A/N: woo... the last chapter was a bit intense. this one is a bit easier. enjoy...

~My blood wants to say hello to you,

My fears want to get inside of you,

My soul is so afraid to realize,

How very little there is left of me,

And I want you...~

~Nine Inch Nails~

Red had brought in Peach's supply bag and several bottles of water. He set them next to the couch and then sat across from her.

"The boss will be okay."

She looked over at the stranger sitting next to her. "What happened? The newscast stopped after Joker shot the cameraman."

Red took another drink from the beer he had. He looked over at her.

"Batman showed, Then Joker let an old lady go, He called and had me get the car ready to go. I was waiting and heard the explosion. Then the boss dove into the back seat."

She rolled her eyes. "Sounds about right." She said.

She grabbed the remote and turned on the news.

"Reports are coming in, it seems as if all remaining hostages were killed in the explosion. Six officers have been injured and are being treated as we speak. There is no sign of The Batman or The Joker, but it is believed that neither were killed in the explosion."

Peach shook her head and muted the TV. "Well that explains the gunk that was stuck to him. He looked awful." She let a strained laugh escape her.

The man laughed along with her. She looked over at him. "Red? That the name he gave you?"

"Yea, it's better than the one my folks gave me." He said finishing his beer.

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yea." He looked at her. Her blood streaked face and stained hands. His eyes locked on her hand. "You two are married huh?"

"Yep." She flashed the ring she wore at him. "Legal and everything, believe it or not."

He grinned. "I believe it, the boss has a way with ladies that I just don't understand."

Peach narrowed her eyes, "Excuse me?"

"Don't get me wrong, I've never seen him give any lady a second thought, except you of course. When we did that job in the alley, that Martha lady. She was upset, hysterical. Boss sat with her, talking softly. Then she suddenly was all doe eyed towards him all the way until he shot her."

"Was she?" Peach asked, knowing the jealousy was uncalled for. It had taken her forever to get him to see her as a woman.

"Yea, he can be very charismatic when he wants to be. He didn't raise his voice at all, she just listened and did everything he asked."

"Yea, he's a real fucking Casanova." She spat.

"I didn't mean to upset you, I just meant pretty girls seem to like him, face paint and all."

She relaxed knowing it was ridiculous to get this upset. It was, she was sure, a mix of pregnancy hormones and the emotional event she had just lived through.

"Yea, well, any girl I catch looking his way will find it harder to do when I cut out their eyes then feed them to my dogs. He belongs to me, and I don't share."

The man chuckled. "I understand, he's not my type anyway. I like big girls." He said, causing her to laugh.

She felt very tired, the rush of the surgery she had performed left her. She fought to keep her eyes open. It was time to call it a night.

She turned back to Red. "You are welcome to stay, but out in the guest house. I will walk you there, and come get you in the morning. We had dogs and they hate everyone."

"Understood."

She walked him out after putting on her robe and grabbing the keys for the guest house. She let him into the small house, knowing her safe room would be left undisturbed. "Make yourself at home." She said leaving him.

She moved back into the house, stripping back down to her sleepware. She turned off the lights and moved to snuggle into the bed next to her husband.

"Jealousy looks beautiful on you." He said, his voice sounding rough.

She threw back the covers. "You asshole, you scared me."

He looked up at her, "Water?"

She moved to the bottles Red had brought in. She handed him one and helped him sit up slightly to drink it. Once he had downed the entire thing, he looked back at her, tossing the empty bottle into the dark room.

He just looked at her, she decided to speak. "You like the jealous look, huh? I think you would have loved me covered up to my elbows in your blood."

He chuckled, "You tease, getting me all worked up when I am too useless to do anything about it."

She laughed, "Do you want pain meds?"

"No." he said pulling her back to him. She snuggled into his body, now a bit warmer, when the clock chimed. It was Midnight.

"Happy New Years" she said, kissing him.

"Mhm." He mumbled back.

"Get some sleep."

She snuggled into him, her back pressed to his front. He grunted into her hair and was asleep almost instantly. Peach pulled the blanket back over herself and closed her eyes.

Joker woke to the sound of the dogs barking, wanting to be let into the house. He cracked open an eye and looked around the room. He was alone, on a mattress, in Peach's living room. Neat.

He tried to sit up and fell back instantly. His entire lover back was a bundle of raw nerve endings. He could feel the tightness of the stitches in his lower back.

He must have made a sound, causing his wife to come into the room. She still had a few smears of blood on her face, but she was smiling at him.

"You need help up?"

He frowned. "Yea."

She moved over in front of him and helped pull him to his feet slowly. His entire body fought him. Once he was finally standing, he felt much better. He watched her walk over and into the kitchen. She called out to him.

"Come eat breakfast."

He followed the sound of her voice and moved into the kitchen. Once he got going it wasn't so bad. The pain keeps you alert. He saw Red sitting at the nook, eating breakfast.

"Morning boss." He said between bites of food.

Joker walked to the island and stood, waiting. "Have a seat." She said.

"I'd rather stand." He told her.

"Suit yourself." she set down a stack of pancakes and eggs and bacon, his stomach let out a huge rumble. He started eating. She set a glass of milk in front of him.

Joker hated to eat in front of strangers, but he was too hungry to care today. He finished the plate of food and all of the milk.

He watched Red put his plate in the sink. "If you don't need me I will head home."

Joker raised an eyebrow at him. "Go."

He turned to Peach "Thanks for breakfast."

"Not a problem." She said as she poured two glasses of orange juice.

Joker watched Red leave, then turned his attention back to Peach. She was holding a glass of orange juice out to him. He turned his nose up to it.

"Drink it, you lost a lot of blood and need to replenish."

He took the glass and, with his eyes locked on hers, he drank the glass in one go. He set the cup down and looked at her. "Happy?"

She smiled at him "Extremely."

"Have you eaten yet?"

"Yea, I have been up a while." She said as she sipped her juice.

Joker looked at her, he slight curve of her belly. That strange feeling moved through him again. She started to load the dishwasher when the dogs started to whine again. She turned and let them in.

They both darted to Joker's side, he pet them as best as he could. If he moved to far in one direction he could feel his stitches pull. Once the dogs had calmed, they were pacing the kitchen, nose to the ground.

"Let's change your bandage and get you cleaned up."

Joker smiled at her, "Where to doc?"

"You think you could make it upstairs?"

"I have survived worse wounds than this." He said. They started to go up the stairs. Yea he had to move slower than he normally would, but he did it. They moved into the restroom. She directed him to stand in front of the sinks.

She was behind him, pulling the bandage from his skin. Joker watched her in the mirror as she doctored up his back. Her face was so serious, he didn't want her worrying about him.

"Tell it to me straight doc. Do you think it is going to scar?"

She laughed. "I hate to be the one to break the bad news to you, but I would give up any dreams of being a back model."

He looked at her raising an eyebrow. "Back model? Really?"

She giggled. "Yep."

She turned and walked to the shower. He watched her as she started the water and tested the temperature. She turned to face him now.

"Come on, let's get you cleaned up, and back to resting. Doctor's orders."

He walked over and pushed his pajama pants down, wincing as he moved. He stepped into the shower and let the hot water pour over his head. It felt good everywhere but his lower back. He felt her cold hands touch him. She was helping him wash up.

He chuckled and leaned forward to rest his hands on the wall. He likes her attention, maybe too much. He let her continue, if it made her feel better to try to fix him, he would let her do whatever she wanted. Her soft hands felt so nice, if he wasn't afraid he'd pass out, he would fuck her here against the wall.

He turned to face her, she started to wash his chest. He moved his hands up, pushing them into her hair and tightened his grip. He pulled her head back and looked at her, her eyes were almost ready to spill over with tears.

He moved his face in front of hers. His nose brushing against hers. "You did good." He said.

She let out a sob she had been holding on for too long. He was proud at how well she could keep her composure. She smiled up at him while the tears slid down her face.

He kissed her. A soft kiss, like the ones he knew she liked. He watched her eyes flutter shut and kiss him back. They stayed like that, just kissing for a few minutes. Peach finally pulled away, her lips swollen beautifully. She smiled up at him.

"Let's finish up and go watch the aftermath of your fun."

Joker let his hands fall from her hair and smile. "I'd nearly forgotten."

She smiled and moved out to grab him a towel. They didn't have many left. She moved back to the shower as he finished washing his face and hair. She handed him the towel and left to the bedroom to get dressed.

Joke followed behind her, watching her as she got dressed. She was starting to get a slight roundness to her lower belly. He couldn't picture her fat bellied and waddling around. He moved to get dressed. Pushing the disturbing thought from his mind.

He decided on a button up shirt to make it easier on him to get dressed. The pants were tough to get up, but he left them unbuttoned to keep from rubbing his wound.

"Ready?" she asked.

"Yea, let's go."

The trip down the stairs was much easier than the trip up had been. Once in the living room, Peach put another bandage over the stitches. They both sat on the couch and Joker turned the TV on. He was more than happy that his 'Party in the park" was on every station.

Batman and his own picture were all over the news. He listened in awe at the stories these reporters had come up with. It was a beautiful sight.