icebergloungers | Lockdown

"So you wanna tell me what has you so freaked out, son?"

Jon sat down by Edward and frowned at him, trying to piece together what he was missing. He didn't have any food on his tray, he just had water. He wasn't hungry, it usually took him a day or two to build up hunger. That and the food here was suspicious and garbage so he didn't really fancy any of it.

He looked around the room to make sure there was no unknown variable before settling on the logical conclusion. "It ain't that fucking gorilla of a man, is it? Cause he ain't scary. He's just a bully. Got plenty of those in life, don't we?"

Surely that wasn't the answer.

"Nah, Jonny. There's more to this one, I'm afraid. He's a bully, and he's a moron, but..." Edward shrugged, having a tray with food in front of him, but not feeling overly like eating. For one thing, it really was suspicious and garbage. For another, the vibes weren't right. "He's good at it. Quite adept, the bully. For someone so clearly intellectually handicapped, he has a remarkable talent for cruelty. He almost got to the Joker. Got to Delite. Harley's behaving right now so she doesn't get dragged here."

Which was saying something. Short of a serious falling out, both Harley and Delite always gravitated to the Joker, whether by freeing him or by following him inside. "He hones in on any weakness and then he's like a dog with a bone. Pamela's subdued because of how he's threatening the plants. As for me..." Well. Edward grinned with a shrug. "I shut up sometimes. For a bit. You know how I hate solitary."

"He's a bully, he ain't that scary. Back in Georgia, I had a heap of boys like that. That ain't as scary as they look, they just -- like you say, it's a dog with a bone. It's not that bad. You ride out the worst and hit them where it hurts." Sooner or later, guys like this, they always crumpled. Paper men always did. Acting like they were made of real shit but they never were. And he didn't fancy this Lyle asshole as anything special. He sighed and tilted his head back, watching the way everyone here was just kind of ... meh.

There was a real off mood. Usually by now, the Joker fucking threw something or there was a weird tea party thing from Jervis but no. The vibe was seriously wrong. Jonathan hated it.

"You know you can lodge a complaint. They don't do shit for cruelty but they really don't like the slurs, the higher ups. I know, I know, tattling is like base level but it'd at least get him under investigation if you're that scared. Just need a witness or two." And Jonathan would be one. Hell, he'd report this shit later today during therapy. Leland would never stand for this kind of language.

"Jonathan, if you can handle him for all of us, be my guest. Personally, I'm not as bothered as some of our more... fragile compatriots." Such as Jervis, sitting there trembling and looking around himself fearfully. Or Delite, who was sitting next to the Joker but didn't seem to react to anything, which might account for the Joker's low mood. "All I can tell you is that he's right at bull's eye for several big names, once there's a riot."

Only, rioting had become a much more difficult event to set into motion. He lowered his voice a little. "I managed to help Waylon get out of dodge, but he caught me on the way back. Now he really wants to break my fingers, I was just lucky Leland was there."

Because with all fingers broken, even Edward's abilities to escape or, well, do much of anything might reach their limit.

"He can't do that shit but it's kinda funny that he thinks he can."

Jonathan laughed and leaned back, wishing he had his smokes or a good bourbon. Halloween was worth it but what a fucking trade-off he had to do every time. Freedom was something so beautiful and he had to give it up every November. It was tough. Tough three years. Jonathan sighed tiredly and tilted his head back. "I'm working on a diagnosis. Will it piss him off if I tell him? I think it will. Guys like that, they hate psychology. Should I piss him off? I know I shouldn't but I ain't ever been able to fucking help it."

He pissed off every bully in Georgia when he was a boy. Sometimes cause he wanted to, sometimes cause they felt his very being triggered them. "Whstever. I don't care. You know what's more interesting?" Jonathan gestured at Edward's food. "The fuck is that dish supposed to be? Pasta or soup?"

"Chili, allegedly." Edward didn't seem particularly convinced, which probably accounted for why he hadn't had any of it yet. "I've been cooped up here too long, I'm starting to get homesick for my kitchen. Any food that's not mush. You know, those simple pleasures."

Really had to work on finding a way out of here. Perhaps if he could reach Oswald, maybe a semi-legal route would be easier to follow as long as Lyle Bolton was sneaking around here. "Anyway, you are going to piss him off. You're noticeably intelligent, you wear glasses, you use words with more than two syllables and you are not 'from here', someone like that is easy to set off. Plus, last but not least, I happen to know that you're also quite the provocative little shit."

He considered it a positive, for the most part. "Just watch your back, Jon. He doesn't play fair."

"You think I am? Gosh, that one hurts, Ed." Jonathan clutched his chest and then rolled his eyes, knowing that he was quite a provocative piece of shit. Well, that was the way it was for him and he was going to provoke as much as he could. Hence. Jonathan patted himself down and pulled out a piece of paper he stole from the admin desk when he had to register his medical notes today and greet Leland - and, the real kicker, the pencil he stole.

Yeah, pencils had a hardcore ban since the Joker took a guard's eye out but Jonathan didn't care, he had to quickly make some notes because he had a good toxin idea. That and he was really fucking bored.

"This Halloween, my toxin induced seizures and that's not what I want. I thought maybe it was dosage but not everyone did so I'm worried it's reacting with SSRIs. They're pretty fucking common so it makes sense, statistically speaking." And he didn't need that sort of reaction, it wasn't even fear. Just messy.

"I'm on SSRIs." As Edward was sure Jonathan knew, for obvious reasons. "Have been for a long time, on and off. But I don't remember having a seizure, any of the times I was an unfortunate victim to the devilish machinations of the illustrious Master of Fear." Edward said it good-naturedly and laid it on a little thick. Well. There was a pencil. A pencil and paper. Any possibility of Jonathan sharing the bounty made cooperation worthwhile. Even if he had to listen to yet another lecture about fear toxin and everything related to it. Jonathan's very limited interests made him a chore at times, but at least it also led to a certain element of predictability.

"Is it something new in your current formula or did you maybe manage to dose me just around the times when I wasn't taking my meds properly? I'd have to have a think on that."

"I made a tweak before the big day, I added a chemical that is similar in it's make up to benzodiazepine and that can cause generalized tonic-clonic seizure when in too high concentrate." Jonathan was scribbling formulas now as he spoke, just trying to run through what he knew and what Edward was likely taking. "You have fluoxetine? That's pretty good for combatting so -- yes, yes, that's what I should add. Lower the lorazepam too."

He added a few extra lines to his formula, lessening the benzo and upping the fluoxetine. He frowned a little and then looked up at Edward.

"Don't think I don't know that you want the paper and the pencil." He knew that was the cause of flattery and interest, instead of total dismissal. "I'll save you the back of the paper but I probably have to slip the pencil back before it gets found to be missing. Once they know, I'm in deep shit, son."

"Hence why you should want to absolve yourself of all wrongs by giving the pencil to me, I'll die for your sins, daddy-o." He had done an admirable job of ignoring a lot of 'sons' so far, Edward had found, but finally he could not help himself any more. Still, the back of the paper was better than nothing, so he felt in good spirits about that. Might be just what he needed to set some things into motion. "Seems like you're off to a promising start." And bound to talk formulas and nothing else for a while.

Edward looked around, frowning. "Maybe I should check in with the Joker before we all part ways again. It's not right when he's not laughing." And there was barely a giggle coming from that direction.

Jonathan laughed at the idea of giving up the pencil and looked around before he slipped the pencil into his uniform and started folding up the paper. He would give Ed the back in a week or so. Maybe. He tilted his head to the side as he watched the Joker, mostly sitting there, looking beyond pissed off. So that was the Joker angry. It was actually kind of unsettling. And strangely sexy... or was that just him? Probably.

"Delite ain't looking happy neither. It's a strange one, ain't it? Feel we might be a tad obligated, as colleagues and all."

Though Jon wasn't sure how much he wanted to poke the clown. "Don't like seeing my former patient's so messed up."

"These are interesting times, Jonathan, and that's not always a good thing," Edward stated ominously, before getting up, abandoning most of his gross excuse of a lunch, and heading over to the Joker. Who, yes, was looking very much angry, which was more than a little terrifying.

Still, it was something he should at least somewhat keep an eye on. And, who knew? Jonathan was - at least had been - Delite's therapist. Maybe he could help, that'd be a change. "Do you want my fruit cup, Joker?"

He came bearing gifts, setting the cup down in front of him. "I'm watching my girlish figure, you know how it goes. Jonathan's back, he wanted to say hello. Hey, Delite."

That was a pretty civil greeting for the two of them, though Delite simply blinked and then rested his head against the Joker's shoulder. Quite the subdued performance from that manic pixie dream boy.

"The fruit always tastes stringy in those things." The Joker yawned lazily and then turned his eyes to Edward. They were a stark green, unnatural that they were, and they held little mirth. The Joker wasn't in the best mood for multiple reasons, so many factors that had built up and now with Harley away and Delite out of it, he didn't have anything to rally him up. He had one want right now and he had no way to get it. And that was irritating. He looked at Jonathan's bruised face and he smiled for the first time. "Batsy had a pop at you, spooky?"

"Yeah, he stomped on my face." Jonathan clarified as he came over to the pair and dragged a chair over, watching Delite carefully as he considered what was the best course. "Hey, sweetheart. You looking awfully blue. That ain't good look on you. Come on, son. You gotta look at me, okay?"

Jonathan watched Delite and the Joker considered it for a few moments before gently nudging Delite. He wanted something to bust through.

Looking at Edward, the Joker frowned. "You notice the lights at night?" They turned off five minutes earlier. He hated that. Very annoying/

"Yeah, I notice. It's in the morning too." He assumed the Joker did not know that, he'd never been a morning person. Edward noticed and it may only be ten minutes in total, but it itched under his skin anyway. No wonder everyone was on edge. "I think open communication might become key here." If this kept escalating, perhaps for once they had to go to the bat for help. To Oswald? Whatever was less humiliating.

Delite did look at Jonathan, whether it was because of his words or as a result of the nudge. He gave a wave and then, quite suddenly, he moved forward and hugged Jonathan, letting out a few sobs.

"...is he on anything?" Edward felt he had to ask. Although, he supposed in Delite's case not being on anything would almost be more unusual.

"Oh. Oh no... uh, no, son. Come on." Oh no. Not a hug. Jonathan was very uneasy with physical contact, he had no idea what to do with it. His face was so horrified that the Joker finally laughed because fuck, it was so funny.

"Spooky ain't a cuddler, sweetums." The Joker smirked and then turned to Edward, openly shrugging his shoulders. "The doc is trying something new on him but I don't think it's working. I told him to can the stuff. He's so emotional, I hate it. So boring."

"Hey, hey." Jonathan finally managed to prey Delite back from him a little, reaching out to touch his cheek and try to focus him up. "That was, uh, yeah. Look, son, what's got you so upset? Medication or something else? If it's meds, it's fine. We can solve that today."

"I guess he makes a good vi--" Maybe that wasn't the nicest thing to say, so Edward stopped himself from saying any more. Sure, he was not Delite's biggest fan, but it really was not his fault that he was a person with a fragile psyche locked up here, when their number one problem happened to be ableist, racist, homophobic and a bunch of other fun adjectives that seemed to make it so much easier for him to punch down. "He'll be back to his true self soon enough, I'm sure. Always bounces back, doesn't he?" Kind of annoying, generally.

But for now, Delite was focusing on Jonathan, perhaps those therapist vibes working, although lucidity was perhaps a bit much to expect here. Ever, in Edward's humble opinion, for all that Jonathan had told him he had had proper conversations with him before. "It's locked down," Delite told Jonathan now, rather insistently, "He'll lock it down. Throw away the key."

"Enigmatic," Edward Nygma commented fittingly, "Yet on the nose."

"Is this about that dumb ape? Christ, boy, come on. You're dating the fucking Joker! He can do worse to you than that idiot can... uh, no offence." Well, offence but he didn't really fancy fighting the Joker right now. The Joker held his hands up and then shrugged.

"Nah, fair. But I don't know, Jon, you're out the loop. That ape, he's --" the Joker blew out his cheeks as he tried to think of the word. "Reminds me of this one time I fell through a church got pinned under this heavy golden -- I think it was a saint. He had some serious abs, I know that. It's unmovable. It's temporary but it's rigid."

The Joker just needed a weapon or a chance and it would be over but things were fucking tight lately. Boooooring. Looking at Edward, the Joker grinned. "If he gets up in my face again, I will have to bite his nose off."

"Okay, well-- you know what, no. Illustrated my point." He reached out and lightly shook Delite. "Your boyfriend thinks biting someone's nose off is a good idea. Seriously, son, you're gonna be fine."

"He would do it for me. He loves me so much." Delite claimed it and he did smile in his rather typically besotted way for the Joker, feeling quite mollified by the idea of a nose being bitten off in his honour. However, the mirth didn't quite return to his eyes. "His hands are like shovels. I don't know if he feels pain..."

He certainly didn't seem to. Edward sighed, pushing his hair back and looking over at Jonathan. "An immovable object, stopping our unstoppable forces, it would seem. However, I'm certain that we shall find a way to prevail. Come on, Delite, how long can you really go without annoying me?"

Ignoring Edward, Delite focused on Jonathan. "I missed you, doc. You were always the best. Those other docs are all quacks. Doubt they even went to therapist school all proper."

"There is no therapy school, it's a psychology degree and a lot of boring extras." Jonathan explained as he reached out to brush Delite's hair from his face, smiling softly at the boy. "Now listen to your doctor. You want sertraline and quetiapine, except nothing else until you talk to me again and make sure that you tell Leland you were on it before and you want to stay on it. Don't get to lecturing her or nothing, don't be rude. Just say what you need."

Jonathan stood by his diagnosis and medication plan for Delite. Hell, for all the rogues. Except Harvey, he was really just dicking with him when he was medicating him. Never liked the guy.

"Okay, back off my bae, spooky." The Joker wrapped his arms around Delite and glared at Jonathan, who stood up and backed off right away. "Thanks for the visit, gentlemen. Kindly fuck off."

"You got it. Ed? Let's walk." And get away from this mess before it got too real.

"Quetiapine?" Edward asked him once they were a few steps away, figuring that would be safe enough. "That makes sense. I guess his diagnosis isn't that hard to figure out. Although he told me once that he's sane, just crazy in love." And, boy, was he ever.

"You see what I mean though, don't you? The Joker is not happy and that's never good. Between him and Harvey, I'm not sure who'll attempt a murder first. Too bad that idiot is built like a brickhouse." How was that for karma? "It's a good look though, you being ever so professional. Maybe I should go have therapy with you some time, fix my pretty head."

"I could help you a lot but you come to therapy with me and you always just fuck around, don't you? Lying and telling stories. You ever feel like being real and getting some help, I'll fix as much of you as I can. Though I don't think our type needs a fix, just a gentle nudge sometimes." Edward had an amazing mind, he wouldn't want to tamper with it too much but he did think a low level anti-psychotic and a better SSRI would really help him. And maybe some long-term therapy.

"Delite might be playing games too but he shows everything cause he's the sort. I can help him by playing with him. If I play with you, you win." And that was the impasse he couldn't get over.

Turning his head, he looked over at Jervis and then raised an eyebrow. "They upped his dosage again, I can tell by his pupils. Fucking hacks. He needs low level twice a day or he'll just end up worse." Jon tutted. "This place is awful without me."

"Ah, yes. It was just bliss for everyone when you were in charge," Edward mocked, ever so gently, putting an arm around Jonathan's shoulders briefly. He just liked to test it for himself, just to see how annoyed Jonathan was by his touch specifically. He had a theory that he could get him to accept it, if he just kept slowly introducing more and more of it. "I promise, doc, one of these days I'll come by and I won't fuck around, then you can nudge me any which way."

Maybe there would still be some fucking around, Edward wouldn't want to have to guarantee it. "Bolton, he really likes solitary. That's what got to Delite. No contact and no witnesses. As for the meds, I'm fairly sure that is simply the usual incompetence. He doesn't control the doctors." So far, at least. "He just hates us crazy crooks."

"I always liked solitary." Jonathan mused idly and he did shrug Edward off but slower than normal. So, clearly, he was getting used to it. It just wasn't his favourite still.

He walked towards the table and eyed up the guards he knew, wondering what they thought of an asshole like Bolton. Some of them probably loved how strict he was, he knew the way half of these guys felt about the 'crazies' as they called them. It was an interesting change, he did think it would be fun to play around with, if nothing else.

"I'm just hoping he gets his nose bitten off soon. He got under everyone's skin here, it's real fucking weird."

"It's interesting, isn't it? Unnerving, but ever so interesting. Quite the puzzle. I've been trying to figure it out. I'm sure your diagnosis will shed some light, Doctor Crane, but something about him has actually brought to my ever so resourceful mind something about those boring tangents you like to go off on every now and again." Edward sat down by the table, pushing the tray aside and pulling one leg up, so he could rest his head against his knee. He was drawing it out a little, perhaps, but it was so fun when he knew he'd be able to catch Jonathan's attention. "My theory, informed on by your niche expertise, is that there may be something not quite right with Mr Bolton's amygdala. A bit of malfunctioning. Underperformance. I'm curious to hear the expert's opinion eventually."

"I'll update you in a week. It's my first day, let's see what I can get out of the ape. I'm sure he's just a dumb moron who doesn't know to be scared." Jonathan mused as he sat beside Edward, just wondering where this would all go. It was fun, in some ways, but he didn't like to see Delite and Edward was so concerned and upset. He pulled out his paper and sighed. "I guess we'll see, eh?"

Well, as long as no one else hugged him, it couldn't really get worse, could it?

Lockdown

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