"You're mine, and no one else's!"

Lyla woke to find herself resting in her bed. She couldn't remember how she got there. The sheets were covering over her feeble body, and she was clad in her favorite pajamas. As she lifted herself from her pillow, she saw that it was stained with blood. Her fingers touch the back of her head, and came back colored a dark red. Suddenly, everything came back to her. Lyla remembered the Joker breaking in to her apartment, holding her captive, and knocking her to the floor. But what Lyla remembered most was the second of compassion in the Joker's eyes. Her mind then went back to her present status. Who had taken her to bed? Who had cut the duct tape off of her still-sore wrists? And most important, how did she get into her pajamas?

The only people who she thought would have come to her rescue were Jessica and Bruce. Weakly, Lyla threw her feet over the bed and stood up; stumbling trying to catch her balance. Her vision was still blurry from her concussion. As she reached her bedroom door, Lyla called out for her friends. "Jessica? Bruce? Are you there?" Lyla came walked down the hall and into the living room; only to see the Joker seated on the couch, watching TV. As she tried to back away without being noticed, the floor slowly creaked and the Joker froze in his seat. Gradually, he turned his head and gave Lyla a wicked smile. "Well, well, well," he said as he stared her down. "Looks like Sleeping Beauty decided to wake up." Seeing the Joker, Lyla's head began to throb. Her knees weakened and she slowly sank to the floor. The Joker rushed to her side and, with a surprising gentleness, picked her up and assisted her to the couch. Once there, Lyla rubbed her head; trying to ease the pain.

"What are you still doing here?" she softly asked.

"Well, I wanted to make sure my girl was ok," he replied as he sat beside Lyla. She tried to move away, but the Joker put his arm around her and pulled her closer to him. "You know, you took a really nasty fall yesterday?"

"No thanks to you!" said Lyla as she broke from the Joker's grip. The Joker just threw his head back and laughed. Slowly, he pulled a knife out of his pocket and pointed it in Lyla's direction.

"Now, before I go, I'm going to ask you this one more time: What do you know about the Batman?"

Lyla looked him dead in the eye, like she wasn't afraid of what he was going to do to her. "I told you! I don't know anything!"

Before she could take a breath, the Joker grabbed her by the throat and violently lied her down on the couch. Licking his scared lips, he brought eh knife to Lyla's check. "You know what the funny thing is?" he asked, still clutching his captive by the neck. "I could have easily killed you last night. I wanted to! But I didn't! I guess I just love you too much to do that!"

Lyla froze as she listened to the words come out of his mouth. Did he just say he loved her? How could a villain like him ever understand love? As she continued her struggle for freedom, the Joker glanced at clock that was hanging on the living room wall. "Would you look at the time?" he said as he detached himself from Lyla. "Someone has to go to work today!" The Joker was about to leave the room, when he turned around one last time and stared At Lyla. "Don't worry about me, I'll call you later." Laughing, the Joker left Lyla's apartment.

Lyla tried to remember all that had just happened, but it all seemed like a blur. The only thing she fully comprehended was the Joker saying he loved her.

Later that day, Lyla sat at her desk trying to think of something to write about her latest assignment. With her hair in a curly mess and outfit all in black, she looked as if she was on her way to a funeral. In fact, Lyla felt like her soul had died. Her past encounters with the Joker had done some serious damage. No matter where Lyla went, he was always there; visiting her every time she closed her eyes. His laugh rang through her head as her skull throbbed with pain. The Joker had replaced her happiness with fear.

As Lyla blankly stared at her computer screen, Deborah Cross came up to her. 'Oh, great!' thought Lyla. 'Her complaining is the last thing I need right now.'

"Have you got your story done yet?" Deborah asked. Lyla said nothing, but she could see her boss peeking towards the screen out of her peripheral vision. "I thought so. Its ok, Lyla. Take your time." Lyla wasn't sure if she heard kindness or sarcasm in her voice. She could never tell with Deborah. When Deborah left for her office, Lyla buried her head in her arms; preparing herself for a nervous breakdown. Suddenly, her phone rang.

"Lyla Palmer," she answered meekly.

"I had someone treat me like that before," said the Joker's voice from the other end of the phone. "Of course, that person is dead now."

"Where are you?" she asked demandingly.

"That's for me to know, and you not to find out."

"I'm working! Why are you calling me?"

"Why do you let her treat like that?"

"I don't want to get fired."

"What would be so wrong with showing a little anger. You're not as innocent as people think you are."

"What are you talking about?"

"People think you're so good. But I know the truth. I know there's a demon inside you that's dying to be let out. Why don't you surprise them and take matters into your own hands, instead of having them push you around. Introduce a little anarchy. Upset the established order, and everything becomes chaos."

Something began to come over Lyla. She suddenly felt like punching someone in the face, and she didn't care who. A sense of frustration and anger filled her heart. The Joker had gained control of her emotions. As her mind began to spin, Deborah approached her desk once again.

"One more thing, Lyla…" she began.

"Geez, Deborah, can't you give it a rest!" yelled Lyla, slamming the phone on her desk. She remained seated to keep from making a scene. "Look, I've put up with you for quite some time. I'm one of the hardest working people here, and you don't seem to realize that! So for once, just leave me alone! Maybe that way, I can get some work done here!"

Deborah stood frozen to the floor. Lyla soon did the same after realizing what she had done. Surprisingly, Deborah left without saying word, and sat down in her office. As soon as she was out of site, Lyla picked up her phone. "Are you happy?" she asked the Joker. "You almost cost me my job!"

"I wanted to see what you'd do!" he replied. "And you didn't disappoint. You've finally let your anger take control."

"What?"

"You see, we're not so different; you and me. I can see right through you. I can see that spark of evil you hide inside. And I'm the one who's gonna bring it out!"

"Please, just tell me what you want with me?"

"I want you. That's all I want."

As the Joker began to laugh, Lyla quickly hung up her phone. Her eyes began to fill with tears as she reviewed his last words. Why was he so infatuated with her? Was it because she had connections with Batman, or did he want something more? When Lyla grabbed a tissue to wipe her eyes with, her phone rang once again. "What else do you want? Leave me alone!" she answered, thinking it was the Joker on the other end.

"Excuse me?" It was Bruce. "Lyla, are you alright?"

"Bruce!" she exclaimed, mortified. "I'm sorry. I thought it was someone else."

"It's ok. I'm just calling to see if you have plans for tonight."

"No, I'm free. Did you want to do something?"

"Meet me at my place. 8 o'clock."

"Ok, see you there."

After Lyla hung up her phone, she had realized she had done something terrible. She had just put Bruce in terrible danger. The Joker was watching her every move. If he saw her with Bruce, he surely would punish the both of them for her unfaithfulness to the Joker. On the other hand, she had to tell Bruce what was going on. He had connections with Commissioner Gordon, which could help her with her dreadful situation. Hopefully, Bruce could be her savior.