No Rest for the Wicked || The Joker's Daughter { ON HIATUS}

Chapter 3: Release

        It had been merely a day and a half since her evaluation and Mary had begun to fear the worst. Perhaps the doctor had seen right through her and her appeal was denied, she wondered. Surely they would have informed her of that though, right? She assured herself that Officer Pickett would at least be that courteous. Or at the very least, Eli would hear about it and let her down. A gentle knocking on the window to her door brought her back from her thoughts. "Speak of the devil." She muttered, seeing that it was Officer Pickett letting himself in. "Hey there." Mary tried to act casual, shifting to sit criss crossed. "Hello, Hon." He returned, his stoic features faltering slightly as he smiled. "I have some good news." She didn't even let him finish before getting up to pack her things. "Wait a minute, now. We have to discuss something first."

     Still standing, Mary eyed Pickett curiously. "There is going to be a lot of people out there who still don't trust you. They will only see you as his daughter." He spoke of The Joker simply as Him, always had. "You are so much more than that. It's going to be hard to prove, but I promise you that you are more than capable of being a good person. A great one, even." Tears stung Mary's eyes but she refused to let them fall. "Thank you, Pickett. I won't let you down." She sniffled and he pulled her into a hug. "Now, hurry and pack, I have someone who's been waiting outside for you since the sun came up."

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     Mary gripped the handle of her suitcase and followed Officer Pickett. She stepped through the doors to the waiting room and her eyes immediately caught Eli sitting in the corner. He was fidgeting with his camera and hadn't even noticed them. "Look alive, Son." Pickett called, prompting Eli to jump. "Oh my god." He smiled, sprinting across the room to pick Mary up and twirl her around. She dropped her suitcase, not caring about her things spilling onto the floor, as she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. "I have another surprise for you." He grinned, setting her down but still keeping his hands on her upper arms. His eyes lingered on her's for a moment before kneeling down to collect her things.

     Eli gripped Mary's hand as they prepared to walk to the car. She knew that the news crews would have gotten word of her release but she hadn't expected the turnout of paparazzi. "Don't say anything to them. They'll twist your words to make you look worse. It sells better." He warned. Getting past the wall of people proved to be a bit more difficult than he'd anticipated. Nevertheless, Eli kept a firm hold on his friend's hand and pushed through.

     "Mary! What are your plans for the future?" One reporter called out. "Do you plan on taking in your father's footsteps?" Mary did as Eli had said and kept her head down. She wondered if this would be her life now, hiding from prying eyes. Perhaps she could change her name. Maybe Eli would even let her have his. The Picketts were, after all, the only real family she had ever known. "Smile for the camera!" Another voice called before sending a blinding flash at her. She stumbled, her foot catching on someone's shoe, sending her crashing to the ground. "Watch where you're going." The paparazzi with the flash shouted, making Mary fume. She looked up and made eye contact with him for the first time. "Oh, my. You do look like him. Even without all the paint on." He added. "What d-" Mary attempted to shout at him but Eli covered her mouth. "Shush. They're trying to rile you up. They don't mean it, Mary. And even if they did, they don't matter."

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     The drive wasn't long at all and the two of them arrived at a small house. Mary looked out the car window in awe. "I know it's not much but it's all that I could afford-" He rubbed the back of his neck and she cut him off. "Are you kidding? This is so nice." They walked up the steps and she zoned out, taking in all the scenery. Eli slid the doormat aside, revealing a spare key. "This one is your's." Mary rolled the key around in her hand. "So, you're staying, then?" He chuckled, unlocking the door. "Well, yeah. I mean, It's my place. But if you wanna get rid of me already, i'm sure I can find somewhere else to crash." He joked. She punched his arm playfully and stepped through the doorway. The thought of having a roommate made her smile. 

     The living room has simple black and white decor with pictures littering every surface. Some were framed, some just spread out as if he was trying to pick the best one. "Sorry, I really should have cleaned up." Eli stepped ahead of her to scoop up the images. "but, I just found out today was your release date this morning." She smiled, moving on to the kitchen. "No, It's wonderful. I've had too many clean rooms. Messy is a nice change of pace." "Yeah, living with me, I feel like you will regret saying that." He chuckled, trailing behind Mary. The kitchen was a lot cleaner, almost as if it hadn't ever been used. "I'm not much of a cook. Plus, I've been on the go a lot lately so I usually just order a pizza and call it a night." Eli rubbed the back of his neck, awkwardly. "But we could learn together, if you'd like." She didn't know what pizza even tasted like anymore, it made her mouth water. "Maybe we could learn to make Pizza?" She offered, teasingly. He shot finger guns at her. "You. You're a genius."

     Moving on to her bedroom, Mary paused in the doorway. While the rest of the house had been pretty simple in decor, that room had been meticulously styled. It was mainly purple, Mary's favorite color, with some accents of pink. The bed was twice as big as the one she had in Arkham and was covered with a fuzzy blanket. Turning to her right, There was a huge cork board on the wall, covered in photos. They documented Eli and Mary's time together, pictures from childhood all the way up to a still of her nostril from the video he took a few days ago. Turning around, she bit her lip. "Eli, this is amazing." He shrugged. "I figured you deserved a real home to come back to."