"Please state your name for the jury

"Please state your name for the jury."

"My name is Christine Hinson."

"Please tell the jury how you know the defendant."

The young woman shifted in her seat before answering, "He lived on my estate for roughly five years."

"Can you point to the defendant and state his name for us, please?"

Christine straightened her back and elegantly raised her arm to the defendant's chair. "There. The Joker."

The Joker breathed a heavy sigh. It wasn't supposed to be like this; they weren't supposed to be here. But they were, and now he would lie for the way that she had lied for him for so many years. He would protect her the way that she had protected him.

5 years ago.

The damn Bat had foiled yet another one of his plans. The Joker was now running through a warehouse searching desperately for an out. He threw boxes and Joker Venom behind him when he thought he heard the cops gaining on him. Batman had already taken most of his henchmen out of commission and the cops were quickly collecting the rest of his idiots.

He finally found an out. It was a back door and it gave him two options: run through the city or run through the woods. Never the idiot, the Clown Prince of Crime shot off through the woods. He knew they would chase, but at least he had a fighting chance out in the wild.

He hid in the bushes as the cops came by with their flashlights. No dogs; thank god there weren't any dogs. When they had passed, he took off in the opposite direction. He ducked in and out of bushes and trees, even though he hadn't seen a flashlight in over fifteen minutes. He let his guard down and walked through the trees and brush.

"bark bark bark!"

Damn, he thought as he looked over his shoulder. In the distance he could see their bobbing flashlights and could clearly hear those damn police mutts. The Joker took off running again. He jumped down a gully and rolled through the leaves. His suit would surely be ruined, but that was trivial considering he was facing jail…again. He looked around for a new hiding place and saw a large manor in the distance. It was completely dark, despite the early hour. He decided it must be abandoned and ran for it.

When he reached the house, the barking dogs were a mere whisper and he could no longer see the glow of the cops' flashlights. He found a ground window and broke it in with his arm and climbed. It was a dark room with sheets over the furniture. It looked like it might have been a parlor of some kind with one of the covered shapes looking like a piano. The draped furniture reassured him that the house was deserted. He opened the door and stepped out into the quiet hallway.

He looked up and down and saw nothing but moonlight streaming in through the windows. The Joker picked a direction and began to move. The deserted home would not be his haven for long. He found a door across from the entry way. It looked like there was light in the room, but he assumed it must be moonlight from a large window. He heard the dogs again; time to leave. He burst the doors open and moved toward the window. But his movement was abruptly halted and he froze no more than two steps into the room.

There was a standing candelabra next to dark chaise lounge. On the lounge reclined an expertly posed woman in a cream sating nightgown with a weathered book in her hand. She had dark hair that dripped over one shoulder and gently moved as she lifted her head and caught him in a cool stare. Her dark eyes penetrated his stained face and showed no fear. The Joker stared back and held back the own fear his eyes held. It bothered him that she wasn't screaming, that she was staring at him with all the confidence of a tiger on the hunt.

"You broke my window," she said in a strong, but not loud, voice.

The Joker could only stare back. His mind could not find a suitable response for this statement given his current state.

"Why?" she quietly demanded in the same cool tone.

The Joker had regained his composure by now and matched her gaze with a steely one and took slow steps toward her.

"The police are after me, and if you know what's good for you, you'll forget you saw me," he growled, determined not to let the petite woman have the upper hand in this situation.

She blinked slowly and then returned to the weathered book in her hand. The Joker backed away and moved toward the window.

"You know," she said as soon as he had turned his back, "instead of breaking another one of my windows, which are very expensive, you could opt for the hot shower and warm bed I'm offering you."

The Joker turned around. The woman was still absorbed in her book.

"So you can turn me in? Goodbye," he hissed and took another step toward the window.

"Now why would I do a thing like that?" she replied, still staring at her pages, "What good would that do me? You, on the other hand, intrigue me." She shut her book and rose from the chaise lounge with her back to the fugitive and began to walk to the entry way.

The Joker found himself intrigued by her and gave into his curiosity. If worse came to worse, he could easily overpower her and hold her as a hostage.

"And when the cops come knocking on your door for a little search?" he asked, interested on how she would field this question.

She turned and leaned her arm on the room's door. "Honey," she drawled, "I own the police and they don't set foot on my property without my permission. Now are you coming upstairs or do I have to arrange for two windows to be replaced tomorrow?"

A/N: So this is my first chapter, with a few more to follow to explain the opening. Christine is not intended to be a Mary-Sue, although she may come off as such in this chapter. Please review and let me know what you think so far!