A loud buzz sounded in the halls of the infamous Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane, and the doors were unlocked so the patients could gather in the large recreation area if they wanted to. A certain patient, however, simply looked over when his door slid open, but made no move to exit the room. One of the guards moved to the opening and tapped on the metal door.

"Up and out, Joker. You know the rules."

Turning his head to look at the man standing in the doorway of his room, the man sent a demented smile in his direction. A grunt slipped from the guard and he backed away from the door when the green-haired man stood.

"Behave yourself, clown."

"Now when do I misbehave?"

A snort of laughter escaped the guard, and he crossed his arms, shaking his head. Walking by him, Joker left his room and wandered off down the hall towards the recreation area. Before he could reach it, however, he was stopped by another guard.

"Come with me, Joker. You're meeting with your new doctor today."

"You boys just keep giving me new toys, dontcha?"

Having no choice but to follow the guard as he was forced down the hallway, the man being pulled by one of the straps on his straight jacket. Grunting as he was pushed into a large room with blinding white lights, he heard the guard speak one last time.

"Sit down and be quiet."

After the heavy metal door was pulled shut, Joker cast his eyes around the room before indeed taking a seat in the cold metal chair. Leaning back in an attempt to be more comfortable, he didn't even offer to turn his head when the door opened again. Keeping his gaze on the floor, an eyebrow shot up when he caught sight of a pair of black heels under the table in front of him. Slowly lifting his head, he took in the black pencil skirt, blue button up and white lab coat situated on a VERY female body.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Joker. My name is Harleen Quinzel, and I'll be taking over as your psychiatrist."

"Well…you're certainly not what I was expecting…"

Looking up at him for the first time since sitting down, Harleen pushed her glasses up on her nose and gave him a small smile.

"Why is that?"

"My other doctors have all been old pudgy men hidden behind the thickest glasses known to man."

A soft chuckle escaped her, and she made one of the biggest mistakes she'd ever made, she locked eyes with the Joker. Her bright green met his darker blue-gray, and it was almost like electricity danced between them. Clearing her throat, Harleen leaned back in her chair and crossed her legs under the table, pressing a button on a hand-held recorder.

"Could you state your full name for the record, Mr. Joker?"

"You just said my name, doc."

"Your ACTUAL name?"

"I don't remember it, honestly."

"You don't remember your own name?"

"Nope."

She arched an eyebrow at him as he leaned forward in his chair, silver teeth glinting under the harsh white lighting as he gave her his signature grin. Joker was mildly impressed that his smile didn't seem to unnerve the female doctor in the least, but of course, he kept that thought to himself.

"So, tell me, Harley…why'd you agree to 'help' me? Most shrinks run the other way if they're assigned to me, yknow."

"Now, that's not fair, Mr. Joker. If you get to give me a nickname…I should get to give you one. Its only fair, right?"

Grunting at the fact that she skillfully avoided his question and quickly changed the subject, he settled back in his chair again.

"Fine."

"How about….Mr. J?"

"I like it, Harley."

The way he said her new apparent nickname caused a light shiver to race down her spine. Managing to keep it hidden, however, she wrote something down in his file before closing it and laying her pen on top of the yellow folder. Their session went on for about an hour, and instead of constantly prying into his past, she decided on a different approach. The two of them simply talked, about anything and everything that popped into his demented little brain. Standing when the door slid open and a guard entered, Harleen gave him a small smile before picking up his file and her recorder and heading to the door.

"I'll see you next week, Mr. J."

"I look forward to it, doc."

Walking out the door, she could feel his blue-gray eyes boring into her from behind, almost as if those piercing eyes could see into her very soul. Joker was pulled from his chair and back down the hallway, being shoved out into the recreation area, where he seated himself in his own little corner. Leaning back against the couch behind him, he closed his eyes and let out a little sigh. Knowing the only people stupid enough to approach him were the guards or doctors, the clown felt confident he wouldn't be bothered. His eyes snapped open and he shot a glare to a man who suddenly sat with him on the stark white couch.

His hair and beard were neatly trimmed and well kept, a strange sight on an insane asylum patient. His Arkham scrubs were also spotless and crisp, almost looking brand new. Clearly the man was a new patient, and either didn't know who Joker was, had a death wish, or was just plain stupid.

"Hey…how's it goin` man?"

"`Scuse me?"

"I said how's it goin`?"

Lifting his head, the clown let his eyes bore into the mystery patient's for a moment before a grin stole across his face and he broke into laughter. Lifting an eyebrow at the pale man's sudden outburst of humor, the one sitting next to him grunted.

"The fuck?"
"You clearly don't know who I am, do you?"

"Apparently not."

Before he could properly educate the newcomer, Joker heard the announcement that all patients were to return to their rooms for the daily inspections. Standing, he shot a cold glare to the one who'd invaded his space, and turned, walking out and back to his room. Sitting on the bed, he let his mind work, another grin curling his lips when a plan started to formulate in his head. The inspection went smoothly, as it always did, and the clown was left to try and get some sleep as the doors slid closed again. When he heard soft talking outside his door, his curiosity got the better of him and he moved over, pressing his ear against the metal.

"I don't want him in a straight jacket for our next session. If I'm going to help him, he has to trust me, and I don't think being restrained is going to help that."

"Doctor Quinzel, The Joker is a dangerous psychopath. If we take him out of his restraints, who knows what he might try and do to you."

"I said no straight jacket."

With an exasperated grunt, the guard finally growled out something that sounded suspiciously like 'fine, its your funeral' to the female doctor. Listening at the door until the click of her heels on the concrete floor faded into nothing, Joker moved back to his bed and smirked, laying down and staring at the stark white ceiling.

AN: Chapter one of my prequel to Finally Home! This story is going to be my own take on what happened between the two of them at Arkham, so I hope you enjoy it!