Dr. Birch tabbed the tip of her pen against her writing pad thoughtfully and stared out the window at the grounds of the Asylum. She sighed softly, trying to ignore the droning sound behind her, then she jumped in surprise as something touched her shoulder. Turning around she found herself staring into bright green eyes so close to her own that she gasped in surprise.
Pamela Isley stepped back from the doctor as Hazel regained her composure.
"You've not heard a word I've said, have you...?" her patient asked, sounding mildly irritated but not to unreasonable degree.
Dr. Birch sighed, and put her finger tips to her forehead as she let her skull sag. "I'm sorry, Pamela... I'm preoccupied, I should have postponed our session, I'm of no use to you like this."
"Well, perhaps I can be of help to you, Doctor..."
"No, Pamela, I'm the Doctor, you're the patient; in spite of your progress there is a certain protocol to maintain..." Hazel objected, thought she gave Pamela a grateful smile for the offer.
"It's a boy, isn't it?" Pamela asked, sitting down in her chair once more, ignoring Dr. Birch's objection.
Hazel spluttered in surprise, and blushed slightly. "...How did you-"
A chipper laughed interrupted the psychiatrist's question and Pamela covered her mouth to stifle herself, still chuckling almost silently for a few seconds more. "Doctor, I may be prefer women when it comes to matters of the heart, but remember the majority of the past ten years of my life have been spent making men do my bidding... I know how they work, and I know how they affect normal women."
Dr. Birch sat down again, listening intently. Despite that the conversation seemed like something less professional and more friendly between them, Hazel actually saw it as another insight into the might behind the villainess, the woman who had become a manipulative prima donna before becoming a homicidal eco-terrorist.
"Well," Hazel began, wishing to keep Pamela talking, "we... We had a fight."
"The circle of romantic life. You met, you lust, you love, you fight, you love, you fight, you love again... Or you end it. Which is it with you, are you loving again, or ending it...?"
Hazel paused, her brows furrowing. "I..."
"You don't know yet." Pamela concluded, nodding thoughtfully. "You love this boy, don't you...?"
"I-I do."
"Of course, otherwise having a fight with him wouldn't be bothering you so much. Let me guess... He disagreed with something you did?" Pamela asked, while studying Hazel's face. The doctor didn't know what her expression revealed but the green skinned woman nodded in understanding before speaking again. "Something you're doing then... hm... It's this job isn't it? He doesn't like you spending your days in a mad house with murderers and psychopaths."
"I can't really blame him..." Hazel admitted. "But it's more complicated than that."
"Because what he really dislikes is that you're devoting so much time to me, and because he's scared that you'll be the next Dr. Harleen Quinzel."
Hazel froze. The conversation had spiraled out of control, she was no longer analyzing her patients personal thought process on relationships, it really had become a very personal an intimate conversation, and she was caught off guard by Isley's insight.
"I.. Wha- No. I wouldn't-" Hazel stammered in dumbstruck uncertainty.
"Breath, doctor, it's all right." Pamela said soothingly, giving Hazel a soft smile. "It's likely he simply feels a sense of helplessness at the moment, after all culturally it is the male's responsibility to protect his mate, but you're in a dangerous institution for the criminally insane while he's off at his job each day. He can't protect you when you're here, and that probably bothers him greatly."
Hazel sat in silence, considering this. Could Pamela be right? Could it be that Eric was just feeling scared because he couldn't protect her from Poison Ivy and the other asylum inmates, was it all just a case of sociological compulsion, did he just have an unsatisfied need to protect her from things he viewed as threats to her safety?
"Of course..." Pamela added as a slow after thought, jarring Hazel from her thoughts. "There's always the chance-.. No, nevermind."
"No, what, what is it? There's always the chance of what?" Hazel asked, leaning forward inquisitively, desperate for more of Pamela's insight on her situation with Eric.
"No, it's just over thinking the situation, I'm sure he's just worried about you.."
Hazel sat back again, thinking about didn't comfort her now, it nagged at her, making her wonder if there could be something else that was the driving force behind their argument. She steepled her fingers and closed her eyes, then opened them and looked at Pamela. "All right, that is probably it, but what else could be going on..?"
The green skinned patient was quiet for just a few moments, her expression one of contemplation, gazing out the window at the grounds as she so often did. "Well," she said at last, "it may be that he feels emasculated by you."
"What!?" Hazel objected in sudden out rage. "Why!?"
"Well, it's understandable really," Ivy replied in that same soothing tone, "After all you're becoming a very well known woman. Tell me, how many interview requests have you gotten in the past month?"
Hazel stopped and thought for a moment. "Well, three, but why should that-"
"Hazel, your patient is up for rehabilitation, your patient is a former misanthropic psychopath who is..." She trailed off, her face contorting in grief, "Who is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of innocent people..."
"Pamela..." Hazel cooed, finally putting her own issues aside for a moment as she saw her patient beginning to break down. "Pam, that's not you," she exclaimed, gently putting a hand on Isley's shoulder, "Not anymore. You were sick, you couldn't understand your own actions. It's not like that anymore, and we're going to show the world that. When they see all that you can do to help humanity, and your desire to atone for your past crimes, they're going to adore you."
Pamela Isley sighed, giving a solemn nod. "I know... But they still going to hate me, and most of them will never forgive me, and who could blame them? That's why you're having trouble with your lover, Dr. Birch. He looks at me and he sees a dangerous criminal mastermind, not a reformed mental health patient. He sees you spending all this time devoted to me and he gets jealous; most men do. We like to be the center of their world and they like to be the center of ours, and on top of that here you are, becoming more well-known by the day, gaining fame and notoriety, being asked to give interviews... Trust me, any day now the day time talk show requests will start rolling in. You're rehabilitating an internationally famous super villain, people are going to be fascinated by it. Even if, for some reason, they rejected my plea for parole and public rehabilitation you're still going to be famous for putting me into a position where I could even be considered for such a thing."
Pamela sighed at that and shook her head with a sad smile. "Unfortunately, a lot of men just can not stand having a wife or girlfriend who is more successful than they are."
By this point the doctor's head was reeling. She couldn't stand it, didn't want to believe it, but it made so much sense. Ever since she'd begun to believe she could successfully rehabilitate Pamela Isley her boyfriend had been speaking out against her convictions. Could Eric really be that vain, was it all just his insecurity over having a girlfriend who was more successful than he was?
"Now, this boy of yours- Oh, what did you say his name was?" Pamela asked curiously.
"I- I didn't..." Doctor Birch replied absentmindedly, "It's Eric, Eric Walsh."
"Hmm.. And Mr. Walsh isn't in the most lucrative or glamorous of jobs, I bet."
"He's a forensic examiner at the city morgue." Hazel replied with a sigh.
Pamela winced with a gasp. "Ooh dear, well, no wonder he's so angry."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, he's the least appreciated part of the justice system. The only people who pay attention to his work are TV Producers looking for a new CSI program, and they don't even portray the job properly. The real world hardly gives a nod to the forensics teams, especially here in Gotham where people equate the law with the Batman rather than the Justice System. Here it's Batman, the Police, and the DA's office. Maybe, on a lucky day, Arkham gets portrayed in a good light, but typically this hospital is viewed as the weak link... After all how many times have we all broken out? I've lost count of the number of times I have." Pamela confessed with a shrug. "Now, think of how he feels... The Forensics teams are never given their due, and Arkham rarely us... But here you are getting talked about for reforming a major criminal. No wonder he's jealous."
"Jealous!?" Hazel fumed suddenly. "Jealous, of me!? That arrogant bastard has no right to be jealous of me, Arkham's demonized in this city–hell, it's demonized by the whole country; there are five petitions online I'm aware of at this moment that are demanding Arkham shut it's doors and be replaced by a more 'Capable'," she air quoted the word, "mental health hospital."
"Now, Hazel, don't let this get to you. You're one of the most stable women in this hospital and you're an intelligent doctor, you know how gender bias influence our every day interactions. Men are possessive, status driven individuals, so here is an under appreciated, barely noticed male forensic investigator watching his girlfriend become steadily more respected and talked about do to her work into a dubious and constantly criticized hospital." Pamela explained, giving a slight pout as she looked at her psychiatrist. "It can't be easy for him..."
"Well it hasn't been easy for ME either! It hasn't been easy on you, Pamela! Everyone is looking at your and I critically, and here he is judging me for trying to do my job right and help my patient? I get enough of that from Jeremiah Arkham and the board of directors, I don't need it from him!" the young psychiatrist declared vehemently, now feeling so outraged that she was going red in the face.
"When you put it that way, it doesn't really seem fair, does it?" Pamela cooed, still with that sympathetic pouting expression.
Dr. Birch huffed angrily without giving further vocal response. Her lips twitched and she glared out the window angrily, fuming over the new thoughts in her head regarding what seemed to be the source of she and Eric's disagreement. It wasn't until Pamela touched her hand that she realized she'd lost track of herself again. Pamela smiled at her and she smiled back as the green skinned woman gently caressed the back of her hand.
"I'm so sorry, Hazel. Dealing with a man's mind is a complex, aggravating thing." Pamela said, holding Hazel's gaze with her vibrant, emerald green eyes. "Unfortunately... We've probably spent too much time. I should probably be taken back to my cell."
"Oh," Hazel murmured languidly, "Yes... Yes, of course. Of course."
For a moment more there was silence, then Pamela cleared her throat, smiling gently at her psychiatrist. "Dr. Birch... I'm going to need my hand back."
"What? Oh!" Hazel let go of Isley's hand, blushing faintly with embarrassment, suddenly aware of just how unprofessional the entire therapy session had been, and how little control she'd held over the situation. She couldn't explain herself, it was as if she just lost track of her own mind when she was around Isley. She didn't know why that was, some little part of her mind told her she should be more aware of it, but she just couldn't seem to bring herself to give it the attention it deserved.