"Hunting" is the seventh episode of the second season of ''

House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

'', and twenty-ninth overall. It premiered on

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

on November 22, 2005, and was written by

Liz Friedman Liz Friedman is an American television producer and television writer known especially for her work on '' Xena: Warrior Princess'', '' Young Hercules'', ''House'' and ''Jessica Jones''. In 2014, she was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Writin ...

and directed by

Gloria Muzio Gloria Muzio is an American theatre and television director. She has worked on a number of TV shows including ''Criminal Minds'', '' Brothers & Sisters'', ''The Black Donnellys'', ''The Closer'', '' ER'', ''Third Watch'', '' Law & Order'', ''Law ...

. House is confronted by a homosexual man who demands treatment when other doctors diagnose him with AIDS, something he admits he does have. House begins making moves on Stacy using sensitive information on her relationship with Mark.

Plot

Wilson picks up

while they discuss House's theft of Stacy's treatment notes. Wilson is not pleased, particularly when he finds out Stacy and Mark are not having sex despite his recovered status. As they head out they run into a "stalker", Kalvin Ryan, who wants House to treat him. House quickly concludes his health problems stem from

AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...

, but Kalvin claims that tests show that AIDS is not causing the new symptoms. After a brief struggle, Kalvin passes out into

anaphylactic shock Anaphylaxis is a serious, potentially fatal allergic reaction and medical emergency that is rapid in onset and requires immediate medical attention regardless of use of emergency medication on site. It typically causes more than one of the follow ...

. Cuddy insists House meets with Stacy in case Kalvin files a lawsuit, and they spar at Stacy's house as she reveals she saw a rat in her house. They share a moment before Mark interrupts, clearly upset. House accepts the case but is bored until they figure out Kalvin is showing all the signs of fighting back against the AIDS but is still getting worse. House suspects the strength of Kalvin's

immune system The immune system is a network of biological processes that protects an organism from diseases. It detects and responds to a wide variety of pathogens, from viruses to parasitic worms, as well as cancer cells and objects such as wood splinte ...

fighting back is causing his new symptoms, and orders more tests. House then prepares to kill Stacy's rat so he can get her to reveal his feelings and get her fired, but notices its odd behavior. While Kalvin flirts with

Chase Chase or CHASE may refer to: Businesses * Chase Bank, a national bank based in New York City, New York * Chase Aircraft (1943–1954), a defunct American aircraft manufacturing company * Chase Coaches, a defunct bus operator in England * Chase Co ...

, House and Stacy head up to Stacy's attic to find the rat and share another moment, but they're interrupted by the staff calling him and updating him. House quickly prescribes some treatments but is more concerned with killing the rat he just spotted. Kalvin's tox screen shows recreational drugs and it's clear he's not too concerned with maintaining his health. He starts to cough and then bleed, spewing blood into Cameron's face. Cameron is given treatment for the possibility of

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...

while House considers the new symptom, a ruptured

blood vessel The blood vessels are the components of the circulatory system that transport blood throughout the human body. These vessels transport blood cells, nutrients, and oxygen to the tissues of the body. They also take waste and carbon dioxide away ...

in the

lung The lungs are the primary organs of the respiratory system in humans and most other animals, including some snails and a small number of fish. In mammals and most other vertebrates, two lungs are located near the backbone on either side of t ...

. Cameron comes in, clearly determined to keep on working, and gives her theory that Kalvin's rec drugs are contaminated. While she and Chase go off to check Kalvin's apartment, House runs the rat's odd behavior past Foreman to get a diagnosis. Cameron mentions that legal might check her out for HIV testing and treatment and accuse her of using drugs to get out of paying her bills. They also find Kalvin's photos of broken 1930s fluorescents that contained

beryllium Beryllium is a chemical element with the symbol Be and atomic number 4. It is a steel-gray, strong, lightweight and brittle alkaline earth metal. It is a divalent element that occurs naturally only in combination with other elements to form mi ...

, which can inflame the lungs and inhibit breathing. House orders Cameron to get a lung

biopsy A biopsy is a medical test commonly performed by a surgeon, interventional radiologist, or an interventional cardiologist. The process involves extraction of sample cells or tissues for examination to determine the presence or extent of a diseas ...

from Kalvin. Kalvin reveals to her that he brought his drugs in to the hospital and insists she should show some reaction rather than sympathize with him. Back at Stacy's, House breaks in and when Stacy shows up, informs her that the rat has a

tumor A neoplasm () is a type of abnormal and excessive growth of tissue. The process that occurs to form or produce a neoplasm is called neoplasia. The growth of a neoplasm is uncoordinated with that of the normal surrounding tissue, and persists ...

that might be caused by something in the house. When Mark calls, House takes off, but not before putting up the toilet seat to make Stacy believe that Mark left it up, one of Stacy's pet peeves that House learned from her psych file. Kalvin goes into

respiratory distress Shortness of breath (SOB), also medically known as dyspnea (in AmE) or dyspnoea (in BrE), is an uncomfortable feeling of not being able to breathe well enough. The American Thoracic Society defines it as "a subjective experience of breathing di ...

as he supposedly bleeds into his

pericardial space The pericardium, also called pericardial sac, is a double-walled sac containing the heart and the roots of the great vessels. It has two layers, an outer layer made of strong connective tissue (fibrous pericardium), and an inner layer made of ...

, and asks them to tell his father he's sorry. They find nothing in the cavity and Foreman believes he has a tumor on the heart. CT confirms his diagnosis but Cameron believes it may be a non-lethal mass and House lets her conduct the test to confirm. He also wonders why Kalvin would be apologizing to his father, when his father threw Kalvin out. As Cameron conducts her test and reveals she hid his drugs, Kalvin suggests that HIV might actually loosen her up since she no longer has to play by the rules. House heads off to Stacy's to confirm that she has not told Mark that House is with her, and the two of them wait for the rat to come out to take the

antibiotics An antibiotic is a type of antimicrobial substance active against bacteria. It is the most important type of antibacterial agent for fighting bacterial infections, and antibiotic medications are widely used in the treatment and prevention o ...

in the bait. He reveals the rat's urine shows signs that someone in the house is smoking – Stacy has been doing it secretly and started two weeks after House's surgery. They share yet another moment over her misery over his pain and how she caused his pain, and they start to consider a kiss when the rat sets off the trap. Chase goes to visit Cameron who grabs him and starts kissing him. She's clearly high on Kalvin's drugs and the two have sex. The next day Cameron shows up for work as House arrives with his rat (nicknamed "

Steve McQueen Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of the counterculture of the 1960s, made him a top box-office draw for his films of the late 1950s, 1960s, and 1 ...

") and quickly figures out she was using. They end up at Kalvin's room to find his father Michael has arrived and they're having a fight. House pokes away at why Kalvin apologized until Michael reveals Kalvin killed his mother. The staff check over the new information – Kalvin lied and his mother died because she needed a

kidney The kidneys are two reddish-brown bean-shaped organs found in vertebrates. They are located on the left and right in the retroperitoneal space, and in adult humans are about in length. They receive blood from the paired renal arteries; blood ...

and he was the only donor, but had HIV. It soon becomes clear to everyone Cameron and Chase slept together, and the tests show that Kalvin has

terminal cancer Terminal illness or end-stage disease is a disease that cannot be cured or adequately treated and is expected to result in the death of the patient. This term is more commonly used for progressive diseases such as cancer, dementia or advanced ...

with no chance of a cure, and they prepare to pinpoint its location with a biopsy. Chase helps Cameron with her symptoms and admits they might have a problem with their continuing relationship. House and Wilson discuss the rat, which is on two weeks of antibiotics, and House remembers the fact that Kalvin's dad was sweating and they're from

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...

. House cancels the biopsy and concludes Kalvin's illness is caused by

Echinococcosis Echinococcosis is a parasitic disease of tapeworms of the ''Echinococcus'' type. The two main types of the disease are ''cystic echinococcosis'' and '' alveolar echinococcosis''. Less common forms include ''polycystic echinococcosis'' and ''uni ...

, a parasite native to Montana that infests foxes – Kalvin and Michael hunted in Montana. The parasites can stay in a host body for decades, causing cysts, and House has figured Michael has cysts in his liver. A blood test for Michael will confirm House's diagnosis and Michael is upset that Kalvin killed his mother. House aggravates both of them by accusing Kalvin's mother of killing herself. Michael takes a swing at him and then House cold cocks him in the gut, initiating anaphylactic shock and confirming his diagnosis the hard way. Father and son go into surgery and have the cysts and parasites removed. House is satisfied but Cuddy sends him to see Stacy since the father might sue. Cameron confronts Kalvin over the fact that he is not happy and is trying to self-destruct and take her with him. House meets with Stacy who gets him ice for his bruise, while he informs her that Mark has to know about her smoking. He accuses her of not sleeping with Mark despite her denials, and she figures out he's certain because he read her file. Everything he's done has been based on the inside info he had, and he accuses her of letting it happen because she wants him around. She says, "Not any more" and kicks him out. Kalvin and Michael have a reunion and son finally apologizes to father as Cameron looks on. Stacy seeks comfort in a happy Mark's arms, Chase notices a cut lip from his encounter with Cameron, and Cameron counts the days until she can take her first HIV test. Finally, House is home alone with the rat.

Music

* "Crystalline Green" by

Goldfrapp Goldfrapp are an English electronic music duo from London, formed in 1999. The duo consists of Alison Goldfrapp (vocals, synthesiser) and Will Gregory (synthesiser). Despite favourable reviews and a short-listing for the Mercury Prize, their ...

plays while Cameron is seducing Chase. *"Colors" by

Amos Lee Amos Lee (born Ryan Anthony Massaro, June 20, 1977) is an American singer-songwriter whose musical style encompasses folk, rock, and soul. He was born in Philadelphia and graduated from the University of South Carolina with a degree in English ...

is played during the montage at the end of the episode.

Reception

The episode first aired on November 22, 2005, and averaged 14.72 million viewers.

References

External links

* {{House (TV series) House (season 2) episodes 2005 American television episodes Television episodes about HIV/AIDS fr:Partie de chasse (Dr House)