Chase brushed into Cuddy's office without knocking. He quickly realized he had never done that before. That was a notorious House tactic. "We have an issue."

Cuddy stood behind her desk, surprised by the entrance. "Well, it must be important for you to just barge in here. What's up?"

"House has a fever of 101 and the CBC showed an elevated white blood count. His blood pressure is a little sluggish as well."

Worry flashed on Cuddy's face initially, but she realized it was too early to panic. "When did this start happening?"

"Sometime early this morning."

"How's the respiratory rate?"

"Normal so far. I started him on an antibiotic in case it's an infection."

Cuddy exhaled a sigh of relief. No reason to suspect a problem yet. She remembered the surgeon telling her how House was at a greater a risk of infection due to amount of tissue the bullet cut through in the abdomen. "Okay we will see if that works. I'll check on him this afternoon. Thanks."

Chase nodded and headed for the door. "Chase, did you notice these problems or did he tell you?"

"He told me and made it clear that he didn't want anyone else to know." Chase wasn't certain as to why the answer was relevant, but he responded anyway.

A happy smile formed on Cuddy's face as she slowly sat down in her chair.

"What is it, if you don't mind me asking?"

"You just answered a big question I have had in my mind for sometime."

Chase's confused expression warranted Cuddy to continue with a further explanation.

"I have known House since med school. Despite his wackiness, volatile behavior and completely unpredictable nature, I usually understood his motivation. I did that is until he came to me begging for an attending position. I told him this was a teaching hospital. Positions like that had to be planned well in advance and approved by the budget committee. I also told him that it couldn't get approved for his department unless revenue increased. His current caseload barely justified any of your positions, even his. I asked him why the position was so important. 'I can't lose Chase' he told me."

"So how in the world did he get it approved?"

"He tracked down every member of the budget committee and berated them into submission. It is my hunch that blackmail and bribing got involved in many cases. Anyway, he got them to consider the position effective immediately, but the proposal came at a price. Revenue would have to increase. Caseload would have to more than double and you would have to start running cases. When I attached to the proposal a plan that showed possible expansion of the department to offering top notch specialized services nationally, they went for it. Money and reputation is how you win over these people."

"Is that really the plan?" Chase's curiosity was piqued now.

"I have no idea, but it certainly opened the door to get positions secured later for Cameron and Foreman. The only problem there is, House isn't sure if he wants Cameron. He doubts her intentions. He also knows Foreman has no interest in sticking around."

"House and Cameron had a big fight a few weeks ago. She was talking about leaving."

"House wants to be sure that her head is in this before performing drastic measures to keep her. He needs to know for sure that her commitment isn't due to some lingering crush. I don't think he got his answer yet."

"So what does all this..."

"...have to do with House trusting you with his medical problems? I never once understood why he went to so much trouble to get you to stay with him. He has been through many fellows throughout the years and never went to bat for any of them. Sure, you are the first person to actually survive the full term of the fellowship with him, but that does not guarantee loyalty in his mind. Like the others, he could have easily let you go. Now I know why he did it. He trusts you with his life."

Chase never thought about it that way before. It never occurred to him what the true motivation was. He probably didn't want to drive himself crazy thinking about it.

"Don't take that lightly either," Cuddy continued. "He doesn't trust anyone like that except for me and Wilson, and I wonder about me sometimes. While I'm at it, there is something else I'm curious about. Why did you accept?"

"No good reason other than I had no reason not to. I like working for House strangely enough. He's never boring."

"Normally I would criticize you at this point for worrisome co-dependent behavior, but that would be hypocritical. I don't know why I let him do what he does, so I wouldn't expect you to explain it either. Okay, I'm done rambling. I'll let you know about House after I check on him. Thanks Chase, for everything."

Chase offered a baffled nod and went on his way. He was strangely comforted that it wasn't just him that House was making crazy.

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He had a little time before the scheduled LP for Cameron's patient. This was a rare opportunity to use some time wisely. Chase sat down at the conference table, opened the laptop, and instantly started typing keywords into the medical search database. Sure, he could be working on the paperwork that was stacking almost to his eyeballs next to him, but he was still curious about the brain stimulation options that House presented. He was even more curious as to how bullet fragments could be safely removed deep within a brain. Sure all this neurology was more Foreman's area, but he had some time and Foreman didn't.

He was so lost in study that an hour passed without him noticing. How perplexing that in an hour no one tried to page or interrupt me. He smiled. It felt like old times.

Chase's brain was rather fried from filtering the hoards of information that revealed so little, so he got up and started walking around the room to stretch a bit. Cameron's chest x-rays were still on the board and as he walked innocently past them something caught his eye. He turned on the background light in ultimate curiosity to get a better look. "No way." He saw the foreign object. That couldn't be what he thought it was. Or could it?

Chase quickly went back to the laptop and typed in another set of keywords. The first case study that came up was a 100 match. As he read through the details, he suddenly realized he had struck gold. That would explain everything! They needed a better look. The chest was only one part of the puzzle. He whipped out his pager to summon Cameron and Foreman. MRI room, Emily Harris, ASAP.

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Foreman had no idea what was so urgent that his presence was needed in the MRI control room now, but he hurried anyway. Chase was usually never one to push the panic button. He found Chase and Cameron in the control room, patient positioned and the scan ready to start.

"Watch this," Chase told Foreman with a fascinated smile as he started the brain scan.

As the silhouette of the brain started to load, Foreman and Cameron's jaws both dropped in disbelief. "Where's the bullet?" Cameron wondered.

"It's there." Foreman's eyes stayed completely fixed on the scan. "It just isn't in one piece anymore. There are fragments everywhere, but not as many as I would think."

"Now see this," Chase said still believing he was witnessing one of the rarest medical phenomenons he had ever seen. He hit the keys prompting another scan.

"Whoa," was the collective sound by all three. "Her lungs have pieces all over the place. I'm surprised the fragments haven't shredded the lung tissue," Cameron observed.

"The fragments are small and soft," Foreman countered. "Their presence is enough to cause an infection, but not damage. They must have gotten into the veins first and settled in the lungs which was what caused the neutropenia and the lung infection."

"She hasn't had any heart difficulties, but we might want to check that to be safe." Chase typed in the command for the heart scan next.

"See, right ventricle," Chase pointed out. "Nothing catastrophic, but it proves she might have fragments everywhere. Since her shunt drains to the abdomen, I'd suspect that is where the source is." Chase scanned the abdomen next.

The ducklings all observed the minefield that now existed in the abdomen. "Now this part makes sense." Foreman said as he looked at the multitude of dots on the screen.

"How did the fragments not shred the soft tubing of the shunt?" Cameron was amazed how much debris could be circulated and not cause any damage. "How did you figure out this was happening?" She asked Chase in amazement.

"I looked at your chest x-ray and did some research. Similar cases have happened before, but this is extremely rare."

Cameron's eyes were wide open in astonishment. "I think nature just solved our bullet problem."

"This was an act of God." Chase muttered under his breath. Cameron frowned at Chase's observation. Foreman smiled in agreement.

"I'm going to tell the mother what happened." Cameron went to leave, but Chase stopped her. "You need to get approval for surgery. I'm going to finish a full body scan and then get a surgical team together. If anything, her abdomen must be cleared out now."

Cameron left as Chase and Foreman finished up the MRI. "Get a few more scans of the brain while you are at it," Foreman suggested. "I need to make sure the remaining fragments won't be at risk for causing damage from shifting."

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"Where there is life, there is hope." Mrs. Harris recited as she and Cameron watched the surgery in the observation room. "You really don't believe that, do you?"

"Mrs. Harris, my beliefs are not relevant here. It is not wise as a doctor to deliver false hope. Things more times than not turn out against the way we had planned."

"Something happened to you to make you lose hope. Maybe it was your job. I know you see death and suffering every day. Somehow though, I sense it was more personal. You don't need to tell me. You just have to understand, with me, there is no such thing as false hope."

"Everything will be fine with your daughter," Cameron assured.

"You say that as though you are trying to convince yourself. Don't worry I won't sue. Have you checked into those other options I asked about?"

"Any other option is incredibly risky. I have too much respect for life to put a comatose patient in such unnecessary jeopardy. She could die."

Mrs. Harris vehemently disagreed. "Respecting life means fighting for it at all costs. There is no room for hurt feelings or lost expectations. Dealing with the consequences is something I do with God by my side. Why in the world would God give doctors like you such amazing gifts and not have you use them to the fullest? I want to know all the options."

Cameron looked into Mrs. Harris' determined eyes again and remembered that it wasn't her call. "We are looking into experimental brain stimulation treatments. Studies have been done in Japan and on a smaller scale here in the US. There are too many other factors that have to be addressed before we get to that. We are still researching the feasibility."

"I'll give you time to make to research, but I'm telling you to make it feasible. I have nothing to lose here."

"Nothing except your daughter."

"If she is comatose the rest of her life, I have lost her. Even unresponsive but awake is something I can work with."

"Okay, while she is recovering from the surgery I will gather the best options and present them to you."

"Thank you Dr. Cameron for respecting my wishes." They turned back to observe the rest of the surgery in silence.

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Foreman found Chase later in the day in the clinic lobby. "I'm heading out. I'm on my way to Philadelphia to visit with the brain stimulation specialist tomorrow."

"Thanks for making the trip on short notice. Once Cameron spoke to the mother, now we have no choice. Better sooner than later."

"No problem. It should be educational."

"I think you were willing to go so you could stay with your girlfriend," Chase said with a fiendish smile.

"I need to make the trip worthwhile." Foreman grinned in return. "I'll see you the day after tomorrow."

"See ya."

The familiar sounds of alert started chiming from Chase's pager. "You better get that," Foreman said still sporting a smile as he headed for the door. "Sounds important."

"Thanks." Chase replied with a sarcastic tone. The sarcasm quickly turned to unease as he read the message. He started running toward the ICU.

Cuddy and the crash team worked frantically on House as Chase entered. "He's in respiratory distress," Cuddy shouted. "I've started an albuterol inhalation. Check the abdomen. I suspect internal bleeding."

Chase peeled back the gauze that was covering the wound and started feeling the area. "I need to drain the peritoneum." The nurse handed him a huge needle that he quickly sunk into House's side. Instead of the expected blood, the drainage was cloudy and yellow.

"It isn't bleeding. It's worse. There's fluid and bacteria. He's got peritonitis."

Cuddy's face turned white. "Oh God, the gastrointestinal tract is probably ruptured. We have to get him to surgery now. Get over here and get his breathing stabilized. I'll call the OR."

"Stop the IV," Chase shouted to the nurse as he took Cuddy's place. "The extra fluid in the GI could kill him."

Chase started examining the pulse/ox on the monitor as House continued to breathe in the inhalant. He felt slight relief when the numbers started to improve. "Give him another dose. It needs to be perfect for surgery." Chase turned to a barely conscious House. "House, we are taking you to surgery. Do you understand?"

Trembling and still struggling for breath, House nodded weakly in response. With his shaking hand he grabbed Chase's arm, hoping to say something, but was unable to speak.

"It's under control. Just get better." Chase tried to be reassuring but his words came with a touch of fear.

The surgical transport team swept into the room and whisked House away in a flash. Chase and Cuddy instinctively joined the pack and followed behind in silence. As they arrived at the doors to the OR, Chase and Cuddy stopped in their tracks and watched the rest of entourage rush on by. "Chase, this time I want you in there with him," Cuddy instructed.

"Okay, but you need to tell Cameron. She will want to know what happened. Foreman is in Philadelphia. I'll call him later."

"I'll let her know. I'll be in the observation room after I talk to her. Hell, she'll probably be there with me."

Chase gave her a 'good luck with that' expression and went into the OR to scrub in.