Well, I warned about consequences and boy does Wally get his! Yes, I gave Wally a messy past but it's no more messy than the one he got in canon. And don't worry, I have this story entirely outlined and halfway written out, so there will be a lot more action. Thanks to Starlight as always! Well, I had two great songs that both fit and I couldn't resist using one as an opening and one as a closer! As a poet, I love song lyrics!
It may sound absurd...but don't be naive
Even heroes have the right to bleed
I may be disturbed...but won't you concede
Even heroes have the right to dream
Its not easy to be me
--Superman
"Firefly successfully pulled off a robbery at the Kirtland bank on Maple and Fourth Street, making off with ten million in cash. Three police officers and five bystanders were injured due to falling debris and the villain's heat ray guns. All are listed in critical condition and we will keep you posted to their progress. The real question everyone is asking tonight is: where were the Titans?"
Wally closed the radio and switched off his cell phone. He had just gotten home from his date and had decided to see if he could wash off the dark marks on his neck. Yet the second he had walked in, he had plummeted from ecstasy to misery. He had been making out while Firefly had made out like a bandit.
Uncle Barry would be calling to demand an explanation, as would the Justice League. Robin's call should be coming in any second, most likely thinking Wally had been injured or compromised from duty. They all cared about him and trusted him. And his excuse? He had been cavorting with a villain. Eight people were hurt because his hormones had taken over his brain.
Eight people, all his fault. He could just imagine the sound and richly deserved punishment awaiting him for this little fiasco. Uncle Barry had always been a fair and patient man, but Wally had this wonderful habit of pushing him past human endurance. He'd be lucky if his uncle didn't send him to Batman for re-education. He could hear disturbingly familiar words in his mind. "Why can't you just behave yourself?" Well, he didn't know, he just didn't!
Wally flopped down on his bed, and stared at the picture by his bedside. A handsome red-haired man was staring back at him, smiling into the camera confidently. Perfectly groomed, perfectly poised, he was the model of the ideal politician. Standing next to him was an elegant woman, her blond hair in an upsweep, her wide blue eyes beaming joy and sweetness. "Hi Mom, Hi Dad," Wally whispered, touching the picture. His wonderful, perfect and dead parents; who he would never see again. "Your little Wally keeps disappointing you. You must be rolling over in your graves," he said bitterly.
Wally bit his lip as he considered the formal picture, the one so obviously posed and unnatural. These were most of the pictures he had of his parents looked like. They weren't the family portrait type, unless it was the society page calling the shots. "I'm sorry," he mumbled, as he reached into his bedside cabinet and stuffed some of Robin's leftover pound cake into his mouth. His best friend had baked when he was stressed and Wally ate when he was stressed. It was a wonderful friendship, as long as Wally kept the secret about Robin's hobby.
Sorry won't bring back those people to good health. You failed them. He knew that voice, the voice that had always managed to make him feel two feet tall. You're such a disappointment. You haven't changed a bit; you're still irresponsible and selfish. All the advantages in the world, money, intelligence, good looks, good health and a devoted family; and you still manage to ruin everything.
"I know, Dad," Wally said, taking the picture into his hands. He had to smile as he looked at the picture of his parents and their red haired toddler apple-picking. They looked so happy then; Wally perched on his dad's shoulders, high on top of the world. Wally had even been happy then, his two year old self looking pink-cheeked and gleeful. What a pretty picture of the perfect family. "But if you could meet Jinx, you'd know she'd perfect for me."
Perfect for you? Wallace, she set you up. Open those sharp eyes of yours and use them, if you don't mind. Another voice appeared in his mind, one he had to admit he loved a lot more than his father. But currently, it was the one he also feared a lot more. His adopted father, mentor and uncle, Barry Allen, the legendary Flash. And Uncle Barry was rarely wrong.
"Please, I know what I'm doing," Wally begged, knowing if the real Flash was saying this, the young apprentice would be staring at the floor tiles, trying to keep from completely losing composure under his uncle's blistering gaze. And Batman? Wally would be on his knees, begging for mercy.
I'm sure that will be of great comfort to the eight people wounded because of your irresponsible nature. All I ever wanted was a wonderful son for my family. And I got you! His father was wonderful at saying the cruelest thing possible in the fewest possible words. Wally hadn't been wonderful. He always goofed off in school and threw spit-balls. He spent more time being president of the Flash fan club than studying.
Wally had been smart. He was smart enough to get by without work; he was smart enough to know he was breaking his parents' hearts. Wally preferred being a smart aleck so he had to purposely flunked tests so no one would make fun of him for how much he knew. Still, it did show. He was smart enough to be the first second grader to ever make his own stink bomb from scratch and put in the teacher's desk. That had earned him a one way ticket to the principal's office and two furious parents who had grounded him. Some things didn't change. He was still smart, still breaking hearts, and still making trouble.
The words his father said still burned in his mind. "Why can't he just apply himself a bit more? He's spoiled. All he cares about is that stupid Flash and causing trouble. I just don't know what I am going to do with him. Why can't he keep his head down here on earth and not in the clouds?"
"Because your son is a failure. You were smart enough to run the country, you should have known that," Wally mumbled, reaching for more pound cake. Uncle Barry had never called spoiled or a failure, but living up to labels was a lot easier than working under a demanding taskmaster who expected and got the best. It was simpler to fail his father than fail his uncle.
I don't know where you get this from. I was a businessman, a congressman, the kind of man people looked up to. I could have been president. Dad had been an amazing person. Everyone called him for advice, especially during dinner or when Wally really needed to talk to his dad.
So Wally found other ways to get their attention. Egging mail-boxes with his friends, setting fires with a magnifying glass, all of those things kept him busy. Those and pretending to be the Flash. Oh, how he loved the wonderful superhero who was so important. People paid attention to him and he always saved the day. Wally's only way of attracting attention was blowing something up.
Wallace, just because your parents made mistakes doesn't mean you should hate them. Or that you should misbehave.
Uncle Barry was way too nice sometimes. Besides, his parents hadn't been imperfect. They had just lied to him. They would promise him rewards if he behaved. They said they would take him to an amusement park, to the zoo, to the park, anywhere if he behaved. Wally had quickly learned that those trips would never happen. There was always a surgery or medical conference for Mom, a political benefit or fundraiser for Dad. They never forgot…they just didn't have the time to spend time with him. Wally didn't blame them; he just learned that there were things more important than him in the world. In fact, almost everything was more important than him.
He remembered one terrible night, listening on the top of the stairs.
"I don't have time to deal with the boy. He's your responsibility. Put a leash on him if you have to, but get him under control," Dad was growling. Wally could hear how angry he was. He had done it now.
"I have surgery to take care of and campaigning for you. And if you think he needs a leash, you do it!" Mom snapped, sounding really mad also.
"I don't have time for that. You let your eyes off him for a minute and he's setting things on fire or doing something else to drive me crazy. I would think he's an idiot but he's quite intelligent. He just does this to upset me," Dad said, banging the table again.
"Well, if you spent less time saving the world and more time with him, you'd actually be able to help him!" Mom yelled. "I'm a surgeon and I still find time to spend with him." Wally wished she could spend more time with him, even though she had told him it was "not nice" to be so "demanding."
"How do you think I feel? I can meet with crooked politicians and get their ideas. My own son and I can't understand anything about him."
"I have the same problem, Rudy. We're doing our best, you know we are doing all we can," Mom said softly.
"I know. I just… Sometimes I wish I had never had him." Wally gasped. Dad sound like he meant it. Tears began to roll down his cheeks, as he began to sob.
Wally never told his father that he had heard him say that. He knew his father would apologize and tell him that he hadn't meant it. And that would hurt worse, knowing his father was lying to him. So he said nothing about it.
Of course, them dying hadn't helped very much either. The car accident happened far too quickly. One rainy night there was a big crash and a lot of red sticky darkness and screaming. When he woke up, they were gone.
He had never gotten the chance to tell his parents he was sorry or to hear one more time that they loved him. Sometimes he felt like that was a punishment because they hadn't deserved each other. They had all been so miserable together and they were miserable when they were apart. Life stunk sometimes.
But those words, oh they stayed in Wally's mind, biting at him like little mice, making him feel worthless. He hadn't even told his uncle about those words, even saying them out loud hurt too much and he didn't want to hear his uncle's apologies for something he had nothing to do with. Wally had his uncle's love and support and praise, that was enough.
Besides, he was starting to think his father had been absolutely right about him. Nothing had changed since then. He had gained superpowers, but he still hadn't become a hero. His parents were right; he was never going to change. Even today, he was still screwing up. Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris had told him that he had potential, that he could do great things for humanity. They had taken him in, loved him and treated him so wonderfully, encouraging him to follow his dreams.
They were wrong! He was a failure; he had let everyone around him down! Jinx could have been playing for him a fool, distracting him while others suffered. And he fell for it. He had completely been duped.
He would have to pay her a visit and make sure that he hadn't completely lost his mind. And if he had…he would have to be the one to fix his mistake and bring Jinx into justice. He would have to come clean to everyone about what he had done.
And then…he had no idea how he would get over this.
You called me strong, you called me weak,
But still your secrets I will keep
you took for granted all the times I Never let you down
you stumbled in and bumped your head,
If not for me then you would be dead
I picked you up and put you back on solid ground
-Five For Fighting
AN-Next chapter is "Dangerous Mind", the big confrontation. And yes, I am giving Jinx a lot of leeway but Kid Flash basically has so much advantage over her (being the second fastest human in the world) that I think he'd purposely be more gentle towards her. Also, he's a guy in love and she's a villain. She automatically has the advantage. Question is, will Wally lose his temper and decide he's had enough and break up the super speed?
