a/n: I'm so sorry that I fell a few days behind on the update. This week got away from me. To make it up to everyone, this is a nice long chapter. It's my first attempt at showing legal drama, so you'll have to let me know how it goes. Thanks everyone for reading so far and sending all your wonderful comments.

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Cuddy's eager pace slowed the closer she got to House's room. She had no idea why, considering she knew what she was going to say, but for one brief moment doubt entered her mind. Was it right to give House the option again of choosing a doctor, especially after yet another stupid stunt? She took in a deep breath to ward off her hesitation and slid open the door.

House sat pensively on the edge of the bed, fully dressed, his legs dangling listlessly toward the floor. In his hand he held a set of papers, discharge papers by the look of it, but instead of leaving he had chosen to enjoy some quiet time.

His eyes wandered toward Cuddy once she entered the room, his empty stare indicating he wasn't surprised to see her. "I can't believe it's taken you this long to visit and give me the grand Lisa Cuddy diatribe."

Cuddy moved closer toward him in a cautious shuffle, heels clomping in an easy rhythm on the floor. House's expression turned puzzled, for he wasn't expecting a subdued boss. "What type of pop psychology are you going to try this time?"

Cuddy was about to answer, and but stopped when she noticed the patch on his arm. "Is that a fentanyl patch?"

"Yep."

"You agreed to that?"

"It's great," he said unconvincing. "A timed release of a whole 75mcg an hour. I only have to change it every three days. What a convenience."

"You've agreed to give up Vicodin?"

"Me?" House chuckled. "Heavens no. I only get 100 mcg a day as a breakthrough though, so I'm saving it for when I have some special me time."

"What about the drug cravings?"

"I'm back in the Vigabatrin study, on a cautious dose of course. Don't want to have another allergic reaction." His tone was sarcastic, hinting that he knew she had found out by now what really happened.

Cuddy folded her arms, looking at him squarely with skepticism. "Why are you behaving?"

"Because I'm a good patient." House stood up, deciding that quiet time was over.

Cuddy continued to hold her glare, then smiled. "Wait a second, I see what's going on. Chase guilted you into something."

"No he didn't. I'm doing what's best for me."

Cuddy's smile grew wider, but she said nothing, taking in how precious the moment really was.

"So that's all you came in for?" House asked, no longer in the mood to amuse her. No speeches?"

Cuddy took steps toward the door. "Go home House, get some rest. I expect you back at work tomorrow."

She left, surprised that House hadn't followed in an attempt to browbeat her into a typical confrontation. There was no doubt in her mind now. Whatever Chase did, it worked. He was going to stay House's doctor.

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House and Wilson sat side by side on the bench, eyes staring off into space, ignoring the busy swirl activity around them. To them, this was amounting to just another typical morning. What they were doing wasn't particularly exciting, but it beat what was about to come.

Their attention quickly fixed on the tall brunette breezing by. She was dressed in a sharp black suit, skirt just above the knee, and black spiked heels that accented her smooth and perfectly sculpted legs. Both cocked their heads to one side and were almost drooling when she swaggered past them.

"Why can't my lawyer look like that?" House said.

Within seconds he saw in the corner of his eye the pant leg of a fine tailored suit. A man's suit. Speak of the devil. "Why Howard, I was just talking about you."

"I'm sure you were. Glad to see you're actually here on time."

He pointed to Wilson. "That's his fault."

Their greetings ended when Chase and Foreman were spotted coming down the hall. "Great, here comes the pep squad." House joked.

"Actually," Howard said, "Dr. Chase has been called to testify." He pointed to Foreman. "He's your cheerleader."

House lowered his head. "I'm doomed."

Chase and Foreman worked their way over, both offering a quick and simple nod to acknowledge some sort of hello. Neither looked very thrilled to be there.

"Dr. Chase," Howard said, "I'm glad you're here early. We need to take a few minutes to go over your testimony again. The ADA is going to do his best to prove that despite your efforts, House is an addict and is dangerous to patients."

"Okay." Chase followed the lawyer down the hall. That left Foreman standing with House and Wilson, awkward silence running between them.

"So, what time does the trial start?" Foreman asked.

Wilson looked at his watch. "In half an hour."

Foreman nodded. "At what point do I start the wave?"

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Chase was surprised how comfortable he felt on the stand, especially since he had been providing testimony for the defense non-stop for thirty minutes. He so far had talked at length about his treatment plans for House and gave in depth details on his recent hospitalization. He was satisfied that Howard asked all the right questions regarding House's medical history, and thought the information he'd given was helping House's case. Overall, everything was going pretty well.

As Howard finished up, Chase took a good look over to the prosecution's bench, where the disinterested ADA sat, shuffling through notes in anticipation of his turn. Tritter was right behind him, slightly smirking, as if he knew what was coming. Chase began mentally preparing himself. After all, this was just another tough situation he had to face. He was going to remain positive.

The ADA's expression quickly changed to one of confidence now that it was his turn. He casually moved toward Chase, buttoning his grey suit jacket in the process, and wasted no time in getting started. "Dr. Chase, you said you have Dr. House's primary care physician for a month?"

"Yes."

"You worked for him for three years before that, correct?"

"Three and a half actually."

The ADA nodded over the correction, and glanced again at his sheet of notes. Chase could tell already how much this guy loved dramatic pauses. He must watch a lot of legal dramas. "Given your previous working relationship, why would you agree to become his doctor? Wouldn't taking on that role have affected your objectivity?"

Chase wasn't sure if he should mention that he wasn't given much of a choice. He remembered his prep with Howard, he must avoid revealing too much information. Only directly address what was asked. "I thought I could help him. As doctors, we are trained to be objective with all patients."

"There is a rule that doctors shouldn't treat family members, isn't there?"

"Yes, but he's not family."

"Wouldn't a long time mentor fall into the same category?"

"House is the one who taught me how to never assume and judge fairly. He wouldn't have let me be his doctor if he didn't think I was capable of that."

"I see." The ADA paced around, reading more of his notes. "From our interviews with other hospital staff members, we found Dr. House has a reputation for being coercive. According to some of those statements, while you worked for him, you tended to blindly follow his lead and were perceived to be a suck up. Are you saying that since he's no longer your supervisor, you can easily do what's best for him, even when he tries to intimidate?"

Chase held up his guard, knowing tough questions were part of this. He couldn't respond harshly to personal attacks. "When I worked for Dr. House, I often believed he was right in his theories, so I went along with his instructions. In this case, he hasn't been given any input except for choosing what recommended courses of treatment to follow. The circumstances are not the same."

"So, he hasn't coerced you in any way to follow an inappropriate course of treatment?"

"No."

He nodded, walked behind the desk, and exchanged his first set of notes for another one. "I'll have to admit, your diagnosis and recommendations for treatment are radically different from how Drs. Cuddy and Wilson chose to treat him. Your approach is certainly stretching the boundaries of creativity."

"Objection!" Howard shouted.

"Strike the last sentence from the record." The judge ordered.

The ADA paused to think about how to rephrase. "You have Dr. House on a program to help curb drug cravings, yet he continues to take opiates for medication."

"Fentanyl and Vicodin are still the best prescriptions for pain. The problem we needed to fix was to curb his excessive need."

"Are you saying Dr. House has developed an addiction?"

"He has a cognitive defect that predisposed his brain to creating an all consuming pattern of uncontrollable craving. That condition was not properly identified or treated earlier and now it's manifested."

"That doesn't answer the question."

Chase took a long pause, taking time to pull together his thoughts and answer the question carefully. "What definition of addiction do you want me to base my opinion?"

The opposing counsel read from a prepared sheet of paper. "A recurring compulsion by an individual to engage in some specific activity, despite harmful consequences to the individual's health, mental state, or social life."

"It's not a simple answer."

"All I need is a yes or no."

"No," Chase replied sternly.

"No? So you're saying that Dr. House doesn't use drugs to support a reckless lifestyle, is healthy, has a sound mental state, and a great social life, despite the fact that he needs these pills to function?"

"I don't have a great social life. That doesn't make me an addict."

The ADA looked at the judge in protest. "Please Dr. Chase," the judge said, "address the question."

Chase nodded in compliance and went on. "He lives in pain and takes these pills to manage that pain, not for a high. There's bound to be stress though that affects his lifestyle."

"So he deals with that stress by taking too many prescription pills."

"He doesn't take more than the prescribed dosage. Right now though, that dosage is too high and he's working with me to go on a full scale pain management regiment so we can regulate that dose."

The ADA looked at his feet and resumed his pacing. "Does Dr. House constantly display drug seeking behavior?"

Chase wasn't sure how to answer that. He had to be careful. "What do you mean by drug seeking? I have seen him on many occasions act irritable when he is past due for his Vicodin dosage, but I've never witnessed him actively seek out more drugs."

"No? Not at all?"

Chase took in a contemplative breath, giving a long dramatic pause of his own. Two could play at this game. He shook his head. "No, I really can't think of a time."

"What about since you've become his primary doctor? Did any of your test results reveal an excessive amount of drugs in his system?"

Chase rehearsed this answer with the lawyer. He was told to be honest, since the court subpoenaed House's medical records. "Yes, the first set of tests I performed revealed an abnormal amount of Vicodin in his system."

"How abnormal?"

"Over the years he has built up a tolerance to the drug, so he had more in his system than an average user."

"How much?"

"60mg."

"What's the normal dosage?"

"15 to 20mg."

"What does a high dose like that do to a person?"

"A person who has never taken the drug before, it makes them very ill, or possibly kills them. For House, the effects were minimal."

"Still, that is beyond the normal prescribed limit. Didn't you say that he doesn't take more than what is prescribed?"

"That amount can be explained by other factors. It could build up in his system after long term use. He's been on a high dose for quite a while."

The ADA accepted that answer and went on to his next line of questioning. "Why is Dr. House on Vigabatrin?"

"It's a drug for epilepsy that has proven to be effective in curbing drug cravings for cocaine dependence. There is a new study at the hospital expanding it to people dependent on opiates."

"Why not use more traditional and proven drugs like Methadone?"

"Because of his pain issues, he can't go off of opiates completely. Methadone blocks opiates."

"Yes, but this study is experimental, so there's a huge chance that it won't work."

"Current methods like using methadone only work twenty percent of the time. More studies are proving drug cravings to be a physical condition, while before it was perceived to be psychological. These experimental trials have been promising."

"What's the current success rate of the experimental studies, at least for cocaine dependence?"

"Each study has different results."

"Average."

"Forty percent."

Chase knew by the reaction that answer gave the ADA some room for grandstanding. "Forty percent? If the failure rate is so high, and the effects of the treatment unknown, especially given his recent hospitalization for a drug reaction to the medicines that are supposed to help him, should Dr. House even be practicing medicine while going through this program? Aren't the risks too great here when we're dealing with people's lives?"

"Objection, he's leading," Howard said.

"Sustained." The judge countered.

"I'll rephrase. In your professional opinion, given his current physical condition, should Dr. House continue to treat patients?"

"Yes."

"I'm confused. You just said he has a condition in which there is no sound and proven treatment."

"That doesn't affect his ability to treat patients. All it does is affect his reactions to pain, hopefully making them better."

Chase saw the ADA's grin. Damn, he just opened a door. "It doesn't huh? Strange because I have details in my possession about a recent case, one you worked on personally with Dr. House. A young girl by the name of Alice Hartman."

Chase hung his head low. He should have guessed that would come up.

"Dr. House was having massive pain issues during this case, wasn't he? As a matter of fact, his Vicodin was scaled back. How would you depict his mental judgment during this case?"

"Unfocused."

"Just unfocused? He came up with a radical diagnosis without taking time to run the proper tests to confirm, didn't he?"

"Yes, but he thought it was flesh eating bacteria. By the time that condition is usually confirmed, the patient is dead."

"He scheduled surgery to amputate the girl's left arm and leg, without knowing with reasonable certainty that it was flesh eating bacteria, didn't he?"

Chase told himself to still remain firm. "Yes."

"Yes, he did. Lucky for Alice though, someone else came to the rescue and it all worked out. How did that happen?"

"I figured out the correct diagnosis before the surgery and alerted Dr. House."

"From the accounts I have here, you saved this girl only a minute or two before the surgeons were to cut off her arm."

"Yes."

"What happened when you told Dr. House he got the diagnosis wrong?"

Chase hesitated and said nothing. How was he going to give this answer without wavering? It still hurt to think about it. He looked over at House, who blankly stared and him, waiting impatiently for the answer.

"Dr. Chase, please answer the question." The ADA knew he had him.

"He punched me."

"Dr. House punched you? For being correct? That doesn't sound like a doctor acting rationally and in the best interest of his patients."

"He was going through too rapid a Vicodin withdrawal at the time. That's why I refuse to force him off the Vicodin completely and work at a much slower pace. He has a bad history with withdrawal."

"Judging from this incident though, he has more issues than being cranky and scatterbrained during withdrawal. He can actually get violent and dangerous. Is that someone who really should be treating patients? I would think if anything, that shows a man with a serious drug problem."

Chase sat silent, having no good answer.

"That's okay, you don't have to answer that." The ADA took his time going back to his desk, letting everyone in the room absorb those comments.

Chase thought he was done, until the ADA surprised him by speaking more.

"Dr. Chase, your mother was an alcoholic, right?"

Chase's heart sank. Why in the world was he going there? "I'm not sure what that has to do with anything."

"Your honor-" Howard interrupted.

"I need to explore Dr. Chase's previous experiences with addicts, since he's here testifying on behalf of an alleged one," the ADA explained.

"Overruled. Dr. Chase, answer the question," the judge ordered.

"Yes, my mother was an alcoholic."

"She was a pretty bad one, wasn't she? She ended up drinking herself to death."

This was another place Chase didn't want to go. He was really uncomfortable now. Still, he had to go on. "Yes."

"Under your expert opinion, was her addiction caused by a cognitive defect?"

"I don't know. I don't have the test results like I do with Dr. House."

"You lived with her for years, how about a good guess based on her behaviors?"

Chase shrugged, not having a great answer. "I suppose it's possible."

"Was she an addict?"

"Your honor, where is this leading?" Howard shouted, not liking this line of questioning at all.

"Please rephrase the question to be more specific." The judge ordered.

The ADA nodded and went back for another attempt. "Did she knowingly increase alcohol consumption for pleasure, and was unable to function in normal society because of it."

"Yes."

"You were a teenager when this happened.

"Yes."

"That must have been hard, having to care for her, and essentially helping her hide from the outside world, all while being unable to share the burden of the family secret."

Chase stayed silent, knowing that wasn't a question to answer and was a trick to get him to say something. He wouldn't have been able to answer that anyway.

"So, here you are, years later, a doctor, and you have a chance to help someone close to you again with a similar affliction. Still, there has to be some habits from being a child of an alcoholic that are hard to break, like doing what you can to twist the true nature Dr. House's addiction and mask the problem."

Chase waited for Howard's objection, but didn't get one. He tried to answer, but ended up giving an incredulous pause instead, not able to easily find words. "I'm…not hiding anything."

"You won't force him off the Vicodin, even though it's clearly controlling him. You are using a high risk experimental treatment to address the problem instead of proven treatments."

"He's in pain, and proven treatments have never worked with him before."

The ADA jumped into a full offensive now. "You don't want to cut him off because you saw how bad the results were before! You saw what a monster he can become when he hit you and it scared you, likely the same way your mother did."

"She never hit me, and she has nothing to do with House." Chase's voice cracked a little.

"She couldn't control her behaviors either, could she? So which hang up are you caving into by treating Dr. House, the one where you can't bear to see him suffer like your mother did, or the one where you can't say no to authority figures, especially ones that have browbeat you for years?"

"Your honor!" Howard was clearly outraged, as was Chase.

"I withdraw." The ADA went back to his desk and sat down, very satisfied with how that went.

Chase sat in the chair seething, his fists clenched with bare white knuckles, hidden behind the stand. Only the judge could see how shaken he was. The ADA's latest dramatic pause gave Chase a little time to compose himself.

"One more question Dr. Chase. Given your personal and professional experiences, from everything you've seen from Dr. House, can you say with absolute certainty that he is not capable of the same self-destruction as your mother?"

"Your honor, that would be pure speculation," Howard argued.

"Overruled. It's a fair question." The judge ordered.

Chase kept his eyes downward, choosing wisely not to lay eyes on that despicable ADA. He was afraid he might lose his temper. "No," he answered in a low voice.

"Thank you Dr. Chase. Nothing further your honor."

"Opposing counsel, do you have any follow up questions?" The judge asked.

Howard stood up, knowing he had to make this brief. He knew when a witness was on the verge of falling apart. "Dr. Chase, in your opinion, can Dr. House perform his job to the best of his abilities under medical supervision?"

"Yes."

"That's all I have your honor."

"You may step down Dr. Chase." The judge said.

Chase didn't need to be told twice. He got down from the stand and in a quick stride moved toward the center aisle. He could feel all the eyes on him, piercing right through him in pity, but he looked straight ahead, choosing not to see any of them. His eyes wandered over to the defense table briefly to see House looking away and refusing to acknowledge him.

Chase turned his eyes toward the courtroom doors in the back and moved through the crowd quickly. When he got to the back of the room, he pushed the doors open with some force and without hesitation or looking back, left the courtroom.

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a/n: It looks like one more chapter to go. I'll know for sure once I'm done writing it. Thanks for reading!