Sleeping In, part 10 of 13
Title: Sleeping In
Fandom: House/Buffy
Time Frame: Second season House, post-Chosen (no comics) Buffy
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Joss and ME own Buffy. David Shore, etc., own House. I own nothing except the words.
Summary: While Xander is visiting Dawn at Princeton, he falls asleep and she can't wake him up. When he falls into Dr. House's clutches, which will solve his illness first, medicine or magic?
Cameron opened the door to the Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital's front lobby and enjoyed the bustle that went on around her as she made her way towards the elevators. She knew she shouldn't revel in the way the crowd parted a little for her purposeful walk and the nurses nodded at her respectfully, but she couldn't help herself. Okay, maybe in this instance the nurses' nods were more pitying than respectful...she punched the up button on the elevator, then looked back around behind her, to see Dr. Cuddy striding towards her.
"Here we go," she muttered under her breath, though she made sure to do it before Dr. Cuddy was in hearing distance.
"Has House completely lost his mind?" Dr. Cuddy said before she'd even come to a complete stop.
"How is this day different from any other day?" Cameron asked. Dr. Cuddy quirked an eyebrow at her, but Cameron just rolled her eyes. She'd been through medical school, did Dr. Cuddy think she'd never been to a Sedar? "What's he done now?"
"You don't - of course you don't know," Dr. Cuddy said. "You just got in. He's decided that your patient has African sleeping sickness."
"What?" Cameron said. The elevator dinged, and the doors opened. They both got on, and Dr. Cuddy jabbed her finger at the floor button hard enough to break a nail. "African sleeping sickness is something we know he doesn't have."
"That's why I asked if House lost his mind," Dr. Cuddy said, studying her fingernail. "This one makes no sense. He usually makes sense, in his own twisted way." She looked up at Cameron, and Cameron could see the anguish in her eyes. Cameron could understand. If House wasn't the brilliant diagnostician Dr. Cuddy thought he was, what did that say about how much she'd protected him over the years?
"Well, the African sleeping sickness parasite could hide in the brain stem and be undetectable on our tests," she said, more to make Dr. Cuddy feel better than anything else.
"But?" Dr. Cuddy said.
Cameron sighed. "But if it were hiding there, the disease would most likely have progressed enough that he'd be in a coma. Is he in a coma?"
"No, he's still just asleep. Nothing's changed." The elevator doors opened, and they headed towards Xander's room. Before they got there, Dr. Cuddy put a hand on Cameron's arm to stop her. "If he's truly lost it, I need to know," she said.
Cameron stared at her. "You're not coming in?"
"Oh, I'm coming in, all right," Dr. Cuddy said. She studied Cameron for a few moments, then said, "I may need a second opinion." Then she let go of Cameron's arm and walked towards the door, which opened on a scene of arrested chaos.
Willow and Kennedy stood on the far side of Xander's bed, Willow clutching a wooden block to her chest. Kennedy almost quivered, half-leaning across Xander. Foreman and Chase were backed up against the wall at the foot of the bed, looking like they wanted to be anywhere in the world but here. And House and Buffy faced off against each other on this side of the bed, House towering over the blonde woman, both of them standing stock still. It took Cameron several moments to realized that House had a syringe in his hand, because Buffy was holding his wrist so still that neither one of them was moving at all.
"What is going on here?" Dr. Cuddy said.
Chase, Foreman, Willow, Kennedy, and Buffy all looked at her. House didn't; he kept staring at Buffy.
"Dr. House here," Buffy said, her voice dripping with contempt, "thinks Xander has African sleeping sickness. But when we asked him why he thought that, when we'd been told it had already been ruled out, he just said that it was the only possible answer. He wants to give Xander medicine to treat something he doesn't have."
"Dr. House," Dr. Cuddy said, obviously trying to sound reasonable. "Do you really think the parasites are hiding in the brain stem and not showing up on the tests?"
"It's the only possible answer," House said. He still didn't take his eyes off Buffy. "When you've eliminated the impossible, whatever's left, however improbable, must be true."
Willow flinched for some reason, but Dr. Cuddy just snorted. "Don't quote Sherlock Holmes at me," she said. "He's not in a coma, and his condition hasn't changed one bit since he was admitted. Find another explanation. However improbable."
"There isn't one," House said. He finally looked at Dr. Cuddy, and Cameron almost took a step backwards at his expression. She'd never seen him looking so defeated before. He must have tried to drop the hand holding the syringe, because he started, then looked back at Buffy. She studied him for a few moments, then lowered his arm and crossed her own over her chest. House looked at his arm, then backed up against the wall. "We've been over and over the differential diagnosis. There's nothing to explain his symptoms...symptom. The only explanation is that this is a highly unusual presentation of African trypanomiasis, and since we can't test for it, the only way to prove it is to treat."
"But the treatment for African sleeping sickness is highly dangerous," Dr. Cuddy said.
"Which is why we won't let him do it," Buffy said. She turned her glare on Dr. Cuddy. "Come up with another explanation. If he can't do it, find someone who can."
"If Dr. House can't do it, no one can," Dr. Cuddy said.
"What's going on?" Dawn said from behind Cameron. Cameron turned around to see both Dawn and Faith standing there. She moved aside so they could enter the room.
"Dr. House was just leaving," Buffy said. "So he can use his huge brain to figure out what's wrong with Xander."
"I thought that's what he was doing," Dawn said.
"He's going to get it right this time," Buffy said.
"I did get it right," House muttered. He took a breath, then turned towards the door. Cameron and Dr. Cuddy, took a step backwards to leave room for him. Suddenly, he turned back and lunged for Xander.
Buffy and Faith both got to him before he took one step. Buffy's hand was back on his wrist, holding it completely still. And Faith had both hands on House's upper arms, holding him upright. It looked almost comical, because of how much smaller Faith was than House, but Cameron didn't doubt that House couldn't move.
"House," Dr. Cuddy said, and Cameron could tell she was just moments away from calling security. Not that it was needed; House obviously wasn't getting anywhere near Xander any time soon.
Buffy nodded to Faith, who let go of House's arms. Buffy then walked House towards the door, allowing for his limp but not letting go of his wrist.
"Come back when you have a real answer," she said when they were outside the room, then let go. House gave her a long glare, but then headed off down the corridor. Foreman and Chase followed as quickly as they could.
"I am so sorry about all of this," Dr. Cuddy said. "I will personally oversee Xander's case from now on -"
"If he doesn't come up with something new and reasonable, he doesn't get near Xander again," Buffy said. "You can," she added, turning to Cameron. "If you need to do tests or whatever. But not him."
"All right," Dr. Cuddy said. "We'll do it that way."
Buffy wasn't even listening. She'd gone back into the room and was focused completely on Xander. All of the young women were. Dr. Cuddy raised her eyebrows at Cameron, then turned and headed for House's office. Cameron looked once more at the odd tablaux around Xander's bed, and then followed. This case wouldn't be solved by thinking about how oddly strong Buffy and Faith both were. She needed to focus on the medicine.
part 11
Fandom: House/Buffy
Time Frame: Second season House, post-Chosen (no comics) Buffy
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Joss and ME own Buffy. David Shore, etc., own House. I own nothing except the words.
Summary: While Xander is visiting Dawn at Princeton, he falls asleep and she can't wake him up. When he falls into Dr. House's clutches, which will solve his illness first, medicine or magic?
Cameron opened the door to the Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital's front lobby and enjoyed the bustle that went on around her as she made her way towards the elevators. She knew she shouldn't revel in the way the crowd parted a little for her purposeful walk and the nurses nodded at her respectfully, but she couldn't help herself. Okay, maybe in this instance the nurses' nods were more pitying than respectful...she punched the up button on the elevator, then looked back around behind her, to see Dr. Cuddy striding towards her.
"Here we go," she muttered under her breath, though she made sure to do it before Dr. Cuddy was in hearing distance.
"Has House completely lost his mind?" Dr. Cuddy said before she'd even come to a complete stop.
"How is this day different from any other day?" Cameron asked. Dr. Cuddy quirked an eyebrow at her, but Cameron just rolled her eyes. She'd been through medical school, did Dr. Cuddy think she'd never been to a Sedar? "What's he done now?"
"You don't - of course you don't know," Dr. Cuddy said. "You just got in. He's decided that your patient has African sleeping sickness."
"What?" Cameron said. The elevator dinged, and the doors opened. They both got on, and Dr. Cuddy jabbed her finger at the floor button hard enough to break a nail. "African sleeping sickness is something we know he doesn't have."
"That's why I asked if House lost his mind," Dr. Cuddy said, studying her fingernail. "This one makes no sense. He usually makes sense, in his own twisted way." She looked up at Cameron, and Cameron could see the anguish in her eyes. Cameron could understand. If House wasn't the brilliant diagnostician Dr. Cuddy thought he was, what did that say about how much she'd protected him over the years?
"Well, the African sleeping sickness parasite could hide in the brain stem and be undetectable on our tests," she said, more to make Dr. Cuddy feel better than anything else.
"But?" Dr. Cuddy said.
Cameron sighed. "But if it were hiding there, the disease would most likely have progressed enough that he'd be in a coma. Is he in a coma?"
"No, he's still just asleep. Nothing's changed." The elevator doors opened, and they headed towards Xander's room. Before they got there, Dr. Cuddy put a hand on Cameron's arm to stop her. "If he's truly lost it, I need to know," she said.
Cameron stared at her. "You're not coming in?"
"Oh, I'm coming in, all right," Dr. Cuddy said. She studied Cameron for a few moments, then said, "I may need a second opinion." Then she let go of Cameron's arm and walked towards the door, which opened on a scene of arrested chaos.
Willow and Kennedy stood on the far side of Xander's bed, Willow clutching a wooden block to her chest. Kennedy almost quivered, half-leaning across Xander. Foreman and Chase were backed up against the wall at the foot of the bed, looking like they wanted to be anywhere in the world but here. And House and Buffy faced off against each other on this side of the bed, House towering over the blonde woman, both of them standing stock still. It took Cameron several moments to realized that House had a syringe in his hand, because Buffy was holding his wrist so still that neither one of them was moving at all.
"What is going on here?" Dr. Cuddy said.
Chase, Foreman, Willow, Kennedy, and Buffy all looked at her. House didn't; he kept staring at Buffy.
"Dr. House here," Buffy said, her voice dripping with contempt, "thinks Xander has African sleeping sickness. But when we asked him why he thought that, when we'd been told it had already been ruled out, he just said that it was the only possible answer. He wants to give Xander medicine to treat something he doesn't have."
"Dr. House," Dr. Cuddy said, obviously trying to sound reasonable. "Do you really think the parasites are hiding in the brain stem and not showing up on the tests?"
"It's the only possible answer," House said. He still didn't take his eyes off Buffy. "When you've eliminated the impossible, whatever's left, however improbable, must be true."
Willow flinched for some reason, but Dr. Cuddy just snorted. "Don't quote Sherlock Holmes at me," she said. "He's not in a coma, and his condition hasn't changed one bit since he was admitted. Find another explanation. However improbable."
"There isn't one," House said. He finally looked at Dr. Cuddy, and Cameron almost took a step backwards at his expression. She'd never seen him looking so defeated before. He must have tried to drop the hand holding the syringe, because he started, then looked back at Buffy. She studied him for a few moments, then lowered his arm and crossed her own over her chest. House looked at his arm, then backed up against the wall. "We've been over and over the differential diagnosis. There's nothing to explain his symptoms...symptom. The only explanation is that this is a highly unusual presentation of African trypanomiasis, and since we can't test for it, the only way to prove it is to treat."
"But the treatment for African sleeping sickness is highly dangerous," Dr. Cuddy said.
"Which is why we won't let him do it," Buffy said. She turned her glare on Dr. Cuddy. "Come up with another explanation. If he can't do it, find someone who can."
"If Dr. House can't do it, no one can," Dr. Cuddy said.
"What's going on?" Dawn said from behind Cameron. Cameron turned around to see both Dawn and Faith standing there. She moved aside so they could enter the room.
"Dr. House was just leaving," Buffy said. "So he can use his huge brain to figure out what's wrong with Xander."
"I thought that's what he was doing," Dawn said.
"He's going to get it right this time," Buffy said.
"I did get it right," House muttered. He took a breath, then turned towards the door. Cameron and Dr. Cuddy, took a step backwards to leave room for him. Suddenly, he turned back and lunged for Xander.
Buffy and Faith both got to him before he took one step. Buffy's hand was back on his wrist, holding it completely still. And Faith had both hands on House's upper arms, holding him upright. It looked almost comical, because of how much smaller Faith was than House, but Cameron didn't doubt that House couldn't move.
"House," Dr. Cuddy said, and Cameron could tell she was just moments away from calling security. Not that it was needed; House obviously wasn't getting anywhere near Xander any time soon.
Buffy nodded to Faith, who let go of House's arms. Buffy then walked House towards the door, allowing for his limp but not letting go of his wrist.
"Come back when you have a real answer," she said when they were outside the room, then let go. House gave her a long glare, but then headed off down the corridor. Foreman and Chase followed as quickly as they could.
"I am so sorry about all of this," Dr. Cuddy said. "I will personally oversee Xander's case from now on -"
"If he doesn't come up with something new and reasonable, he doesn't get near Xander again," Buffy said. "You can," she added, turning to Cameron. "If you need to do tests or whatever. But not him."
"All right," Dr. Cuddy said. "We'll do it that way."
Buffy wasn't even listening. She'd gone back into the room and was focused completely on Xander. All of the young women were. Dr. Cuddy raised her eyebrows at Cameron, then turned and headed for House's office. Cameron looked once more at the odd tablaux around Xander's bed, and then followed. This case wouldn't be solved by thinking about how oddly strong Buffy and Faith both were. She needed to focus on the medicine.
part 11