Socking in the Hospital Wing, and an Owl
Gossip was even more frustrating when you didn't have anybody to tell it to. House had just overheard something hilarious about the Easter Bunny (not quite blackmail material, though - he'd keep it to himself if it was), and he'd intended to share it with Carla and Lily. They'd appreciate the hilarity, but... no. They weren't here.
Thunder completely stolen out of his storm into the Hospital Wing, House had shortly retreated to sitting on a chair near the wall. He'd contemplated switching important documents around, until he realized that would take too much effort. So he'd turned a withering stare on the doorway and tried to find out if he could actually make anybody leave just by glaring at them.
His first victim, unfortunately, had books piled so high in his arms that the effect of said withering stare was completely lost. Casting a quick glance over the books - Wizarding Medical History Through the 1900's, Modern Magical Nursing, Hate Those Muggle Needles?, and more - House inched the end of his cane into the nerd's path. He needed some entertainment.
The kid's foot hooked right into the cane, and House mentally congratulated himself as the books went toppling over as balance was lost. With a startled squawking sound, the kid tripped over and grabbed a hold of the nearest bed for balance - overshooting his distance estimate and cracking his wrist against the steel hand-rails.
House raised his eyebrows. Whoops, sounded like he'd just caused a broken wrist. He didn't apologize - just watched as the guy righted his balance, grimaced faintly, and bent his wrist back into shape. Seconds later, there was absolutely nothing wrong with it.
He'd... healed. Disturbingly quickly.
"Oh my god! I'm so sorry! Are you alright?" House broke out of his thoughts to see the kid staring at him in horror. House's cane was held loosely in his hands, and the guy was obviously petrified that he'd just hurt a cripple in some way - even though House was still sitting quite comfortably in his chair. "I hope I didn't break your cane, I just wasn't watching where-"
"Oh, shut up," House snapped, startling the kid into silence. Good lord, it was one of those types. He snatched his cane back. "You're a nurse?"
The kid's expression quickly changed from concern to surprise, after a guilty look at the books scattered across the floor. "Yeah, how did you...?"
"It's disgustingly obvious," House muttered, already irritated. He would have dismissed this moron quicker than he could blink, if not for that interesting little display of healing. "You're disgustingly concerned with my well-being, you walked in here as if you know the place, you're obviously intending to study here." He ticked off the points on his fingers. "The books you're carrying have anal little notes sticking out of them with unreadable scrawl, and you've got bags under your eyes - classic 'I stayed up all night reading so I can help the poor people' look." The kid blinked, stunned. House rolled his eyes in irritation. "Also, you're carrying a book about nursing, idiot."
Christ, people were stupid.
"Oh." The kid scratched the back of his head, sheepish. "Yeah. I'm Peter, I help out here when they need an extra hand. I'm a hospice nurse, and-"
"Don't care." House rested his cane across his knees, leaning back in his chair to study Peter. "How's your wrist feeling?"
Peter barely even glanced at his wrist, choosing to crouch down and start picking up the books he'd dropped. "Oh, it's fine," he shrugged. "I heal pretty quick."
"So do I, but even I can't recover from a broken bone in a matter of seconds," House commented, interest growing.
Pausing in the middle of reaching out to pick up Modern Wizarding Healing, Peter froze, and glanced at House as if he were keeping some kind of secret. House quickly tried to project 'harmless cripple'. It worked. "It's, ah... something I picked up. I don't really know the specific scientific working, but I can heal from pretty much anything."
Now that was something House hadn't heard of before. Not giving a reply, House glanced down at his cane, eyes narrowed in thought. Ever since he'd come to Hogwarts, he'd been searching for ways to minimize the issue of his leg - drugs that completely took away pain, regrowing muscle, even regrowing limbs. Every road he'd gone down had ended up in a dead end. But this... think of the things he might be able to do with this.
If he could get a nerve biopsy, there had to be a way to be able to transplant a copy of Peter's DNA - complete with healing - into his leg. Nerve regeneration was still something that regular medicine hadn't quite figured out, unless you counted using fish to study the biochemistry of regeneration in the central nervous system. Stem cell therapy was still fairly useless, Everything was still mostly theory and nothing useful. But who knew what advances Wizards had made?
Imagine if he could do it, though. It was something that House hardly wanted to imagine, should it end up not possible and ruin something he'd been looking forward to. He'd be able to run, to walk up stairs, to drive a car properly. Hell, he'd be able to walk properly. No pain, no limp, no no drugs. After seven years of it, it hardly seemed like something that could be cured.
Once more, Peter's voice cut into his thoughts. "Hey, I really am sorry. I should have been looking where I was walking. Do you need anything?"
A slow, contemplative smirk appeared on House's expression. "Actually, I can think of one thing. Just give me a minute."
It was time to owl Lily.
--
Lily,
Can I trust you to keep a secret? It's a medical theory I'm developing - and I need some of your oh-so-expert Wizarding advice.
House.
Thunder completely stolen out of his storm into the Hospital Wing, House had shortly retreated to sitting on a chair near the wall. He'd contemplated switching important documents around, until he realized that would take too much effort. So he'd turned a withering stare on the doorway and tried to find out if he could actually make anybody leave just by glaring at them.
His first victim, unfortunately, had books piled so high in his arms that the effect of said withering stare was completely lost. Casting a quick glance over the books - Wizarding Medical History Through the 1900's, Modern Magical Nursing, Hate Those Muggle Needles?, and more - House inched the end of his cane into the nerd's path. He needed some entertainment.
The kid's foot hooked right into the cane, and House mentally congratulated himself as the books went toppling over as balance was lost. With a startled squawking sound, the kid tripped over and grabbed a hold of the nearest bed for balance - overshooting his distance estimate and cracking his wrist against the steel hand-rails.
House raised his eyebrows. Whoops, sounded like he'd just caused a broken wrist. He didn't apologize - just watched as the guy righted his balance, grimaced faintly, and bent his wrist back into shape. Seconds later, there was absolutely nothing wrong with it.
He'd... healed. Disturbingly quickly.
"Oh my god! I'm so sorry! Are you alright?" House broke out of his thoughts to see the kid staring at him in horror. House's cane was held loosely in his hands, and the guy was obviously petrified that he'd just hurt a cripple in some way - even though House was still sitting quite comfortably in his chair. "I hope I didn't break your cane, I just wasn't watching where-"
"Oh, shut up," House snapped, startling the kid into silence. Good lord, it was one of those types. He snatched his cane back. "You're a nurse?"
The kid's expression quickly changed from concern to surprise, after a guilty look at the books scattered across the floor. "Yeah, how did you...?"
"It's disgustingly obvious," House muttered, already irritated. He would have dismissed this moron quicker than he could blink, if not for that interesting little display of healing. "You're disgustingly concerned with my well-being, you walked in here as if you know the place, you're obviously intending to study here." He ticked off the points on his fingers. "The books you're carrying have anal little notes sticking out of them with unreadable scrawl, and you've got bags under your eyes - classic 'I stayed up all night reading so I can help the poor people' look." The kid blinked, stunned. House rolled his eyes in irritation. "Also, you're carrying a book about nursing, idiot."
Christ, people were stupid.
"Oh." The kid scratched the back of his head, sheepish. "Yeah. I'm Peter, I help out here when they need an extra hand. I'm a hospice nurse, and-"
"Don't care." House rested his cane across his knees, leaning back in his chair to study Peter. "How's your wrist feeling?"
Peter barely even glanced at his wrist, choosing to crouch down and start picking up the books he'd dropped. "Oh, it's fine," he shrugged. "I heal pretty quick."
"So do I, but even I can't recover from a broken bone in a matter of seconds," House commented, interest growing.
Pausing in the middle of reaching out to pick up Modern Wizarding Healing, Peter froze, and glanced at House as if he were keeping some kind of secret. House quickly tried to project 'harmless cripple'. It worked. "It's, ah... something I picked up. I don't really know the specific scientific working, but I can heal from pretty much anything."
Now that was something House hadn't heard of before. Not giving a reply, House glanced down at his cane, eyes narrowed in thought. Ever since he'd come to Hogwarts, he'd been searching for ways to minimize the issue of his leg - drugs that completely took away pain, regrowing muscle, even regrowing limbs. Every road he'd gone down had ended up in a dead end. But this... think of the things he might be able to do with this.
If he could get a nerve biopsy, there had to be a way to be able to transplant a copy of Peter's DNA - complete with healing - into his leg. Nerve regeneration was still something that regular medicine hadn't quite figured out, unless you counted using fish to study the biochemistry of regeneration in the central nervous system. Stem cell therapy was still fairly useless, Everything was still mostly theory and nothing useful. But who knew what advances Wizards had made?
Imagine if he could do it, though. It was something that House hardly wanted to imagine, should it end up not possible and ruin something he'd been looking forward to. He'd be able to run, to walk up stairs, to drive a car properly. Hell, he'd be able to walk properly. No pain, no limp, no no drugs. After seven years of it, it hardly seemed like something that could be cured.
Once more, Peter's voice cut into his thoughts. "Hey, I really am sorry. I should have been looking where I was walking. Do you need anything?"
A slow, contemplative smirk appeared on House's expression. "Actually, I can think of one thing. Just give me a minute."
It was time to owl Lily.
--
Lily,
Can I trust you to keep a secret? It's a medical theory I'm developing - and I need some of your oh-so-expert Wizarding advice.
House.