Madness (Joker Love Story)

Alley Cat

     Allison yawned as she struggled to keep her eyes open. The conversation she'd had with Jonathon last night had been emotionally and mentally exhausting, and all she wanted to do was sleep. She knew that wasn't possible though. There was work to be done. Work with the Joker... She had forgotten all about him and what happened. Now wasn't the time to think about it, it seemed, as she could already hear his maniac laughter echoing throughout the halls outside her door.
        She didn't even realize when he stooped down to her seated level and snapped his fingers in her face. She snapped out of her daze as he chuckled and a small smile rose to her own face. "Did my little Alley cat have a rough night?" "Why do you call me Alley cat? Am I meant to be insulted?" She retorted. In truth, she was only trying to get a rise out of him; see how he'd react to his ways being challenged by someone she hoped he felt safe with.         
        "What do you mean?" He paused, smile still growing. "You don't like it?" "No." She said calmly and assuredly. His eyebrows shot skyward and he shook his head, looking exaggeratedly confused and awaiting an explanation. "Alley cats are basically the prostitutes of the feline world, don't you think?" She added in a bit of struggled humor. "Why do you think it's your name." He challenged nonchalantly and she narrowed her eyes in a playful glare.         
        He leaned in close her face and hesitated, his aura moving about every inch of her face, giving her a feeling she'd never felt with anyone but him. She still hadn't decided whether it was one of negative or positive effect. "I call you alley cat because they've had it the hardest. They're forced to walk these mean streets day in day out, not because no one will take them in, but because they won't let themselves be captured. You try to grab at an alley cat, you get scratched. They know how the world works, and they wouldn't have it any other way..."
        He paused to intertwine his fingers in a strand of her messy hair. He continued, admiring the strand as she too took him in. "You see, when you mess with an alley cat.. there's only one way it can end. A lot of blood. A lot of pain. They leave cursing her, damning her to something worse. That's what happens with you."
        "I've never hurt anybody." She defended, only to his amusement. He threw his head back in laughter. "Oh but my sweet, you have. You hurt me every day. You hurt your co workers. You hurt everyone who's ever hurt you, and you enjoy it. That's why you do this. To prove to everyone around you, but most importantly yourself, that no matter how hard they try, no matter what they try to coax you with, you can never be tamed. You hurt the very concept of what society expects of you. You're an alley cat. You're my Alley-cat."
        Allison thought and thought about what to say next, but she was lost. She completely lost the upper hand. Would it always be this way with him? What had he done to her? She knew. He had studied her just as deeply as she studied him, and they both knew; she had finally met her match.