Ah, Arkham Asylum. Home away from home. Or maybe home within home? What was 'home' to him, really? Gotham itself, perhaps, but if he had to pick a spot, Arkham and Amusement Mile probably topped the list. The point is, the Joker is not upset to be back in Arkham. Bat-assisted trips here are just normal parts of the cycle for him.

And it gives him the lovely opportunity to screw with some starry-eyed new psychologist who thinks they can figure him out. You make your own fun in a place like this, and he just loves stringing the shrinks along. He's told plenty of wild stories, and he feels like he's made a number of them believable! Hell, he must've, because some of them were believed. It's prime entertainment, really.

Thing is, this trip's doctor? A bit... different. Somehow. Hits a different note. Called him on the stories, to start, so they've actually reviewed his files rather than just marching in with a head full of preconceptions and 'fresh ideas'. Asks questions - even asks the right questions, sometimes. Heck, he's actually had to think, a time or two, talking to them! It's... interesting. Refreshing? Intriguing. He's almost enjoying talking to them. Which is new. Something to unpack later - or probably not.

Either way, when they started showing up at his cell a bit more often to just... talk? Well, he's playing along more than he usually might. Especially when the idea of 'games' was floated.

So here he is, cross-legged on the floor, back-to-back with his doctor save for the thick glass separating them, smiling thoughtfully down at his hand of cards. Cards were easy to pass back and forth through the slot in the door - a practical choice.

Doc had called it 'rapport-building'. Off-the-books, off-the-record, informal. A chance to just relax and get to know each other, 'build trust'. Well, he doesn't need the therapy-speak to enjoy a card game. And, hey, it helps to have an entertaining playing mate.

"Go fish. Got any... 3's?"