Chapter 5: The Jester's hat

Work had been long that day she had had to work overtime, but finally, her 14-hour shift was over. She headed home, trying to keep the bike steady as she stopped in the traffic jam before a red light, Gotham at 5pm was a nightmare. She put the kickstand down as she stared down the endless stream of traffic.

She peered around and there in the window of a shop was an under bust waist coat with a corseted back, in a dark shade of green. It was gorgeous. Scarlett looked down the traffic again it was not moving. She kicked the kick stand up and pulled the bike onto the curb, before turning off the engine and pulling off her helmet. She entered the shop and looked around. It was a run down shop that clearly took on a strange variety of clothing.

She approached the old woman at the counter and asked about the waistcoat, it was £15 dollars. So without another thought Scarlett bought it.

"It came with this," said the woman pulling out a green and purple striped jesters hat with bells on the bottom of each leg.

"You can have it for free," said the woman and Scarlett smiled and took the hat.

She left quickly after that placing the items she had bought into the seat of her bike before heading off through the stationary traffic of Gotham's rush hour, this is why she had a bike opposed to a car.

Though most people would be stuck for a while Scarlett got home reasonably quickly and headed inside exhausted. She pushed the door opened. Strangely it wasn't locked or shut, so warily she entered her flat.

"Puddin" she called her cat as she could hear him purring.

"Hello, Jester," said an all too familiar voice and she looked around the corner of the door to see the Joker sat happily on her sofa with her cat in his lap. She sighed heavily and dumped the bag with her waistcoat and hat onto the kitchen counter.

"How did you get in here," she asked as the Joker looked at her from his seat.

"Through the door," he said simply as though breaking into someone's house was the easiest thing in the world. She didn't even want to know how he knew where she lived and so avoided the question entirely.

"What did you get, Jester?" he asked as he stood, Puddin jumping from his lap and onto the floor, he pulled the corseted waistcoat from the bag and wolf whistled.

"Care to show me what it looks likes on?" he asked fingering the material and Scarlett couldn't help the blush that came to her cheeks.

"Not right now, maybe another time," she said coyly and he raised his eyebrows at her.

"Did you want a drink or anything?" she asked yawning somewhat as she pulled the fridge door open.

"No" he replied simply and she heard him switch the TV on.

"The robbery of Gotham National Bank is still under investigation and Gotham's police force had this to say," said the news reporter on the TV and Scarlett looked up.

"So what did you do with all that money," she asked and Joker looked up from the TV to her.

"Bought this suit," he said simply looking down at his new outfit.

"The criminals in this town are only interested in money, Gotham deserves a better class of criminal and I'm going to give it to them," he said turning back to the TV, Scarlett only nodded, now that would be something to behold.

She left him where he was and made her way into the bedroom to change.

"Now Jester what is this?!" came his voice loudly and she peered around her bedroom door at him. To see him holding up the Jesters hat she was given, she chuckled before pulling on some jogging bottoms and heading out to the living room again.

"Got it free with the waistcoat," she said simply.

"I like it," he said like a child at Christmas, as she approached he reached over and pushed it onto her head. He took a step back and looked at it on her.

"Yep ah, I like it," he said grinning and she only laughed as she pulled the ridiculous thing from her head and through it back onto the counter.

As she moved past him to sit on the sofa, she swore she felt his hand move along her side, but when she looked at him his eyes were fixed to the TV again.

She took a seat and looked back over at him and he grinned before his face went blanked and his eyes became sad. The look on his face riled something in side of her and she pushed herself closer to him.

"Do you think I'm a monster?" he asked his face serious, she resisted the urge to touch him..

"No. You're just ahead of the curve" she replied with a smile and his grin soon returned.

After that, though Scarlett was close the pair did not speak much or touch at all. They laughed together when a news report came on about the explosion at the fountain, the report saying no culprits had been identified but witnesses had been urged to step forward.

Not long after that Scarlett's 14 hour shift had finally caught up with her and she struggled to keep her eyes open. She fought off sleep three times before it finally consumed her and she slid back into The Joker's chest.

He looked down at the woman on top of him strangely. He wasn't sure what kept him coming back every time, maybe it was that they had so much in common or maybe it was because of her beauty but either way she was his now whether she liked it or not.

Her fluff ball waltzed up to the side of the soda and meow softly as Scarlett sighed happily in her sleep, he reached down and scooped up the animal holding it in front of his face.

"What do you think?" he asked the animal who simply stared back at him dumbly.

"Think your mom will be any good?" he asked his eyes lingering on the woman sleeping on him again.

"Think I can keep her?" he asked.

The animal made no response, so he dropped it on the floor and picked up the remote again. Scarlett moved hugging herself closer to him and he sighed heavily, if she kept moving that close to him it was sure to evoke other responses from his body.

After an hour he gave up on the channels and Scarlett was fully asleep now, he carefully lifted her head up as he stood from the seat. He laid her back down and watched her for a few seconds before he grabbed the jesters hat from the side and placed it on her head, before he quickly left closing the door after him, with Scarlett still sleeping soundly.