As promised, it's Joker/Harley interaction followed by a nice little drug trip for Joker! It's a bit longer (and hopefully not too mushy). Joker's numerous nicknames for Harley come directly from Batman: The Animated Series, I just included them because I think its kind of cute/funny.
Another shout out to Neurotic-Isopod for being an awesome reviewer! And you're absolutely right about her temper. ;)
His room was pretty much as she'd imagined it to be.
Large panes of shatterproof safety glass provided clear views into the rooms of the high-risk ward so she'd had no trouble finding him. In one corner rested a single white-sheeted cot, in another was the screened-off toilet. It was the same as any of the numerous other patient rooms she'd passed but for one important detail, the inmate himself.
The Joker lounged casually atop his bed, eyes closed, arms folded behind his head, his slipper-covered feet closest to her. His discarded straightjacket lay pathetically piled on the floor. She took a moment to look at him; it was hard to see a vicious killer in this calmly resting man, however odd his coloration.
"Hello sweet stuff, miss me already?" He grinned widely up at her, winking charmingly. She glanced away quickly, knowing she'd been caught staring.
"Hello." Her voice betrayed her, a childish squeak escaping instead of her practice professional tone. Clearing her throat discreetly, she frowned, silently praying it wouldn't happen again. "I, er, I wanted to thank you for helping me yesterday. I truly appreciate it." There now, that was easy. And they were so worried!
As she was about to turn to go, he suddenly jumped up, perching atop the edge of his bed, smiling as usual. Instinctively she took a step back, alarmed at the abrupt movement. She hadn't noticed his height before, even crouched as he was they were nearly eye-to-eye. He looked utterly thrilled at her reaction.
"You're just too cute, cupcake!" He paused, tilting his head as if considering her. "So you gonna be my new doc?"
She almost laughed. Day two and put in charge of The Joker? Not in this world! "No, your sessions have been suspended following today's…events."
"Today's events," He snorted, mocking her. "Got you trained pretty quickly didn't they?" He sighed dramatically as his smile drooped, clearly a thespian at heart. "Oh well, what's another disappointment in life?" He roughly ran his fingers through his emerald hair; bits of it stayed sticking up here and there.
"You're disappointed?" her mouth blurted out before her mind could stop it. "In what?"
"Why you pumpkin!" The perky grin was momentarily back before it morphed into a look of sad confusion as he pressed his palms against the glass. "What happened to the girl who laughed like a lunatic in the face of danger?"
No wonder he was crazy, she thought, struggling to keep up with his mood swings. "I was just stressed, it's a natural reaction to…"
"Mmhmm," He nodded mischievously at her, his dark eyes sparkling. "And snuggling with a psychopath is a survival instinct."
She froze.
"I didn't…" That fuzzy memory of being coddled and comforted floated to the surface of her awareness once more. She blushed softly, looking anywhere but at him.
"Coming back to you?" he caroled happily. "I certainly wasn't complaining about it either." She glanced up swiftly, angrily thinking he was mocking her again. His sincere grin slowly inched across his face to painful looking proportions, as if he were displaying every one of his gleaming teeth just for her. "Oh you should have seen their faces when they saw us, especially when you sighed so blissfully." He mimicked her dreamy sigh before dissolving into riotous giggles. "Arky nearly dropped dead thinking that was your last gasp!"
"I didn't, I wasn't…"
He shrugged, climbing off the cot to stand in front of her. Once again she was aware of just how tall he was, involuntarily noting his broad shoulders and trim frame evident even under the shapeless outfits the inmates wore. She felt a sudden irrational urge to see him just once in his tailored purple suit. It must have looked very dashing on him…
"Live in denial if you want to toots, I'm certainly not going to stop you." He twisted his head, the loud cracking sound echoing slightly in the stone hallway. "You'll see soon enough."
"What does that mean?" She asked, suspicion in her tone. If he was planning something it was her duty to report it! There were no confidentiality agreements between, well, whatever they were.
"And ruin the surprise? You must be joking!" He laughed wildly, the intense volume filling her ears with its joyous sound. Her mouth twitched slightly, temped to join in. They always said laughter is contagious.
He stopped almost as abruptly as he'd begun, his eyes lighting up as if he'd remembered something important. Once more he tilted his head, this time in an almost shy manner. "I hope you like the little gift I left for you."
"It was from you!" Strangely delighted, she felt her whole body somehow lightening as she beamed up at him.
He chuckled at her exuberance. "Who else? No don't answer, I'm sure my poor heart couldn't take it!" Throwing his hand over his heart he mimed suffering, the exaggerated pouting of his lower lip making her giggle in spite of herself.
"But…
"But how did I get it into your office? A magician never reveals his secrets!" Theatrically swooshing an imaginary cape, he posed with his chin held high, a haughty look upon his brow. She laughed at his wonderful performance. "But he is always willing to sell them." He wiggled his eyebrows down at her suggestively; with his lopsided smile and mussed up hair he looked surprisingly cute.
She felt her cheeks warming up as she blushed deeply. A psychopath was flirting with her! Glancing away from him swiftly, she tried to think of something, anything, appropriate to say.
"Harley?" Joan peered at her from the end of the hallway, totally ruining the moment, undoubtedly under Arkham's orders to check on her. "Is everything alright?"
She grinned back through clenched teeth, trying hard not to stomp her foot in sheer frustration. "Yes I was just leaving." Turning back to The Joker she could see from his sympathetic smirk that her act hadn't fooled him at all. She felt her forced smile soften as she whispered up to him. "Thank you again for yesterday and umm, the other thing as well. Goodbye Joker."
Without waiting for a reply she purposefully strode down the long hallway, head held high.
Dr. Harley Quinzel.
Harley Quinn!
What a perfect joke! Oh the fates were twisted bitches indeed, sending him this little treat. And practically gift-wrapping it too!
And what a beautiful package the good doctor was. Every feminine feature easily distinguishable under her too short, too tight and clearly second-hand suits. Even that blindingly bright lab coat only managed to highlight her sweet naïveté. Undoubtedly every male in the place was drooling over her long legs and perky chest. He smirked, knowing that no one else was going to examine her closer, to even try to see past that facade. He'd make damn sure of that.
It was her mind that was the true treasure. Old Arkvark had really outdone himself this time, finding a doctor who was as crazy as the patients wasn't that difficult if Crane and Strange were anything to go by, but one with a sense of humor was virtually unheard of, sane or no! Like the first whisper thin cracks in an icy glaze, he knew it wouldn't take much to break through to the swirling depths beneath. She was already perfect at playing make believe, she'd even fooled herself into thinking she was just another doctor like them. It couldn't be that hard to rewire her to fulfill her true potential. And Batsy was sure to flip his lid when he found out! He turned and plopped back onto his bed, the damn twitching roaring back with a vengeance after he'd fought to contain it for so long. She hadn't noticed anything unusual; it was too early in the game to try playing the sympathy card anyway. A psychedelic haze gently began to fill his mind, which meant the twitching was just a damn side effect. He idly wondered which mix they'd tried this time. Down the rabbit hole again, eh Arky? This whole confinement thing simply wouldn't do. He didn't want to get out if she wasn't going to follow, and he couldn't get her to want to follow if he was always stuck in here. And rabbits look funny when they explode, little fluff balls of bloody poof!
He shook his head roughly, trying to fight the drugs just a little longer. So how to get Harley to follow him out while still inside out and upside down? Why was he upside down anyway? They probably thought it'd be funny, the pathetic rabbits, to turn his room upside down. Smile, you're on candid camera! That's it!
Plan established, he settled back to enjoy the ride.
