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I stuttered several times before I managed to get a complete sentence out. "Patient? I cater to the rich and stupid, not super villains with intelligence like him! This is crazy, where's his regular psychiatrist?"

Again, they gave each other a tortured look, before telling me. "His former psychiatrist was Dr. Harleen Quinzel, before he turned her into Harley Quinn."

I groaned, burying my head in my hands. "Where is she now?"

"She's in another room. She won't speak to anyone except for the Joker."

"God, Harleen." I muttered. "You were never this crazy, but trust you to be difficult."

Batman stepped forward. "Please, Dr. Addly, you're needed for this. If we can find out how he is going to detonate the bombs, and where specifically, then we can put an end to this!"

I looked him in the eyes darkly, and he returned the look with the same. I sighed, and nodded at him dumbly. This was the least I could for them. This was practically the only useful thing I could do for them. I was worthless to them without this one trait of mine, being able to read people, but I didn't think I would be able to read the Joker like I did with most people.

"Okay, but this is nuts." I stressed, brushing a hand through my hair before tying it up with a bobble. "And I want you two to keep an eye on me, save me if it gets too dangerous for me, alright?"

They mumbled their agreement, and Commissioner Gordon walked me to the door, handing me the Joker's personal file. "Don't worry, and don't let him see you're scared."

"Who said I was scared?" I bit back at him as he walked off.

I entered the room, eyes looking up to meet the Joker in the eyes as he sat across from me, his fingers tapping the table he sat behind roughly, drumming out a strange beat as he grinned at the sight of me.

"Hello, Doctor." He purred, leaning forward. He licked his lips before saying, "I wondered who they would get to examine me. I didn't think they're put you through this, you know."

"Neither did I." I replied, sitting myself down and opening the file.

"A little odd, considering that you're a 'victim' of my crimes." He whispered, lifting his chained hands to create air quotes for the word 'victim'.

"It's interesting how you consider me not as a victim, but as something else. How do you consider me?"

He grinned. "My plaything. My toy. My protégée."

I looked up from the file, surprised. "Protégée? Wouldn't that be Harleen?"

He sniffed, and licked his lips. "No, uh, She came to me willingly, she wanted to be turned."

"Doesn't the student want to be taught?" I wondered aloud.

He laughed. "Sure, if the student knows that they want to be taught. But you don't know, uh; know that you want to be turned."

"So, you want to turn me, because you think that because I don't know that I want to be turned, I get the right to." I chuckled. "Even you have to agree, that's messed up."

"No, no, uh, that's the beauty of it! In you, I've found the fun little toy that I've been missing. Batman has his tank and his toys, and now I have you!"

I felt my eyes widen. "You want to use me against Batman?"

"Sure, toots. Don't you feel like rebelling?"

"How could I be used against Batman? I'm practically the same as Harleen in terms of skill and knowledge, except she minored in gymnastics while I minored in history."

"Yes, yes. But you've got the urge to destroy and wreak havoc! Remember back at the tank?" Here, he wiggled his eyebrows. "I told you that Harley did it all for me, but you do it all for yourself. You do it all for your own sick pleasure. And I want to use that."

Appalled, I forgot about my original intention for talking with him and pursued this issue. "And just how do you think you're going to control me? You have no hold over me."

He shrugged, laughing. "I won't need to have any hold over you. You'll come, sooner or later, and you'll want to, too."

I was beginning to feel like as though the Joker was the doctor and I was the patient. I grumbled under my breath with annoyance, and tried to switch topics.

"And these bombs? Why set them off?"

"…Why not?"

I stared with blunt amazement. He sat before me, leaning back in his chair, staring at me idly, as though those two words were his complete argument.

"Why not?" I questioned stupidly. "Well, I can think of a few good reasons!"

He shrugged once more. "Well, I can't."

"Is the reason as to why you're doing this, is because you know it'll never happen, because Batman will stop you?"

His eye twitched. "You think that, uh, the Batman always beats me?"

I mimicked him, and shrugged. "I've never heard of you beating Batman, it's all over the news about how he always manages to put you back in Arkham. It's true, isn't it?"

He shifted in his seat, and I wondered dumbly if I had hit a sore spot. "I think it is true. You're just going through the motions of having a master plan, but you haven't put the effort in anymore, like you used to. You always had a reason. For example, you blew up the Gotham Bank because you wanted people to detach themselves from their need on the Banks, or at least, that was what you were quoted to have said. Now, you just do it, because that's what you've always done."

He watched me carefully. "So?"

I laughed with surprise. "So, this means that you're not going through with it, because you've been captured already. You were planning this, you were hoping for this. Because it's all you know, it's all that has ever happened. Any different, and you'll have lost. If you managed to actually defeat Batman, you'll have lost a worthy opponent. Your only enemy would be gone, and you'd have no competition, no real reason to try anymore. And because you can't control if Batman will win or not, you've made it easier and easier for him to catch you."

The Joker started to lean in, his eyes trained on me intently. I was off in my own world, new theories the thoughts entering my mind.

"…But you're not having fun any more. It was fun when it was challenging. You were challenging yourself, through Batman. So what's changed? Why are you dumbing yourself down for him…?"

"Doc, I hate to interrupt your tirade, but haven't we got more important things to talk about?" The Joker interrupted, annoyed with me ignoring him as I talked to myself.

I realised he was getting impatient, and bit my tongue to stop myself from saying something stupid. In a way, he was right, I had work to do, and I couldn't let myself get distracted.

"So, we now know that not only do you want to get caught, but you're also allowing Batman to catch you." I summarised. "So from that, I can tell that you expect Batman to discover your plans easily, to prevent the attacks. You must have left the plans out on that desk just for him. No wonder it was just lying there, waiting for him. You wanted him to find them."

Joker tsked at me, and examined his fingernails closely as I continued. He was clearly getting bored with my constant chatter, but he was vaguely listening, which alerted me to the fact I must have been hitting the point.

"So, either you've left all the details in those notes, or there's something he's missed."

"Or you missed." The Joker added casually.

I sat back, interested. "Me? What do I have to do with it?"

He glanced at me from the corner of his eyes. "You are, uh, the Protégée, after all. Call this, a test. We're hitting two birds with one stone, Doc. And there you go, Doctor Addley, an metaphor. You lot do like metaphors, don't you?"

My lot? I wondered. What could he mean by that? And just what have I missed? Is there clue right in front of me?

I sat before him, watching him silently. I mulled over his words as he picked the dirt from beneath his nails. He appeared to be doing nothing of importance.

No, that isn't it. It's something else. Is it in his words? He said I was the student, which would make him the teacher. I'm the protégée, and this is a test. A test designed for me. He's planned every aspect of it. It's test.

I breathed deeply, thinking hard, but I couldn't come up with anything.

Shame there isn't another student, or I'd probably be tempted to cheat. I thought mischievously.

I paused on that thought, and looked again at the Joker as he sat biting his nails silently.

"You're talking about Harley." I said quietly. "You want me to ask her."

"In whatever way you'd like." The Joker replied, looking at me triumphantly. "Don't be afraid to break a few bones. Ah heck, uh, you'll be great at it – go wild!"

"You want me to torture her?" I asked, horrified.

"No, just break her. I want you to break my little Harley."

I gasped in horror. "You want your new student to take over your old one. And this is it. You want me to hurt her and make her useless to you so I can take her place."

He grinned. "I knew there was a reason why I liked you."

"But why me? We've hardly spoken, there was no real reason for you to be so interested in me. Surely Harley-"

"Fuck Harley. I want you. I do what I want, and I want you."

Shivers crawled up my spine and I turned away in disgust. I glanced over at the two way mirror, and spat out, "They'll have sent Batman to question her, already."

"I've told her not to talk to anyone but you. She's all yours, Doc." The Joker purred.

"I won't do it." I told him. "I won't do that to her. She worships you. She loves you deeply, and you want to throw that loyalty away on the hope that I might join you?"

The Joker nodded slowly. "Rage, mindfuckery and taking pleasure from pain, you have it, and you don't use it to your advantage. I could show you how to harness it."

"For what purpose? So I can stand by your side while the Batman kicks you to the curb?" It was useless asking him, he was already laughing wildly as he banged his open hands on the desk. "I won't do it! I won't turn into you! I won't!"

"Tick tock, doctor. You've only so much time before the gas is released. You'd better ask her, not me." He laughed, rocking slightly in his seat. "Run, doctor – Run!"

I left as soon as I was given the chance, and was left panting heavily in the corridor as officers tried to control the Joker in the room behind me. I leant against the wall, holding my head up as I tried to clear my mind and catch my breath. He was insane; there was no logic behind his thoughts, not anymore. And now he wanted me to take over Harleen as his sidekick, though I had never shown any interest, or promise for that matter. He wanted me for my rage, and my love of destruction. And I hadn't even argued with him on that point. But that wasn't what had scared me the most. What scared me the most was one detail.

I was beginning to think he was right.