Monday, August 3, 2009 – 7:28pm – City Hall; Gotham City, New Jersey

The street was crazy clogged, but yet there was still enough order for their town car to pull up and let them out into the mess of people. Ana blended right in with her dark cashmere coat hiding her plain black dress underneath. Edward Nygma, her assigned personal assistant for the duration of her time filming the massive blockbuster she was in town for, slid out right after her, dressed in a normal suit with no extra jacket as if the brisk breeze were a summer heat. He was a couple of years younger than her, and rather handsome with stylish dirty blonde hair, high cheekbones, emerald eyes, and an accent to die for. But he was new to the industry, having been personally assigned the position by the producer himself—a favor, most likely. She didn't mind, especially since this would be the first time she would actually have an assistant all to herself—it wasn't often she utilized them.

He offered his arm for her, but she ignored it as she pointed towards the entrance at the top of the stone stairs covered with people. "Are we supposed to get up there?" she practically shouted.

He nodded, giving her the cue to start weaving through people.

As if she hadn't been out and about enough the night before, hopping from dinner parties to after parties to after-after parties, Edward had offered to show her some of the city, starting with the Second Annual Dent Day Memorial. At the time it had seemed like a great idea, but now that she thought about it as she struggled through the milling crowd with Edward trailing behind her, she wasn't supposed to be here. She didn't know anything about Harvey Dent or what he did. Yes, she heard about what happened to him and that whole Batman mess, but her main interest in that stemmed from one day at the supermarket when she saw a certain tabloid with a certain name on it. Not to mention she was here to play a part in making a movie about these very events involving these very people, something she had been struggling coming to terms with since signing onto this project. Her morals were bothering her even more so now, standing at a memorial for someone she was going to profit off of.

Once they reached the top of the stairs, a few girls on the street below squealed, earning the attention of everyone around them. Without bothering to look, Ana used the advantage to move through the last couple of distracted bystanders to slide inside the wide-open doors of the massive modern hall.

The noise level inside was considerably less, and Ana stopped just before the security checkpoint. "Edward, should we even be here?"

He looked confused. "Why not? It's a holiday event."

"You know what I mean. We're making a movie about this man. I feel like I'm intruding here."

He shook his head, stepping closer, "Think of it as research. You're learning about the impact that Harvey had on this city. That's something you need to know."

"But I can find out about it through newspapers and books, not through this."

"Ana, in the day that I've known you, seen you work, you've been spectacular at acting and reading people. You've got a gift. And I know that with that gift comes the ability to tune out what normal people think and do. Because, let's face it Ana, this industry doesn't employ normal people. Normal people don't have the ability to impersonate others without a second thought." She still looked hesitant. "Look, you majored in some science field, right?" She looked at him, impressed he knew these details about her. "Just imagine that this is an experiment. You're doing research. Use that observational attitude that they taught you."

"Observational attitude?"

"Out of all of that, that's what stuck?"

She shrugged with a small smile. "I understand what you're trying to tell me, and I'll play along for now. But can we not stay long? I stayed up late last night and, honestly, so far all I've seen of this city today are government buildings."

He bought her excuse and agreed with a nod.

The event was a big ceremony. By eight o'clock, all the people on the street had been reeled inside and the speeches began. Colleagues, friends, people who didn't even know him. The mayor led the speeches and the police commissioner finished them. At the end of it all, the buffets and wine were unleashed, and the cocktail hour pursued.

Now that Ana had sat through all of that, she wanted to get out of there before someone decided to casually ask her why she was there—or worse, recognized her. But, of course, as she was looking for Edward, who she had separated from before the speeches even began, someone touched her arm to gain her attention. However, as she turned, instead of finding some young girl or guy star struck, she was face to face with an older woman.

"You look familiar," she abruptly said, her sharp blue eyes examining Ana closely.

Out of everyone here, she was recognized by an old woman? Surprising, but at least she knew she could vacation on the east coast without crazy fans proving a problem. Smiling, she decided to help her out, "I'm on a TV show—"

"I don't watch TV, darling. And you're here, which means you probably have never been to my clinic. But I swear I've seen you before. I never forget a face."

Ana blinked at the interruption. And then she processed what the woman had said. "Clinic?"

"Well if I can't remember you, I might as well re-introduce myself. I am Dr. Thompkins. I run a free medical clinic in the East Side." She had an air of authority about her as she presented herself, but it wasn't as if she stuck her nose in the air. No, she was more down to earth, as if she didn't plan on wasting any moment of her life with nonsense. That kind of authority.

"A free medical clinic?" Ana questioned, stunned. "Impossible. Health insurance rates and government rules won't allow it."

Dr. Thompkins raised her brow at the younger woman. "I assure you it's not impossible. Anything is possible if you fight for it enough."

"I used to be in medicine, and with how many people we helped that didn't have any insurance…it was as if we weren't helping them at all. How?"

At the explanation, the doctor's gaze turned from condescending to polite with a surprising smile. "What type of medicine did you used to be in? And why, for heaven's sake, are you not still?"

At the question, Ana faltered. She missed her old job from time to time, just as much as she missed her old life. But she had never been blatantly asked why she still didn't do it. It was assumed by most people that being a successful actress was a far better career choice. There were no questions asked. "I… moved. I got a different job—"

"And you're not happy with it."

"Now hold on," Ana started, rushing to defend herself. "I never said I wasn't happy. It's just…different. I still help people when I can—"

"When was the last time you helped someone? Genuinely helped someone?"

Ana faltered, drawing a blank. She moved to LA in 2003. If she meant medical help, that was it.

As she hesitated, Dr. Thompkins removed a card from her wristlet and handed it to Ana. "Stop by this address before the end of the week, at any hour, and I'll show you just how impossible my clinic is." And with that, she dismissed herself from the conversation, leaving Ana stunned, yet impressed and curious as she examined the business card.

A/N: Regarding Eddie—the face I'm thinking of is a young Zac Efron (not baby, but not ripped), but the voice is more Johnny Depp's Jack Sparrow. Since it's still early in Batman's career, the Riddler is young and just starting out. Imagine if he's this smart just out of grad school how intelligent (and crazy) he gets throughout the years with Batman. And as for the voice—well ever since there was that rumor that Johnny was going to be the new Riddler, it's been stuck in my brain. And that quick paced English-ish drawl seems almost perfect for a know-it-all genius. Make him sound a little drunk, too, and it makes it even more ironic.