Chapter 8
Wounded
"Hello there," the Joker said.
"What the hell are you doing here!?" Ana yelled in shock with her pistol still raised.
"Thought I'd drop by for a uh… visit," the Joker sarcastically replied in the dark.
"Why did you go up the fire escape? You broke my window!" Ana exclaimed. The Joker just grunted as he looked at the shattered glass and back at her. Ana couldn't believe this was happening, the Joker was standing in her kitchen.
"Surprise visit," he grinned as he opened out his arms.
"How did you get out?" Ana breathed, she could smell the same burnt toast and wet dog odour that was on her when she got home. In the darkness, she couldn't see the Joker's injuries.
"Same way you did, I imagine," the Joker sighed. "You know, if you're going to keep interrogating me with a gun to my head, you could at least turn on the light," The Joker flatly requested hauling Ana into the present as she became aware that she was pointing a gun at her Boss.
"Sorry," Ana mumbled as she lowered her pistol and flicked on the light in the lounge.
Her small 1-bedroom apartment lit up with a golden hue. She glanced towards the Joker, observing his typical purple ensemble charred and frayed. Fresh lesions on his forehead and jaw, along with dirt and grime, had smudged his warpaint, disfiguring the Clown Prince of Crime even more.
"Why are you here?" Ana asked, keeping her distance.
"I'm laying low," the Joker gazed around the apartment, as he swayed next to the broken window.
"Surely a better place would be at Charles' or Duncan's?" Ana asked as she leaned on her sofa.
"Well, Chuck has a wife, who I think might uh… notice me there. And Dunks is in between flats," the Joker shrugged.
"He is?" Ana asked.
"You are the only one smart enough to have an apartment under a fake name, Elizabeth," he smirked.
"You still found me though," Ana grumbled.
"Well, I've known where you live for quite some time," the Joker grinned causing Ana to feel uneasy.
"I imagine Allie has a warm bed," Ana rolled her eyes as she walked towards her bedroom door and grabbed her dressing gown, subtly covering up her pyjamas. The Joker let out a chuckle as he sluggishly moved further into the kitchen to have a look around.
"I've already got a headache," he muttered, confirming to Ana that Allie had made it out alive.
The Joker unintentionally walked into the kitchen island, accidentally kicking the bar stool. Ana glanced back at his unusual clumsiness and lightly gasped.
Revealing his back as he moved into the kitchen, Ana could see large burn wounds seared through his overcoat and other various layers underneath. They spread up his left side and then appeared again on the back of his neck. The back of his left arm also showed burnt blooded abrasions.
"You're injured," the words fell out of Ana's mouth as she stared. The Joker grunted in agreement as he grabbed a bottle of water from her fridge and returned Ana's gaze.
"So are you," he pointed to her freshly bandaged arm that Ana had dressed before heading to bed.
"I've got a first aid kit, well… more than just first aid," Ana explained.
"Very resourceful," the Joker remarked as he sipped the bottled water.
"It comes with the job," Ana shrugged. "If you would like, I can… assist you and dress those burns," Ana had to word it carefully as the Joker doesn't ask for help, however, she knew that he wouldn't be able to reach his injuries to bandage himself up.
"Assist me? Oh Ana, at least buy me dinner first," the Joker laughed. Ana scoffed unamused and rolled her eyes.
"I'll go get the first aid kit," she finished as she walked into the bathroom to collect what she needed.
The Joker reluctantly wandered out of the kitchen, holding his water, and walked in front of the sofa. He glanced around again at his henchwoman's home. It seemed dank yet homely. He raised an eyebrow and gave a disgusted look as Winston jumped onto the coffee table.
As Ana carried all the supplies out of the bathroom, the Joker tried to remove his overcoat. She quickly dropped everything onto the coffee table and pushed Winston off. The Joker growled as he struggled to get the coat off, as patches were blistered into his skin. He let out a snigger as the pain started to get worse.
"Here, let me help," Ana softly spoke as she raised a damp cloth that she had soaked in the bathroom sink. She carefully separated the overcoat from the other burnt layers. The Joker let out a series of hisses, grunts, and giggles as the material ripped away from his skin.
Once the coat was off, the Joker tossed it to the adjacent chair. They still had his waistcoat and shirt to get through before Ana could dress the wounds.
"I'm going to need something a little uh… stronger than water," the Joker scoffed as he licked his scars.
"Right," Ana strode to one of the upper kitchen cabinets and hauled out a bottle of brandy. The brandy belonged to Duncan as Ana preferred vodka, but she knew that brandy is what the Joker drinks. The Joker sat down on the sofa, took off his gloves and started to rub his hands together as he looked around.
Ana placed the brandy bottle and glass onto the coffee table. The Joker nodded in approval and took a swig directly out of the bottle, hissing at the punch of the aged spirit. He let out a giggle in anticipation of what was about to come next.
Turning away from Ana, he hesitantly removed his waistcoat as Ana carefully separated the fabric from the skin on his back. The smell of burned flesh was getting stronger as Ana peeled off the purple material. She could feel her stomach churn in queasiness. The Joker gave out a long grunt followed by a chuckle as he felt layers of his skin tear. He took another guzzle of the brandy. Once the waistcoat was free, he flung it on top of the coat.
The last garment was his purple hexagon shirt, the charred edges around the wounds looked even worse, making Ana want to throw up. She let out a shaky sigh.
"Don't be fainting on me now, Ana," the Joker warned as he faced away from her, taking off his tie. Winston leapt onto the sofa and purred in front of the Joker. The Joker pushed him off.
"Why do you have a cat?" he sighed with disappointment, as he unbuttoned his shirt.
"Company," Ana scoffed. "Are you ready, Boss?" she asked as she wetted another cloth with the bottled water. The Joker chuckled and then nodded. As they started taking off his shirt a flash of pain shot out from his wounds, almost gripping his whole back, and radiating down his spine. He let out heavy breaths with a combination of laughs and cringes.
"Almost there," Ana called. The Joker angrily punched the sofa with his fist as he clenched his jaw. He felt the shirt unstick, swiftly taking it off and throwing it to the pile. He let out a long sigh of relief and laughed as he ran his hand through his hair.
Ana shifted uncomfortably as she had never seen the Joker shirtless before. She had a better look at his burns, but then her eyes trailed off as she noticed his slim but muscular form. Despite the burns and some other scars, he looked relatively normal.
"Are you blushing, Ana?" The Joker glanced back at her with a raised eyebrow.
"No, Boss," Ana nervously laughed. Ana dipped a new cloth in a bowl of warm soapy water and delicately grazed the infected areas, she rested her left hand on his shoulder to help apply gentle pressure on the wound as she cleansed it.
"Your hands are cold," the Joker remarked.
"Sorry," Ana muttered as she concentrated on the wounds. Once she was satisfied that they were without debris, she gently smeared a burn cream over the wounds, laid down gauze and layered cotton wool bandages. She carefully stuck them in place using tape.
"All done, Boss," Ana exhaled as she sat back. The Joker shifted around to face her.
"Good," he licked his scars and then swigged from the brandy bottle. Ana looked at the lesion on his forehead that had left a bloody trail down his face and blended with his paintwork.
"Boss?" Ana started, he cocked his head to look at her.
"That cut on your forehead is pretty deep," Ana pointed to her own forehead to mirror his. "Perhaps we should call Drew," she recommended.
"The doc is working a double shift, he's occupied," the Joker stated. "I've got this one," he had one final gulp of brandy before setting it down and taking the suture kit, antibacterial cleanser, and gauze.
He stood up and headed towards the bathroom, as he needed a mirror to stitch himself up.
"Boss?" Ana nervously asked again. He spun around clearly starting to get annoyed.
"So, are you staying here then? Because I've only got one bed…" Ana started.
"Hush hush hush, I'll take the couch. I'm a gentleman after all," he smirked then sauntered into the bathroom and closed the frosted door.
Ana sat in silence momentarily as she tried to comprehend what just happened. The Joker is in her apartment, his clothes are on her chair, and she doesn't know how long he's intending to stay. She was pulled from her thoughts when she heard the sink taps turn on in the bathroom.
"What the fuck?" Ana whispered to herself as she tidied the supplies on the coffee table. She glanced at the broken window and groaned.
"That's going to cost me," she breathed as she found a broken-down cardboard box near the bin, perfect as a temporary cover for the window. After sticking it up, she went to find some covers and pillows to make up the sofa bed for the Joker.
Just as she was setting down extra blankets and pillows on the sofa, the Joker waltzed out of the bathroom. Ana glanced up at him and then got stuck in a stare as the Joker had washed off his warpaint, revealing the man underneath.
Duncan had previously mentioned that he could count on one hand how many times he has seen the Joker without makeup, but this was Ana's first time.
His Glasgow smile wasn't as prominent but still noticeable against his naturally pale skin. The Joker looked younger without the paint seeping into every crease and wrinkle, but it revealed his exhaustion as dark circles encased his eyes.
She realised that she was staring and quickly shifted the conversation.
"You broke my window," she said unamused.
"You moved your spare key," he grinned that same yellow-toothed grin. Ana tensed again as she speculated how the Joker knew about the spare key.
"What? Erm… Okay…" she caught herself stuttering as she tried to push away her theories. "I've set up the couch for you, and put out some spare men's clothes that I had laying around," she swallowed a lump in her throat as she knew that the Joker would pick up on the fact that she owned men's clothes.
"Hmmm," the Joker inspected the clothes. Ana had laid out a grey t-shirt and black joggers that were previously Duncan's for when he stayed over. "Will we be expecting this boyfriend of yours?" The Joker teased.
"No, I haven't got a boyfriend. The clothes are old," Ana bluntly explained.
"Ah, I see," the Joker chuckled. Ana sensed that the Joker saw through her excuse, but she decided to tackle that another day.
"Well… Night Boss," she hastily said, picking up Winston and heading into her bedroom.
"Goodnight," the Joker smirked as he watched her leave.
Ana tried to close her bedroom door quickly but calmly. Once it clicked shut, she stepped back and stared at the handle. She felt there was a wild lion in the next room, and the only thing stopping it was a flimsy wooden door that doesn't lock. She looked at her bedside table, and quietly hauled it across the room to place it in front of the door.
She stared at her work, satisfied with the result that if the Joker tries anything, the door banging into the side table would be enough to wake her up in time.
With that, she crawled into bed and tried to get back to sleep, despite Gotham's most wanted criminal sleeping on her sofa in the next room.