Compassion for a Crane (A Jonathan Crane/ Scarecrow story)

Chapter 9 - A good ol' case of Jeckyll and Hyde

As soon as the door of Dr Crane's cell shut behind both her and Boles, Carmen took the clipboard containing his medical and psychological conditions off of the wall and began writing down all of the diagnosis she had made and what she had done to treat them, including all the equipment and medication she had used.

"You don't have to do that y'know" Boles told her as he leaned against the heavy metal door of Crane's cell, his large gun once again in his grasp. Carmen was beginning to wonder if he was compensating for something.

"It's Arkham policy, it's so the other medics don't give him too much-"

"I don't mean the paperwork" he interjected, rolling his eyes. "Goddamn, if anyone knows how anal these people are about paperwork it's me. Got it coming out of my ass" he mumbled, and Carmen tried not to laugh. "I mean in there, the way you talked to Crane" he elaborated "you don't have to be nice to these assholes, a lot of us turn a blind eye...if you get what I'm saying" he glanced to Carmen to see her smile had faded.

"I appreciate that they can be frustrating and aggressive Officer Boles" she scribbled her notes as she spoke, the thin layer of carbon creating a copy that Carmen could use to transfer the notes onto the computer. "But they are still people. Human beings that hurt and bleed and feel. It is our job to try and help them"

"we'll see if you still feel that way by the end of the week" Boles laughed sharply before taking a swig from his hip flask. Once she was done making notes, Carmen tore off her copy and placed the clipboard back onto the peg and accompanied Boles back upstairs in the elevator. "This is where I leave you doc" he announced as she stepped out onto the ground floor, but he stayed in. "Got some other loonies to see to" he pointed to upstairs with his forefinger. "it's gonna be a hell of a long day"

"Good luck, thank you Officer Boles" she nodded, not bothering to remind him that she was still not a doctor and saw him salute to her casually with his middle and forefinger before the doors shut, leaving her in the corridor. Carmen started making her way over to the Tech Room with a purposeful stride but stopped abruptly when she noticed a redish brown stain on one of the faded cream walls. A stain she was sure had not been there yesterday. That meant one of the inmates had somehow gotten their hands on a staff ID badge and used the elevator during all the chaos. She reached up and was relieved when she felt her own badge still clipped to her uniform. Overly aware that she now stood in a corridor where one of her co-workers had been attacked mere hours ago, Carmen made her way to the Tech Room, picking up the pace as she moved.

Carmen had practically just sat down and was beginning to log on when Peter entered the room in a hurry.

"Ah! Carmen that's where you are! I thought I asked you to report back to me once you were done with Jonathan Crane?" He asked. His voice held no tones of annoyance or anger, just genuine confusion. Carmen was not offended, in fact she was used to messages being misinterpreted and lost in a chaotic working condition.

"Not that I can remember Peter, I was just about to put Dr Crane's notes onto the system" she explained.

"Ah put that on hold for now, I've got another few patients for you" he waved dismissively to the computer as he looked down at his list.

"have you been down to Mr Sionis and Mr Dent yet?" she asked, hoping she wasn't adding to the stress.

"Yes, just some bruises, more to their egos than anything else.  Nothing broken for either of them"

"That's good news" 

 "Miss Julia Kane is in need of some stitches after a brawl with another inmate and Mr Huskins is complaining of chest pains" He relayed to her, without asking how she had gotten on with Jonathan Crane. She guessed as long as he wasn't dead, all was well at this point.

"Alright" Carmen folded Crane's notes and pocketed them as not to lose them before following Peter out as he muttered to himself. "lead the way Peter" she smiled, trying to keep her spirits and energy high.

It was 11am when Carmen finally had a chance to sit down. She sat at the table in the staff room, munching on a bowl of cereal and half reading the headlines of the papers. She was too tired to be taking the words in. She looked up when she heard the door open and saw Peter tiredly trudge in, making Carmen feel slightly guilty for sitting down and eating, he had probably been here longer than she had. "Is there anything I can do to help you Peter? You look exhausted" she offered as he practically collapsed into the seat opposite her.

"No, no, thank you though Carmen. And thank you again for coming in at such a ridiculous time, on your second day no less"

"A crisis does not wait, Peter" she smiled as she finished her cereal, quoting from one of her senior doctors at the hospital.

"Isn't that the truth" he chuckled "Well, this one seems to have passed anyway. Why don't you make your way home? We've got some recovery staff coming in from Blackgate to cover shifts" he explained.

"I'm quite happy to carry on my shift Peter" she insisted but he shook his head.

"No" he stated firmly "they're already on their way and I want you bright eyed and bushy tailed for your shift tomorrow morning."

"As long as these lot don't throw another midnight party" she retorted and they both chuckled wearily.

Carmen had no idea how the nurses with children even functioned in a way that resembled a human. As soon as she had shut her apartment door, she kicked her shoes off and dragged herself to the sofa, flopping onto it with all the grace of a one legged duck. Momentarily forgetting the whole 'healthy eating' thing she should have been leading by example with, Carmen snapped off a large chunk of the dark chocolate she had bought on her way home and let it melt in her mouth, the sugar providing a sudden rush of endorphins. Compared to those around her, Carmen had never been a particularly thin or large girl.

"You're realistic" her older sister, who had incidentally always been the slimmer of the two, had told her once as they had discussed the topic late one night. It had been the first time she had thought about Victoria for a long time. The stress of caring for their mother and her eventual passing had strained and eventually broken their relationship and, although Carmen always made sure to send a card and money on her niece's and nephew's birthday, the two had not spoken for years.

She was startled out of her thoughts as Tootsie gracefully jumped onto her stomach without any warning and neatly settled himself, paws tucked under his body. "Yeah it's all okay for you. You don't have to get up and go to work tomorrow" she told him jealously. Carmen was suddenly reminded of Dr Crane's medical notes, still in her uniform pocket. Snapping another piece of chocolate off, Carmen reached into her pocket (careful not to disturb Tootsie) and pulled the folded and slightly crumpled piece of paper out before unfolding it. She read over it as she scratched behind Tootsie's ear, causing a purr to erupt from the creature.

Dr Jonathan Crane, Patient NO. 3371

Birthday: 16/11/1983

Blood type A

Height: 6'1"

Allergies: None

Psychological diagnosis: Multiple personality disorder, obsessive behaviours, antisocial personality disorder, narcissism.

That was a hell of a lot of issues the Arkham psychiatrists had on their hands.

 As she read over the notes she had made earlier, Carmen wondered how Jonathan Crane was doing back at Arkham, trapped in a building with guards that hated him. She felt a little sick as she wondered if beatings dished out by short-tempered guards were a regular thing. She hoped she would not be discovering another broken collar bone when she went to check on him tomorrow. As she read over the brief list of psychological diagnoses Carmen was surprised at the first and last entry. Multiple personality disorder and narcissism. On both accounts of them meeting, Carmen noted that, whilst he was a little cold, Dr Crane had been fairly polite and well mannered, causing her to wonder if there was another side to him, a more abrasive side. She was reminded of the story of Jeckyll and Hyde as she lay there. A brilliant scientist who wanted to separate the darker part of his personality, only for him to begin to lose control of it.  What was Dr Crane like when Scarecrow surfaced?