This was it, the moment he had been waiting for.. This was going to be fun!

Click, click, click, click...click..click... The heels still approached.

Then silence followed. His head was leaning back with the rest of his body against the wall and his eyes had been staring off on the ceiling. His peripheral vision made out a small, slender form. He followed the ceiling to where it met the top of the glass door to his cell. Further his green orbs drifted down until they found the new intern. He was certain she was unnerved by him staring at her from the side of his vision, not having turned his head yet. A gasp gave her away. His head lazily rolled to the side, but he kept his head still touching the wall, his full attention on her, an unforgivable gaze.

He could see why the guards appreciated her. She was something to look at, alright! Bright blond hair, though he could tell it was bottle blond, and she had a toned figure, cheerleader or swimmer maybe? But what really made him smile was her eyes. Brilliant blue, and innocent. He could tell them apart ya know, the innocent and the corrupt. And her eyes spoke volumes of things never tried, dares never done.

Never breaking the intensity of his stare, he smiled at her, but not a happy smile. No, this grin was more sinister, he felt his upper lip curling back over his teeth, the way a wild animal bares it fangs to show the damage it could inflict. He expected her to turn away, go back to the doctor or look horrified as some did and worry themselves in a fit back at home, dreading about becoming his next target.

But she did something he didn't expect: she smiled back at him.

Well now this was very odd! His brows furrowed as his curiosity flared. Her cheeks went red (she's blushing?!) but she kept staring and smiling at him! But that's when he noticed it, that life behind her eyes, the same life that he and a few others in this joint had. She wanted it, she needed it. This restricting life was too much for her. It was killing her and by god, if something was going to kill her it had better be him!

He pushed himself up casually from the wall, and walked closer to the glass door. She didn't move. Not closer, not farther away. He was at the glass now, his breath barely fogging it. With a index finger, he beckoned her nearer. Her smile faltered a bit, then. He softened his expression, and like a dumb, trusting puppy, she stepped closer.

There they were. Standing face to face. Just looking at each other. She was taking him all in, his looks, his presence. And he was analyzing her, her weaknesses, her naivety.

Dr. Leland must have been alarmed to see the new intern near his cell because she all but ran over to the new girl that moment. She put her arm around Harleen and led her away, only to turn back to him with a severe, stern look. Joker just threw up his hands and gave a sympathetic look that said 'What did I do?' Just before the intern was out of sight, she turned around and stole one more glimpse of the Joker.

Oh, yes my dear... this WILL be fun. He He He Ha Ha Ha ha ha!

Harleen took a minute to calm her heart rate down. What just happened? She felt as if she couldn't get enough air. Those eyes... his eyes..

"Are you alright, Harleen?" Dr. Leland asked. She looked at Harleen with concern.

"Eh.. oh yes. Sorry, it's.. it's just a bit different to see them here than on the news."

Dr. Leland smiled at her. "Not to worry, dear, you won't have to work with any of the more... complex cases for a while."

Harleen frowned a bit. "Why not?"

Joan looked at her as if she were a child wanting a cookie. "You need to get settled in and work on the more common patients first. As I said before, patience is needed in this field."

Harleen smoothed out her face and put a reassuring smile back on. "Of course, doctor. I understand." Dr. Leland nodded and continued on about earning one's stripes. She wasn't listening. She was tired and would rather think more about what to eat for dinner later than to listen to Dr. Leland drone on about the standards of the job yet again.

After Harleen said her goodnights to the staff she was introduced to, she made her way out of the Intensive Treatment facility. The entrance was just up ahead with the guard's station to her right. Harleen watched as night shift guards strapped on their protective vests, stowed ammo in their belts and stretched their fingers in their tactical gloves. The guards from day shift were pointing at the monitors, instructing the next shift on occurrences, situations, or were simply talking amongst themselves.

Harleen understood the importance of compartmentalizing. Psychiatry was a difficult field to work in, let alone in a mental health facility like Arkham. The stresses of the day could break someone who couldn't separate work from personal life.

Harleen tried not to think of her own dismal personal life. She scanned her badge at the last checkpoint, nodding at the the nurse behind the station's glass who gave a robotic "Have a good night." Since she had graduated and moved into her apartment, she hadn't had much of a social life. Her friends had moved on in their careers and she lost touch with most. Her cell phone didn't ring anymore. She sometimes received the occasional text. It was nice to hear it buzz, but even then, she didn't respond right away. If she did, it would be to decline a offer for a 'college friends night out'.

She pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. She didn't want to become a loner. Looking at some of the nurses who were leaving for the day, she wondered if making friends at Arkham was even possible. She didn't get along with most. The generic crowd bored her; mind-numbing repetitive conversations made her roll her eyes.

Stepping outside, the evening air seemed cleaner than the cold air pumped through the air conditioning units inside. The breeze coming in from ocean surrounding the island didn't seem as polluted as it did from the many docks and shipping yards around Gotham. It was getting dark now and admittedly, Arkham Asylum at night was damn spooky. The sky had grown considerably darker, the daylight blurring into dusk, changing the atmosphere from dreary to dreadful. The dusk cast shadows against the shrubbery making it hard to see her surroundings.

As if reading her mind, the outdoor lights began to come on one by one all around her. The smaller guard stations that were dotted across the island had small lights around their roofs and a faint yellow glow came from the open doorways. The other larger facilities and structures she hadn't seen yet had different colors of yellow, white and red lighting around the entrances. Spot light burst to life above her, catching her eyes and forcing her to shield her face as she looked up.

She saw what was unmistakably watch towers that she hadn't noticed before either. Tall, square metal structures with stairs leading up to the tower's lookout. Harleen could already see a guard begin pacing from one side of the tower toward the other. She could almost feel the heat of large bulbs. The guard must have thought she was waving because he, in a very old-fashioned sort of way, tipped his helmet toward her and carried on with his pacing. She gave a delayed wave once processing the acknowledgement but he had already turned away.

Well, not every one has a stick up their butt, she weighed as she began walking down the gravel and dirt path.

The gates were up ahead now. The lanterns that hung from the posed arms of the gloomy statues made her want to run toward them. The quick sound of her heels crunching on the ground made her panic level rise a little. She understood now why the man sped off down the bridge leaving island this morning. She couldn't imagine having to work at Arkham, night after night. It would mostly certainly would guarantee nightmares.

Climbing into her car felt reassuring. Safe. Another heavy sigh for the countless time today escaped her. The drive home was spent trying to sort out the first day. She had noticed some unfriendly glances by a few of the nurses. Figures. And why did Dr. Leland talk to her like she was stupid? As if she didn't know these patients could be violent or dangerous or manipulative? Of course she knew! She took the same courses Dr. Leland had to in order to earn the title "doctor". She would show them. She wasn't a dumb blond who had her heads in the clouds...

She wasn't even a real blond.

Being inside her apartment felt even better. She walked to the bathroom, stripping off clothes as she went. Her hair now pinned her up on top of her head in a loose bun, she felt relief on her scalp. Her bun had been too tight. She tried to massage blood around the sore patches of her head. She sat on the edge of the tub, letting the water run for a minute to get hot before pulling the lever that forced the tub's faucet water through to the shower head. The stinging hot water felt wonderful on her chilled skin. Another heavy breath. She simply stood there, letting the water warm her body and when she finally felt fully soaked, she openly thought about him.

He had looked at me. Looked at me and smiled. It wasn't a pleasant smile though, more of an aggressive one, but it had made her smile. It was so, so... contagious. His smile made her want to smile. She had seen his red lips and her mouth had turned up into a smile she couldn't explain. That didn't made sense. He was intriguing to look at. His skin had glowed in the dim lights from the hall. His iconic green hair was wavy and pushed back. He was terrifying. His stance was relaxed then, leaning against the wall of his cell as if he were lounging at home. Did he have a home? His frame was lean, but strong. His hands large, arms were wiry yet muscular. Strength without the bulk.

Toweling off her hair half an hour later, she looked at her cell phone sitting on the kitchen counter. Missed calls(1). She checked the contact: Derek. Nah, she'll call him back later. Maybe. Derek was a guy one of her college friends tried to hook her up with but Harleen got the sense he had one thing on his mind. She had more important things to worry about. She had her second day to prepare for and hopefully meet her first patient. She climbed in bed anxious to fall asleep so she could wake up and hurry back to work. She smiled, wondering if that made her crazy.

He laid there on his back with a wicked grin. She'd be back in a few hours. But first thing's first! He jumped up and walked up to his glass door and saw a guard a few feet away.

"Hey!... HEY!... YOOOOHOOOO!" the Joker began to flail his arms up and down wildly, his voice playful. The guard seemed a bit apprehensive but then walked over until he was a foot from the glass.

"What is it, clown?"

"Ooh, touchy, touchy," the Joker laughed. "Did we not have our steamed latte this morning? Oh calm down, I'm just messin' with ya," he said waving both hands down at the guard as if he was upset. "I'm just a simple guy wantin' his breakfast. Think you could help a fellow out?"

"Uhh.. you're hungry?" Sharp as a billiard ball, this one.

The Joker motioned for him to come closer to the glass. As the guard began to inch closer, Joker slammed his fists onto the glass, all happy demeanor gone.

"DIDN'T I JUST SAY THAT?! Now go get my food before I have you wrapped in a tarp and left in a cement bath!" He shouted, making the guard jump back looking scared. He immediately switched moods and went back to being friendly. "Oh, and I would love some bacon if they have it."

He turned around and stretched out on his cot again, gazing up at the ceiling. He looked down his nose and saw the guard still standing there, frozen. He waved his hand in a "shoo" motion and the guard seemed to regain his movement back and walked quickly to the nurses station. Probably to tell them to get his breakfast... with bacon no doubt.

Now down to business. He had many options to consider. He could hold her hostage and have her walk him out of here once she had all codes programmed to her badge. Eh. No imagination in that. He could just shoot her, but it lacked poetry, no showmanship. He'd think of something. Usually his genius was spur of the moment, it would hit him-BAM! And then he'd have hours of devising plans and operations. Oh, how he loved to plan out the next coup, the scheming was half the fun! He'd need one on one access to claim her first.

His eyes darted here and there as his thoughts ran amuck. They'd give her one of the fluffy bunnies 'round here for her first rodeo. Unless...

AHA Ha ha ha ha! Perfect!