Disclaimer of which I will only do once: Don't own Gotham nor Dr. Crane (though I would thoroughly enjoy it if I did), or any other thing from the Batman Begins movie, other Batman movies, and the comics as well. Melissa though, she's mine- So is every other character that I invited. Hands off.

Author's Note This is about Crane's intentions, my Melissa, and the intertwining of different things. Pasts, thoughts, "morals", etc. I had said before that the movie doesn't really change my story at all, my fic isn't really pre, post, or during the movie- but I changed my mind. The fanfic is now pre-movie.

(Chapters that I've already got here through chapter nine are revised so that there are no-or at least less typos and errors.)

Chapter One:

Birthday Surprise

Her navy blue eyes snapped opened in an instant, her heart and mind were racing. Each breath she took shook uncontrollably. Her arms and legs were shaking and would not stop shaking even though she mentally screamed at herself to stop. She stared at the ceiling, afraid to look elsewhere, afraid to even move an inch. She listened for a noise, any noise that was coming from inside her room.

Faint ramblings, wails, and shouts could be heard from down the hall, but nothing from inside her room. She let out a sigh that was crossed with a sob as tears stung at her eyes. The girl did not belong here with all of these others. The girl was still a mere girl...wasn't she?

Her eyes looked to the window that had bars across it, to the black night sky, dotted with twinkling stars. She grabbed the blankets closer to her body, pulling them up to her chin. If it was midnight, or after, she was eighteen. She'd be able to walk out of this 'institution'. But if was before midnight, she'd still be seventeen, under her parent's, actually foster-parent's, control. They placed her here, into Arkham Asylum.

What was so wrong with her? Well she'd often ask that question herself. According to the 'doctors', she was bipolar to quite a degree, greatly paranoid, was a compulsive liar, and was constantly thinking of suicide. That earned her to spend her last three months of being a seventeen-year-old here. But she could think of excuses for everything that was 'wrong' with her. The bipolar disorder could be genetics (though she didn't know if anyone else in her family had it) and so it wasn't really her fault. Paranoia- well she had nearly been raped in some filthy back alley two years ago- that could cause anyone to be paranoid. And a compulsive liar? She was seventeen years old- it wasn't unusual to lie. Thoughts of killing herself- what else was she to think of? Death would be better than being locked up in an institution.

Her breathing slowly began to return to normal, and her body wasn't so tense. She pushed the blankets down to her stomach as she closed her eyes again. A smile, an actual smile, reached her rosy lips. Tomorrow, she could walk out of this hellhole, into the bright sunshine. She'd be able to wear t-shirts and torn jeans again. The breeze would blow through her raven black hair, which now fell just past her shoulders, as she walked down the streets of Gotham. One of the girl's friends already promised her that she could move into her apartment with her.

Everything would be much better. No more silent conferences with her doctor, no more shots, no more pills, and no more of anything else horrible. She only had to get through the night and everything would be so much better. She could go on and live her own life. After getting enough money, she'd move out of her friend's apartment and move far away from Gotham. Far, far away. It wasn't that she hated the city, but lately the city was getting worse and worse and she knew she could do better.

A slight noise reached her ears but this time when she heard it, she sat bolt upright in bed.

It sounded like someone was writing something. It made her think of the sessions with her psychologist. He'd ask her tons of questions, but she'd only stare out of his office window, not bothering to answer. Why should she? She wasn't crazy nor she did belong in the asylum. She knew that. Why couldn't he realize it? But somehow, he'd get her to look at him at his face, and she'd feel smaller than she was. It felt like she should answer all of his questions without second thought. It made her feel like she was a servant to him.

It was something in his blue eyes. His eyes entranced her in a shocking way. His eyes made her heart jump. Not in the way that she would melt if he looked to her- her heart jumped in an indescribable way. In a way like he could control any and everything. Like he had a plan and answer to everything. It was as if he was analyzing every word that she said, but in a way more than any psychologist could or should.

She turned to look into a corner of her room, into the corner where the simple chair was at. The chair was usually empty, Melissa wouldn't even sit in it, but it was occupied now. She squinted her eyes to see the person who was hidden in the shadow. Why would a doctor be here now? She caused no trouble and certainly not in the middle of the night.

"Ah, I see you're finally awake, Melissa." His voice came in a calm, pleased tone.

"Yeah..." She mumbled, utterly confused.

"Happy Birthday, Millie."

Millie? Only few called her that. Her friends...and her doctor. He thought that it would help her relax and trust him in their sessions.

"Dr. Crane?" She ventured slowly, softly, nervously.

"How about one last appointment before you're checked-out?"

For a moment she said silent, her brows furrowed in confusion, her lips in a frown. "Right now?" She asked while she putting her feet on the floor, grabbing her robe from the floor and throwing it over her gown.

"Yes... just one last one, in my office. It will help me to see how much you've changed during these months. " He explained calmly, in a level voice. He stood up, putting a small notebook in the pocket of his white lab-coat. He held out his arm, motioning toward the door.

Melissa stood there, staring at him, then cleared her throat and shrugged, "Okay." She mumbled as she started to walk to the door. She stopped right before it, waiting for him to step in front of her to unlock it.

'Why would he-'

Her thoughts were cut off as she felt his arm around her waist, pulling her back to him. His other hand, which was holding a damp cloth, went to her mouth. She panicked and tried to pull his hand away from her mouth, trying to kick his legs, but he had a steady grip. 'Stay Awake, Stay Awake!' Her mind screamed to the rest of body.

"This will benefit everyone, just wait and see." He whispered softly into her ear, just before everything fell into blackness.