Shadow; I'm sorry for this, but I just couldn't get it out of my head. I know I should be updating my other one, but I can't seem to focus on it with this plot running rampant through my head. If it's a little hard to follow just know that the main characters are supposed to be smart, so they might jump to conclusions or something fast. I wasn't even going to post this…I own nothing.

Summary: He heard it all the time, the names they called him. Everyone thought he was a moron, a simpleton, but what if he was smarter than anyone could imagine? What he had a reason for acting the way he does, and what if they figured this out? Set before Arkham Asylum and after Origins.

Chapter 1

It was a bright day on Arkham Island, but even through the sunlight the island was depressing. Nothing but gray slabs of stone made up the buildings, and no amount of ivy could cheer it up. It practically screamed prison. Even the doctors felt imprisoned within the island. Or at least she did. She thought that some of the more iffy doctors actually liked it here personally, no matter what they claimed. There was no way they couldn't with the manic grins they gave when no one was looking. CreeEEepy.

As the newest doctor at the asylum Janice didn't feel very hopeful. How was one supposed to heal a mind when they thought they were imprisoned? It was maddening to even think about. She read about the tract record this place held and just knew it would end badly for her. Very badly. Especially with who she was in charge of.

She only really had two main patients, the others were temporary and easily fixed. So far she feared one of her main ones and was convinced that the other would one day turn her into one of the inmates. And she had only been here a few months. Oh JOY…

With a sigh she unlocked the door to her office and strolled in. Pale gray walls met her eyes, the only uplifting thing about it being the knick-knats she decorated with. Everyone had been overworked lately due to the vigilante knocking out wack jobs out every other night and frankly she was tired of it. On top of that Blackgate was shifting over some of their nuttier convicts. That's how she obtained her scarier patient. She had to give a nod to the sizable pay increase because of him though. She bought a new convertible with that little nest egg already. She didn't really know why she had him though. Janice had been expecting all the dangerous psychos to go the most experienced therapists. She had only finished internship a few months ago!

She bounced over to her rolly chair and collapsed in it, trying to find anything to distract her wondering thoughts. Nervously she shifted her name plaque waiting for the guard to tell her when it was safe to head to the interrogation room (therapy room). Gray green eyes glared at the smudged metal, this not being the first time she played with it. She didn't want to go! She didn't care if it was childish, he terrified her and he knew it. If it wasn't for the money she would refuse. Her not so shiny name plate mocked her, daring her to call herself a doctor.

Not today name plaque! Today she kind of had a plan. She even had it worked out with the warden and the other doctors! Now if only he would cooperate then everything would go according to plan. Her fellow therapists had already started with the plan, and seven patients had been tested. If this went well she might even get a raise!

Janice squealed and dropped her name plate when unexpected knocking startled her. Well it was kind of unexpected.

"Dr. Dials? It's time," she panicked at the smooth tones of her armed guard, rushing to a fro to get all her papers in her briefcase. Should have done this before.

Smoothing down her skirt she stood and walked out the door with her head held high, only stopping when she realized she left her briefcase on her desk. With a quick detour she was ready…ish. Her already pale knuckles were squeezed white over the handle, trying to not let her shaking be noticeable. If the guard noticed her hyperventilating he said nothing. All too soon they reached a familiar door where she just knew nightmares waited. At least to her. It even had a human sized dent by the door knob.

Don't panic don't panic. Remember he can smell fear. Literal fear.

Sucking in a deep breath she opened the metal door and shuffled inside, sitting with a professionalism she didn't feel. Her hands shook so she hid them in her lap and cleared her dry throat. She looked up. And squeaked. He snorted and leaned back, causing his chair to give an ominous groan. Poor chair.

She couldn't help but wonder how it could even hold him up. It was a marvel all on its own. He was 850 pounds of pure muscle, and she doubted that the chair was even a pound. It just seemed like a lot of stress to put on something so small. No! Focus! She cleared her throat again.

"Mr. Jones, I know we haven't gotten off to a good start," understatement of the century. She had taken one look at him before screaming and running away at their first meeting. "But I'm willing to compromise." He just watched her from his towering height, even when sitting down.

Other than his deep rhythmic breathing was pure silence. That's a good sign right? Meant he was listening. Oh God, please don't panic.

"The other day I overheard you complaining about your food intake, and I am willing to pay for you to eat a whole extra meal if you are willing to fill out this test," she opened the case and pulled out a pile of papers, larger than normal papers. She even had a larger that normal pencil. She bought it from dollar tree so she didn't expect it to last long.

Dark green scales shone under the harsh light, only enforcing the fact that he was different, and could kill her before she could even blink. No no no no! Bad thoughts bad thoughts! She let out a shaky breath and tried not to look directly at his teeth or his claws. She glanced down at the black clawed fingers despite herself.

She squeaked and flailed when he leaned forward and flattened his huge hand on the table. It groaned under the pressure and she just knew it would leave a sizable dent, one that matched the others on the table and walls. When did he put those there? Gray eyes flickered from the wall into gold ones and she stopped breathing. The eyes of a predator, and she knew who he was hunting. He smirked, which was odd considering his abnormality. Did it hurt? Many doctors were convinced that he was in constant pain due to his condition. As a professional she considered it briefly before throwing it out the window. He was too amused at her fear to be in terrible pain. Or as she called it, he was an asshole. He could probably smell her fear, which wasn't the least bit comforting.

Suddenly she could swear that the lights dimmed, leaving only a huge killing machine in the sudden dark room.

She breathed in a gasping breath, startling herself as the lights came back full force. Forgot to breath. She blinked. He leaned back once more giving out a strange rasping cough. He's laughing at me? Is that a laugh? That's a good sign, right? I am so going to get eaten.

After releasing a few more terror inducing chuckles he rested his elbows on the poor table. Mr. Jones didn't say anything but with a terrifying grin he picked up the giant pencil and began filling out the forms. Janice stared, trying to calm her heart. His shoulders were hunched over, making the room seem smaller. The grin faded as he wrote.

She took the time to really look at him, this time without panicking. Dark green scales that were almost gray sharply contrasted his white underbelly. Even his chin was that softer white only ending at his nose. She couldn't help up wonder if softer white places were more like actual skin or just smaller scales from the look of them. It was a little strange how his whole front looked almost like skin except for his pectorals. There were large smooth scales there, also white.

He lifted one of his hands do scratch at his cheek, glancing up briefly at her flinch. Once his sharp gaze left her she looked at the paper in her hands. It was all of his info, neatly typed up, barely filling one page. Most of it was about his disease and his size. 9'8, that was tall! She gulped silently and pretended to write stuff down. He could step on her by accident and kill her, just with the claws of one of his feet could end it for her.

He growled low and she squeaked, hands automatically using the paper as a mini shield. He didn't even spare her a glance before tightening his grip on the pencil and hunching farther over the paper. He made the room feel so small. Janice peeked through her papers at him before calming down. Fascinating. She should have never left Metropolis. No one threatened to eat her over there. She eyes his protruding teeth. Even with his mouth closed a few poked out.

It took a while for him to complete the test, but once done he thrust it back into her face with a nasty smirk. Papers flew across the room drawing a sound of protest from her throat. He stood up with a groan and popped his back, his head brushing against the high ceiling. He then turned from her and moved for the door, his armed guards ever the ready with guns loaded and aimed.

"Don't forget our deal, Doc. I'll be waiting," he growled out, hints of Cajun in his voice. She shuddered when he finally disappeared from view. The remaining guard began to pick up her papers, to which she appreciated. Shaking herself, Janice helped with the cleanup. She didn't mind too much, she needed something to do to calm herself down and manual labor always worked.

She had some things to add to his chart. Even though she was utterly terrified of the man she was still a trained professional. Just by getting him to take the test was a huge step forward. It said that he could be bargained with, even if it was with something as simple as food. It made her even more curious about his results. Janice didn't really think he was as stupid as everyone else thought, and his test results were going to prove it. How smart he was was up in the air however, so her hopes weren't too high. Though she thought it was higher than 90 at least. There was no way a creature could look at another with such calculation as he did and be lower than 90.

"Here's your test Dr. Dials," she gave the man a hesitant grin as thanks. He smiled back, "If you don't mind me asking, what kind of test is this?" Gray eyes looked at the untidy stack of papers in her hands, needing reordered. Personally she thought it was pretty obvious, but she'd been wrong before.

"It's an IQ test. I was hoping to know just how smart the average super villain is in Gotham," she smiled shyly and brushed back a strand of hair. "And I'll be the first to ask too. I might even get in the papers for this!" pride swelled in her voice and the guard just shook his head good naturedly. He smiled lightly. All the staff had heard of the new genius doctor, and had grown to just accept her odd hyperness. They didn't really see how a bunch of criminals could make her eyes light up like that, but he wasn't going to say anything. Last thing they needed was more conflict.

She leaned in as if to tell a secret, cupping her hands by her mouth, "We even got the Joker to take the test! I don't know how though," she shuffled the papers lightly and turned to go. Excitement raced up her spine as she walked with the guard down to her office. If this went through correctly it could really boost her career. Now she just had to drop of the test to be graded.

With a bounce in her step that the staff had come to expect from her she grinned. She was going to be famous, she just knew it.

Shadow; so how was it?