Disclaimer: I do not own any rights to the Joker, Harleen Quinzel, Arkham Asylum or Gotham City.

I am so glad that everyone who has read this 'little' fanfic has enjoyed it so much. I assure you there is a fair bit more to come and it is all about to 'hit the fan' as it were. I hope that you all enjoy the upcoming chapters as much as you have apparently enjoyed the previous ones and please feel free to let me know what you think. So far I have received over a hundred reviews- each one a good one, and you all have no idea how happy it makes me feel to know that my imagination is bringing so much entertainment to you all!! Hehe…

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One Step At A Time

"Hi, this is Jess Cunningham. Unfortunately I'm not here at the moment so please a message after the beep, thanks…"

"Hi, Jess, it's me…again…please could you give me a call when you get this. Erm, ASAP. Thanks," the bearded man hung up the phone and sighed heavily.

It had almost been a week since Dr Cunningham had last been seen in the hospital and to be quite honest he was more than a little worried. In the past few days he must have left the woman thirty or so messages on her cell phone, pager and home phone but hadn't received a single reply. It was so unlike her to avoid him. Perhaps it had something to do with her altercation with the Joker during her last shift? He shook his head and placed his spectacles on the desk, pinching the bridge of his nose sharply. He just didn't know what to do. Perhaps he should call the police?

Glancing down at the employee file before him, Jess' superior ran his fingers down the list of contact numbers. Perhaps he should start with her family rather than getting GCPD involved? The last thing the asylum needed was cops shining their flashlights in every nook and cranny, the good doctor had brought enough unwanted attention to the hospital as it was. Lifting the receiver to his ear once more the psychologist started to dial the out of state number.

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Jess felt the twinge of pain in her back as she pushed herself shakily to sit upright against the wall. Sighing heavily she attempted to swallow. Her mouth was so dry that her tongue felt thick in her jaw and she could taste the air around her. Slowly stroking her fingertips over her thighs she attempted to regain feeling in her limbs. Tiny goose pimples spread over her pale skin as her nails skimmed across the tiny hairs covering her body and she felt a cold shudder run the length of her spine. Taking a deep breath she doubled her legs beneath her body and attempted to stand upright with great difficulty.

Every once of her body felt as though it was fading away as her muscles gave in to the absolute hunger in her abdomen. She hadn't eaten for days now and it seemed that even her stomach had surrendered itself to the inevitable and no longer grumbled its dissatisfaction at the lack of sustenance. Pulling herself along the thick guard rail that ran the length of the wall Jess managed to shuffle her way along the corridor to the window.

With dark eyes, the drained doctor gazed wearily out of the smeared glass, clinging lazily to the thick iron bars that criss-crossed the window. She could barely see through the dirty glass out into the world. As she squinted tightly her eyes gradually began to distinguish between the grey sky and the white rooftops of the newer part of the hospital. Attempting to push her head through the bars she desperately strained to see more. The more she willed her eyes to focus the more she could just about make out the greyish stone wall leading down the hill to the ominous gates. She was in Arkham!

Falling backwards she gripped the iron bars tightly, stopping herself from falling to the hard floor. Standing in complete silence she felt her heart sink into her feet. Her whole body seemed to deflate as the notion that nobody would ever know she was here suddenly dawned on her. She was by no means a stupid person, however in the first couple of days she had convinced herself that Max would come back for her. He hadn't. She wasn't quite sure how long she'd been here but she knew she hadn't had any visitors.

Feeling the pain twist in her heart, hot tears cascaded down her cold, pale cheeks onto the now grubby surgical gown she was wearing. As the small spots of moisture collected on the green material the isolated woman gazed heavy-heartedly at her battered legs. She couldn't quite remember being brought here but apparently she had hit something, or it had hit her…hard. Both of her shins were littered with dark, inky marks. Wiping her palm over them she hissed through gritted teeth, each bruise was still tender and the pain spread through her legs like a fire. Furrowing her brow she slid down the wall and returned to sitting on the floor.

Resigning herself to her fate Jess hung her head in dismay and sobbed quietly. Nobody knew she was here except him, and she highly doubted he was about to come and let her out. She was going to die here! Whether through starvation or dehydration…or perhaps the contractors would get to demolishing the building before she could die? Perhaps she would be crushed in the debris? Either way, she told herself she was not leaving this place unless she was in a bodybag!

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"Hey! Get up!" the guard growled aggressively in the sleeping man's ear.

The Joker furrowed his brow, not quite understanding what was going on, "Huh?"

"I said get up!"

Strong hands grabbed the laying man by his collar and dragged him to his feet. Bundling him through the doorway in to the dimly lit corridor the hands suddenly thrust him into a wheelchair.

"Strap him in, nice and tight!"

The Joker gazed up at the second man, "Hiiii. Long time no seeee Officer Gray. Tell me…" he licked his lips dramatically. "How is Dr Cunningham?"

Max glared at the sitting man with such distaste that the Joker could almost feel it boring into his own eyes. It amused him to no end and he could barely control himself as he was wheeled from his ward into the sleeping hospital.

"Where are we going at such a late hour?" the giggling man raised his eyebrows and gazed at the ceiling. "Are we going to find my little Jester? She's missing you know." The Joker grinned widely, knowing fully well that Max understood. "You know…Maaax, you really are taking this whole um…stalking her?...Thing…a little too far. Even I think your becoming a little too…involved…"

"Shut the fuck up!" Max's fist collided heavily with the right side of the Joker's face, resulting in a small trail of blood to break through the corner of his mouth.

"Where are we taking him?" the second guard asked abruptly.

"To the intern," Max replied flatly, "She wants to see him."

"See him?"

"Yeah, she's all goo-goo over him. Fuck knows why!"

"So what are you getting out of this?"

Max didn't answer. Instead he simply raised his eyebrows and winked at his colleague.

"Oh well, fair's fair," the second guard smiled.

The Joker prodded the inside of one of his scars with the tip of his tongue, "She is a pretty little thing, isn't she? Always strikes me as being a little insecure, don't you think?" He waited for a moment before continuing, "It seems she has an inferiority complex…always comparing herself to someone else."

"And?" Max leaned over the sitting man. "What difference does that make? A girl's a girl, right?"

The Joker rolled his eyes before sucking his lips loudly, "Personally, I prefer my dates a little more…"

"Nervous?" the second guard laughed.

"Nooo, I was going to say intelligent…"

"You talk too much!" Max snapped as he motioned for the second man to leave. "I'll take it from here."

Quickly Max opened the door and pushed the Joker inside the darkened room.

"Why do I feel like I've been in this situation before?" the Joker tilted his head to the side and glanced around the blackness. "No Batman?" he raised an eyebrow.

As Max left the room the Joker heard the door click into its frame. Waiting for the inevitable flash of white as the lights were switched on he yawned. The flash never came. Instead he felt the unusual prick in his thigh as a syringe was pushed firmly through the material of his pants. As he felt the cold liquid spread through his veins like a virus he lowered his voice to a deep growl.

"Well, hellooo Miss Quinzel,"

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Clicking and banging invaded Jess consciousness as her mind slowly began to wake itself up. Turning to peer down the hallway Jess sleepily opened her glazed eyes. For a moment she thought she had imagined the noises but her eyes soon confirmed that her ears had been truthful as the thin white beam of a flashlight pierced through the darkness. Shading her deprived eyes from the harsh beam Jess lifted her hand to her face, but to no avail.

For a moment she thought someone had come to help her. That idea was soon quashed as the bright light was directed specifically into her eyes, blinding her temporarily.

As the heavy footsteps got nearer the doctor recognised the gait. It was him. It was Max. Shying away slightly Jess tried to regain a little composure by desperately tugging at the hem of her gown. The guard stopped in front of her, still shining the torch into her eyes. As she turned her face away she felt the hard force of the sole of a boot against the side of her head. Lacking the strength to defend herself the young woman fell to the floor.

Turning her head Jess attempted to plead with the man but her throat seemed to be broken; her throat was so dry she could hardly speak. Straining to breathe she quickly turned away as she felt the guard's boot once more, this time in her stomach. Doubling over with the force of the kick Jess coughed hard, trying to regain her breath. As she tried to support herself on her palms she felt his hand in her hair as he dragged her back down the corridor.

"Who told you you could move? Huh? Who?" he growled. Jess didn't know what to say or do. "I asked you a question!"

Jess shook her head in response and desperately tried to wet her lips, "No…no…body."

"Then get the fuck back in bed!" he bellowed throwing her onto the gurney.

Feeling the bed rock violently underneath her Jess scrambled to clutch onto the sides. Pulling her legs under her body she curled into the foetal position and stared at Max. Why was he doing this? She didn't understand, what had she done wrong?

Max turned and approached the counter at the side of the room. Lifting a small plastic box from the work-surface he opened it and tipped the contents onto the floor. Watching his hostage intently he then removed the cap from a bottle of water and hurled it at the blonde woman.

"Don't you dare!" he growled as Jess lurched forward to try and save the precious liquid. She immediately did as she was ordered and sat perfectly still, all the time watching the water pour out of the bottle onto the floor. Once he was satisfied Max turned to leave, "Now you can have it."

Jess fell to the floor scrambling towards the almost empty bottle. Drinking the remaining quarter of the water she physically felt the relief wash over her and moaned with satisfaction. Further down the hallway she heard the heavy doors being locked again as she was once more left alone in the derelict ward. Turning to peer through the frame of the stretcher she strained to see what her captor had thrown on the floor. She decided she needed to have a closer look.

Crawling across the floor slowly Jess desperately tried to lick the water from her hands. She was still so thirsty. Reaching the sloppy mess on the dirty tiles she bent stretched her aching arm out to touch it. It was wet and soft. It was food. She assumed it was from the patient kitchen and in all honesty she didn't really want to think about what it could be. All she knew was she was literally starving and he had brought it for her to eat.

Stooping down to smell the almost-liquid meal she scooped it from the dirty tiles with her fingers and shovelled it into her mouth. She couldn't tell what it was, and she wasn't really sure if cared. It was food and that was all that mattered right now.