A/N: Thanks to everyone who reviewed – I've edited chapter 2 (just a bit) based on your feedback! What happens next? Read, review, and find out!
Grey's Anatomy/House crossover. MerDer, CameronHouse, some Maddison. Other characters come in and out but will probably not be too central. Spoilers for GA and House up to Season 3. This chapter rated M for language (not too bad, I'm just cautious).
Disclaimer: If I owned House (or McDreamy, for that matter) – well, let's just say I wouldn't be sitting here writing this. Lyrics are Snow Patrol's "Set the Fire to the Third Bar."
Chapter 3: Cameron, meet Derek.
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"I'm miles from where you are, I lay down on the cold ground
I pray that something picks me up and sets me down in your warm arms"
"What about cerebral phaeohyphomycosis?" Cameron leaned back slightly in her chair to get a better look at the head CT as the rest of her team turned to stare at her. First day, and already making waves, Cameron? House's voice mocked inside her head, but she firmly pushed any doubts about her ability to the side.
"That's extremely rare, Dr. Cameron. And there is no evidence to prove that this girl has even been exposed to any fungi," her new boss, Dr. McArthur, tossed back. Cameron could see that she was considering the possibility, though. McArthur was an older, kindly woman, more like the professors she remembered from medical school than the kind of colleague with whom she was used to working. And even this team's disagreements were civil. This must be a diagnostician's heaven.
"I know it's rare, I just – we've eliminated all of the more probable causes," Cameron explained. She paused. "I saw something like this once before. Back in Princeton."
McArthur sighed. "Anyone have any better ideas? Treating physician's name is Derek Shepard. Get his consent and run the test. Let's see if we get lucky, people."
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Cameron decided to wait with the patient while she paged Dr. Shepard. It still felt somewhat foreign, to treat a patient like a human being, rather than something to be poked and prodded at the team's whim.
In this case, her potential cerebral phaeohyphomycosis was a spunky 8-year old girl named Amelia, and by the time Derek Shepard arrived the two were deep into a game of Go Fish, cards flying wildly across the hospital bed.
"Amelia, how are you feeling?" Derek's eyes crinkled, and his smile displayed his full dimples. Quite the bedside manner, Cameron caught herself thinking. Almost makes you want to be a neurological patient.
"Better since Allison came. We've been playing cards forever," Amelia chirped.
"And you must be the new diagnostician. Sorry to keep you waiting. Craniotomy that ran long."
"Allison Cameron, and I'm sure the patient's brain needed your attention far more urgently than I do," she smiled. "Amelia, do you mind if I talk to Dr. Shepard alone for a moment?"
"Allison's going to fix me," the child informed Derek with eyes shining full of faith and hope.
Cameron squeezed her shoulder. "I am sure going to try."
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"Cerebral phaeohyphomycosis? That's quite a call, Dr. Cameron. Princeton's reputation for wild diagnostics is certainly not unearned."
"You know us diagnosticians," Cameron quipped. "Turn your back on us for a moment and we're running amok through the hospital."
Derek rubbed his eyes tiredly. "We'll need to do a brain biopsy to be sure …"
"…And Amelia's been through enough as it is," Cameron finished his thought. "I'm aware of the stakes, Dr. Shepard. But if I'm right, there could be severe neurotropism. If we don't catch it soon, she dies."
He considered her thoughtfully.
"I knew Gregory House, you know," he said, suddenly. She paled. "He was first in our class at Columbia. I was second. He was quite brilliant back then, and from what I read in the literature he still is."
"You know House?" Cameron gasped.
"He used to play jazz piano at a club down on 14th street," Derek reminisced. "I met my wife – ex-wife – Addison there. She was a med student at NYU."
At this Cameron really did feel the need to sit down. "You're married to Addison Shepard? The neonatologist?"
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Derek looked at Allison Cameron curiously. The woman was clearly shaken. "I was married to her," he corrected gently, though he realized that she was not reacting to the semantics of his marital situation.
Involuntarily, Cameron felt herself flash back in time, the shock and pain rolling over her in waves. Brian, in his sickbed. They had taken him to New York, in search of the best cancer treatment center – in search of a cure that didn't exist. She was four months pregnant with his child, conceived the night of his diagnosis, a celebration of life. And then there had been pain, so much pain.
"She treated me once," she admitted, slowly, realizing that she had drifted off in memory and Derek was now staring at her. "Addison."
Derek caught himself looking for her ring, wondering how old she could possibly be to have a child. She looked so young. "She's here, you know. Addison is. We're not married, but she's here – I could tell her that –"
"No!" Cameron's response was almost violent, and Derek caught at her elbow in a protective reflex. She caught his eye, then looked away. "We … I … I lost the baby. Miscarriage. No sense in reminiscing." Why am I telling him this? The mention of Addison had shocked her. She had worked at PPTH for all that time without mentioning it once, but he looked at her with those blue eyes, and she spilled her sorry guts. Seeing the sympathy in Derek's eyes, Cameron had a tremendous urge to change the subject – to anything but the child she had carried and lost.
"So you know Dr. House, huh?" she said lightly, wiping furiously at her eyes. "Was he always a misanthropic, cynical, drug-addicted bastard?" Well. That certainly lightens the tone, Allison.
Derek was taken aback, both at the change of topic and the undercurrent of anger in Cameron's voice.
"Actually …" he replied, careful to keep his tone measured. "No, he was quite charming, at least when he wanted to be. Spent a lot of time in the library, I remember. Although he didn't seem to need it – he had an almost photographic memory. Especially when it came to women," Derek winked.
"Well he certainly uses the cane to good effect now," Allison mused, pinkening slightly at the memory of House poking her, pulling her forward with the damn thing.
"Cane?" Derek asked quizzically.
"Oh my," Allison sighed. "You don't know?" Derek shook his head. Well that explains why he didn't understand the whole bit about House being a misanthropic bastard. "It was an infarction, about seven years ago now I'd guess. He lost quite a bit of leg muscle, walks with a cane. It keeps him in constant low-grade pain." She sighed again. "I didn't know him before the … incident … but from what I understand, it changed him. He became difficult. Withdrawn. Sarcastic." Lonely. "… Difficult to work with."
"Oh." Derek squeezed his eyes shut. He hadn't known House all that well, but the downfall of a colleague was enough to remind you of your own mortality. "He didn't attend our ten-year reunion. I didn't know."
"He probably wanted it that way. He's not an easy man to know, these days. And that's why I'm here." Cameron forced her tone to be light.
Derek looked her over again in a new light. He knew a little something about needing to escape someone so badly that you'd fly clear across the country to do it. "That bad? Seattle's about as far as you can get from Princeton," was all he said. She grimaced. "You know, I know a little something about being new to this city. How about this? I'll buy you a cup of coffee and spill some of my trade secrets. In exchange, I want you to give me the inside story on a case of Dr. House's that I read about in Neurology – fascinating stuff."
"And you'll do the test on Amelia," Cameron prodded.
Derek raised an eyebrow, but she stood her ground.
"You drive a hard bargain." He sighed. "House used to be brilliant, and he may have changed, but I'm guessing he still is. And you're one of his. So fine. I will do the biopsy for Amelia. But you better have something here, Dr. Cameron." She smiled in return. "Well come on then. Let's go tell our patient the news."
Cameron felt a sense of immense satisfaction. She might not be a duckling anymore, but she sure as hell had the skills to save this little girl's life.
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A/N: Don't worry, Cameron not going to get involved with Derek – they just "get" each other. (And a little jealousy won't hurt Meredith. I promise.) Please review. Your feedback makes me happy.