Must Love Hyenas

04: Awake

Harleen placed the two hyena pups on the chest of her patient, John Doe. They rolled and pounced on each other, nipping and playfully growling, but John didn't respond. Deciding to help things along, Harleen picked up John's hand and used it to poke one of the hyenas. The little animal responded by turning around and lightly biting down on one of the fingers. Harleen moved the hand back and forth in a tug-of-war, but her focus was on John, looking for a response. The man's eyes didn't move, only occasionally blinking, but the corner of his mouth turned up ever so slightly in the faintest hint of a smile.

A week passed, and Harleen continued to bring her babies to visit her patient. With each new day, he started showing more responsiveness, even going so far as to move one of his thumbs a little to pet one of them while they slept on his stomach. Harleen was elated for it seemed her plan to revive her mystery patient was working.

Halfway through the second week of his treatment, Harleen was feeling very good about John's progress. As darkness fell over the island, Harleen took the coat from her office in preparation to go home for the night, but she was interrupted. One of the orderlies barged in the door without knocking.

"Dr. Quinzel," the blond man stated. "You're needed immediately."

Not waiting for her acceptance, he took a firm hold of her upper arm and pulled her from the office, escorting her with a brisk pace to one of the detainment cells. She heard the screaming before they reached their destination.

Tearing free of her escort, Harleen raced the final distance to reach the cell and found the man tagged as John Doe on the floor while screaming his throat raw. Harleen considered in retrospect her earlier decision to release his restraints might not have been a good idea. She disregarded the protests of the other attendants nearby and opened the door with a swipe of her keycard. Entering the cell, she approached him. His eyes were closed and he thrashed violently when she touched his shoulder, forcing her to jump back.

"You better just let him work his way through this," one of the asylum guards suggested from outside. Harleen ignored him.

She maneuvered around John and waited for her opening. At the right moment, she dived between his arms to seize him by the shoulders. Despite his thin frame, he was surprisingly strong, and Harleen had to work quickly as his hands instantly went to her throat.

"You're safe! Wake up!" she shouted as his fingers began to tighten around her neck. She shook him hard as she didn't think she'd have time to be gentle.

His eyes opened, and he focused on her for the first time in days. The constricting grip of his fingers lessened as he seemed to recognize her. His hands released her, dropping limp to the floor. He rolled over, curled into a ball and began to sob uncontrollably.

Harleen didn't know if the outburst of emotion came from fear, sadness, or a culmination of whatever he'd been through, but to her, it didn't matter. Sitting down against the wall beside him, she pulled him into her lap and cradled his head in her arms, gently stroking his dark hair.

***

"What's his condition?" Dr. Cook inquired.  The big man removed a white cloth from the front pocket of his black pinstripe suit and absently cleaned the lenses of his glasses while waiting for her to answer.

"After the initial outburst last night, he lapsed back into his catatonic state," Harleen reported. She and the asylum administrator stood outside the patient's cell while discussing his case.

"Any ideas as to why?" Cook prompted.

"Only theories," Harleen answered. "It's possible he's ready to come out of it, but a portion of his mind isn't prepared to face reality. The trauma of whatever he experienced may be too much for him to confront. His progress so far has been exceptional, so I think, given time, he'll come out of it."

"Very well," Cook accepted, putting his glasses back on. "Keep me posted on his condition."

Harleen nodded and turned to the cell. Through the shatterproof glass window beside the door, she watched her patient as he stared blindly toward the ceiling. She had no doubt he would eventually come out of his catatonic state. She did wonder what condition his mind would be in when it happened.

***

Whether it was haunting memories or something else, John's continuing nightmares had become such an issue, Harleen had taken to spending her nights outside his cell, rushing in when the screaming started. Eventually, she abandoned waiting in the hall and sat in his room instead, holding his hand whenever he would begin to tremble or quake on his bed. Her presence did have a calming effect on him, and although the nightmares never abated, he did manage to sleep the night through.

***

Harleen opened her eyes, not knowing when she'd fallen asleep the night before. She instantly noticed her patient was awake as he was curled up on his bed where it was wedged into the corner as if trying to be as far from her as possible. His hands were cupped over his face, but enough of a gap existed for one eye to stare at her with unwavering intensity.

"Hello there," Harleen offered. She gently waved her fingertips at him in greeting. "How are you today?"

She hadn't been expecting a response as he'd never spoken beyond the screams during his nightmares, so it was surprising when he answered.

"I don't know," he said in a whisper, his voice raspy. "Where am I?"

"You're in Arkham Asylum, in Gotham City," Harleen explained, all traces of sleep fleeing from her as she came fully awake. "I'm Doctor Harleen Quinzel."

"Do you know who I am?" he asked her.

"You're my patient," Harleen answered. "We couldn't find anything to identify you. We've been calling you John Doe."

"Like a deer?" he questioned.

"We don't have to call you that," she told him with an understanding smile. "We could just call you John, or if you prefer, we can call you Mr. J."