"Are you a scientist?" It was a simple question wasn't it?
Jervis and Edward had decided to spend the afternoon playing cards in the empty day room. The day room for cell block D. The least hostile patients Arkham houses. These were mostly children and young adults or the old who could not care for themselves. Issues varied. The point was that cell block D was a good distance away from the cell block C. The likes of the Rogues Gallery, the serial killers and like.
They had the most intricate set of electronic locks, firewalls and tough security "protecting" them for the evils of cell block C residents. It was a fireable offense if any D and C block patients made contact with each other. There also was a kill the C blocker before the D blocker dies or know what he/she are in for protocol.
Arkham had high hopes and respect for the D block. They were non violent in most cases. They could use spoons on Tuesday. C blockers were jealous. Or rather, Jervis and Edward wanted to be able to use spoons. Plastic spoons were now banned because of the recent events involving Mary Dahl and Harley Quinn.
Edward refused to settle for this. For that last two months he had been compliant with all the rules. He stopped leaving passive aggressive riddles and threats. He took up chess. He is not any good at it but he can cheat the hell at it and win using those skills.
He decided he had enough of this no fork and spoon nonsense after he had been served with not utensils with last nights meal.
Jervis had started taking up hacking electronics as a hobby. He liked it. They even let him help with IT problems at the Asylum. Under guarded chaperone and with an AK47 pointed at his head and chest. He felt no malice towards the man who has asked for his help and he happily obliged. He also made a copy of all the key codes for D block.
That brings more to the present. Jervis gave the signal, Edward followed, few knocked out guards and hacks later, they were in the D block day room and had their treasured spoon. Real spoons. The metalish kind! Those bloody bastards.
"Are you a scientist?" Edward asked after he took a spoonful of pudding. Jervis had propped his legs on the coffee table by the sofa. He considered the question.
"No. I was fired by Wayne Industries."
Edward shook his head and made a jab motion at the air with his spoon. He missed the cold metal touch more than he would like to say.
"I'm not asking about your career or what you did before this. I am asking you who are you? Are you a scientist?"
Jervis spent too long inside his head before he could answer. He needed more practice. He nodded before the vocal confirmation.
"I am a mad man without a hat. Science is my religion. Alice is my damnation."
Edward accepted this as fact.
"I'm an intellect." He said. He offered the Englishmen more tea. Tea and pudding. They were in heaven. To be honest, they just grabbed anything that required or could be made better with a spoon.
"Not a mad riddler?" Jervis took a sip of his tea. It wasn't the best or the worst but the spoon had made it better. Logically he knew that made no sense, but he made it a point not to listen.
"I like wordplay, wit, trivia and trivial things. I need books, science, and math in my life. I need to constantly test myself on knowledge. It's never enough." Edward took a very generous helping of the tea.
"To be brief, a nerd." He felt a little bit of pride.
It was not long before the conversation turned to the other rogues. It was here that Jervis discovered that Edward was afraid of Jonathan Crane.
"Pamela is just a fancy gardener." Jervis agreed with that.
"The Joker. Let's come back to him later." They didn't.
"Harley is-
" A confused child." Jervis felt that matched her well.
"No. Harley is broken. I see her and I." Edward trailed off and finished his tea.
"You see what?" Jervis wanted to hear the rest of this.
"My mother liked to collect clowns, harlequins. It was a hobby I suppose. She had this favorite, dressed in a pale purple thing. Porcelain face. My mom named her Harriet but called her Harry. Her name is Harriet, mom would say but she called her Harry herself. It was stupid."
"That's irrelevant. Please tell me the point."
"One day my dad comes home, drunk as usual and he tears the place apart. He breaks the cabinet that held my mom's favorite harlequin. Her face cracked. A little piece under her left eye, the cheek. A chunk came off. When I see Harley, I see her like that doll. Broken."
"Maybe she needs someone to piece her back together."
"That's was a terrible one."
"Her black eye is terrible. He may not always hit her but it is disgusting to pretend their relationship is normal. Even for us."
"I'm not worried for her. The Joker wouldn't kill her. Harley has friends. He's not that stupid."
"Pamela is powerful in many ways." Jervis concluded.
"Not just her." Edward shifted awkwardly on the couch. Something made him nervous.
"Then who?' He asked, curious now.
"Crane." He shuddered and let out a hiss as if saying his name caused him a great deal of pain. Jervis made a note to keep a record of this. Perhaps he was a scientist.