* J *

Part Eight: Chapter 42: Shocking

*Again this is a bit graphic. And may trigger some individuals.*

Its been twelve years since the Joker had been in Arkham. Some things he still remembered about Arkham, like the horrible food, the whacked out patients, medication times, meal times, staff change, and the floor plan of the building. But when he was here before he was the only child patient the hospital had ever seen. He was obviously given many liberties. Being locked up here as the Joker was a different story. He soon realized that the guards liked making a sport of their abuse to the patients. Why wouldn't they? Who's going to believe the crazies?

Within the twenty four hour window in which the Joker has been at Arkham, he's been tazed twice. Once to get him out of his clothes and into the navy blue inmate/patient scrubs, and once to get him in a straight jacket for one on one therapy with his doctor. His food was spit in by the guard that delivered it...every single time. And he didn't even bother with trying to hide it. The Joker doesn't know if he had a validated reason or not. The night guard, just to elevate his own apparent boredom, goaded the Joker until he got so mad he rammed his head into the bars on his cell. He hit with such force that he fell to the floor unconscious. But being unconscious was better than taking it.

The next night two guards showed up at his cell telling him it was time for a shower. He let them cuff him without a fight because he didn't particularly care for being tazed, not that they didn't try to push things to that point. They dragged him out of his cell and pushed him down the hall. As he passed the other inmates he could see the unsettling looks in their eyes. It was fear, but it wasn't fear of him, it was the guards. They finally stop him and shove him into the big open shower room. They take the cuffs off his wrists and shove him into the center of the room. They throw a bar of soap and a towel onto the floor at his feet. The Joker just looks down at the items at his bare feet.

"You know what they say about picking up the soap," one guard chuckles and the other quickly joins in.

"They're laughing at you."

The Joker rolls his eyes, unamused by the joke, he skeptically bends over and picks up the soap. He gives them a menacing stare through narrowed eyes. He would love to incapacitate both of them, but those stupid tazers were very annoying and he knows the guards liked using them every chance they got. So he'll play their little games for now. It's that or taking the tazer.

"Pussy."

"Strip freak, let's see what color you are under that makeup," one says and the Joker can't help but watch the way the guards eyes prowled his body. As if imagining him naked. And it seemed to appeal to him.

"And you're the freak?"

Joker pulls his shirt over his head and tosses it over one of the shower heads. He shoved the elastic of his pants down over his hips, without the least bit of modesty or shame. The asylum didn't allow him underwear so he was suddenly stark naked with his back to them. He could feel their eyes on him. Whether it was turning them on or leaving them unfazed, it made him very uncomfortable. He assumes that's their intention. It's a tactic he's used himself many times. But he toughs his way through it and cuts on the water. It was barely warm with the hot water all the way up. The asylum couldn't risk the crazies burning themselves, so the hot water heaters were regulated.

"Wash that shit off your face, you look like a faggot," he can hear one of them saying gruffly behind him.

"Yeah, you look so pretty in that lipstick that we just might forget you're not a girl," the other laughs.

"I think they're confused on who the faggot is."

The Joker rolls his eyes and lathers up his hands with the bar of soap. It was the cheapest soap available, guaranteed to dry him out. He tells himself to just let their trash talk all roll off his back like the water. He briskly runs his hands over his face. In the back of his head he still hopes to wash away his white skin. But it's never gone when he rinsed the soap away. And not even from this cheap soap.