Okay, we have some beautiful romance here and some naughty behavior. I do plan on making some major problems for our couple in the next few chapters, but here is some major bonding for you all. Thank you all for your reviews, they all really mean the world to me! The usual thanks!
I could really use, to lose my
Catholic conscience
Cuz I'm getting sick of feeling guilty all the
time
I won't abuse it, Yeah I've got the best intentions
For a
little bit of anarchy but not the hurting kind
-Great Big Sea
Consequence Free
"Shakespeare in the park. What a perfect way to spend an evening." Wally said, leaning back against the tree. He had decided that he might as well combine school and sweetness and take his Layla Jensen-Jinx (he loved thinking of her as that, Layla…what a clue to her identity) on a magical evening. He needed to get his impending doom out of his head and Jinx into his lap. He had used glasses and differently colored contacts and hair dye to disguise his looks, but he had gone sans mask. This was definitely progress.
"King Lear? What's it about?" Jinx asked, taking a soda from the picnic basket and snapping it open with a satisfying pop. It was a perfect day, the sun was setting, painting the sky rosy hues of red and pink and purple. After the last night, where they had danced together and had their first kiss, this date was the icing on the cake.
"Why don't you watch and you'll see?" Wally said, because he wasn't entirely sure what it was about. He was supposed to have pre-read it before he went, but who had time for that? Even the fastest boy alive had to prioritize.
"I didn't think I'd be going out with someone who liked geeky things like Shakespeare. Back at the Hive Acadamy, all we had to do was read two plays from the Bard, and mostly for the character analysis," Jinx explained, cuddling up to him. She was so soft and sweet in his arms. When he had held Raven, she had always seemed so cold and rigid. Wait, no thinking about other girls when on a date. It might result in terrible amounts of pain from a mistake.
"Let me guess, Othello so you could study Iago," Wally said with a tender smile. "I must be psychic." He couldn't imagine any other play those sociopaths would enjoy. Well, maybe Macbeth but the evilness got way too well punished in that one.
"Nah, just a good guesser. Don't give yourself too much credit. Yeah, I always liked Iago. He was evil and he didn't care who he hurt," Jinx said, obviously baiting him because she couldn't let him feel too happy. They had chosen a space high on the hill so no one would see them together.
"Yeah, he destroyed people's lives and in the end, got nothing out of it. Nothing at all. He was tortured for his crimes," Wally murmured, thinking back to when he had read that story. Not one of the plays he liked, he was someone who preferred comedy to tragedy. "That's not a fate I think certain people should want."
"Well, I know the apprentice of a founding member of the Justice League. I'm sure I'll be able to cut a deal," Jinx said with a wink. Ever since he had defended her at the wedding, she had been noticeably warmer to him. Last night, they had danced the night away and stole lots of kisses in private. Holding her in his arms, Wally kept trying to avoid the idea that she was using him. "I also liked Lady Macbeth. Now, she had guts, she knew what she wanted and she took it, no matter what. "Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here and fill me from the crown to the toe top-full of direst cruelty!" she said mischievously.
"No spirit could ever make you…unsexy," Wally said, blushing profusely. He knew she was doing this just to make him squirm. He knew she enjoyed it. She was a good person underneath that hard façade. Seeing her smile like that made him believe that she was just being herself and not plotting evilly.
"Flattery will not open every door," Jinx said, throwing a grape at him, which he instantly caught and popped into his mouth. "You'll have to work harder to win me over. Didn't they teach you romantic espionage, hero boy?"
"That wasn't in the Dark Knight's repertoire," Wally said, rolling his eyes. Batman had taught Robin and himself plenty on spying, but very little on romance. The thought of the Dark Knight being romantic with anyone…was frankly traumatizing.
"So, you know Batman?" Jinx asked, with a smirk as she twirled a lock of hair around her finger. "Brother Blood took him once and failed miserably. Is he as scary as they say?"
Kid Flash nodded. "Worse. He's my godfather, and should anything happen to my mentor; he gets the honor of working me to death. Not a pleasant thought." Batman was also one of Uncle Barry's closest friends. Upsetting his uncle made Batman very cranky, a situation that would make the bravest teenager tremble in fear.
"You're scared of him, aren't you?" Jinx asked,
giving Wally a sharp smile. "Finally, I know your weakness." She
was edging too close to the truth, Wally's weakness was her and a
certain speedster and mentor. "You're afraid of the big bad bat!"
Wally had to steer this topic back to safer ground. "He has
his nice moments, and he's a great guy. After my own mentor, he's
the person I learned the most from. It just…well… I mean…it's
just when he's mad…he isn't fun to be around." That was an
understatement.
"And did you ever make him mad?' Jinx asked, licking the ice cream come. "You said you had a wild streak."
"Yeah. Not pleasant memories," Wally mumbled. Why did she have to keep making him open up like this? It was his job to open her up and reform her, no reciprocity was needed! "And I still have the mental trauma to prove it. The man is way too creative when it comes to punishments. Who knew possums were so evil?" he mumbled.
"Possums? What did you do to deserve that?" Jinx asked, poking him in the ribs. She seemed almost too eager to learn about his life. Wally reminded himself that he trusted her now. "Didn't shine your apple enough?"
"You know, I wasn't always a golden boy. I had my moments…or my un…my mentor would say, my years." Looking back, he had always been amazed his uncle hadn't strangled him or locked him up and thrown away the key. And given what he was currently doing, Wally figured he was about due for that strangling.
"Come on, tell me what you did. This is excellent bonding, we're both rebels with a cause," Jinx said, obviously amused. She had no idea what she was asking, it was not a good subject.
Fine, he'd tell her, but only because it would make her happy and not because he wanted to talk about it. "I once…stole Batman's car with Robin." Wally lowered his eyes, still distressed over that incident. Yeah, it still upset him and it had been years since it happened.
"You and Captain Commando took the Batmobile out for a joy ride? And you're alive to tell the tale?" Jinx asked, her eyes wide. She actually looked impressed with him, the look a girlfriend should give her boyfriend. "If you had said that at Hive Academy, you would have been a role model. Heck, I'm ready to give you some attention for doing it."
Ordinarily, the idea of some attention would seem very nice. "It wasn't as much fun as it sounded, I promise. Not exactly the happiest day of my life," Wally mumbled, finding the air suddenly getting a bit chilly. That or he just wasn't in the mood for a make out session, something he hadn't thought possible.
"So, the boy scout has a past. Well, since we're engaging in group therapy, let's start with you. Come on, you've been pressuring me for days to open up. Follow your own advice," Jinx coaxed, taking his hand with hers.
Wally forced himself to rip open the mental scars. "Well, it was fun zooming around the city, till the voice recognition autopilot got wise to us and we crashed into a street lamp. We weren't injured, but it was a close call for some other people. We were lucky no one was killed." Wally was getting that terrible sinking feeling in his chest. There had been some very close calls, closer than he cared to remember.
"Then what happened?" Jinx asked, cuddling up to him. Having her with him made remembering it less horrible. She was a comfort to him, like an assassin's blade in a pearl sheath. "Obviously you survived the incident, so it couldn't have been that bad."
"Batman and the Flash found us…they were so livid, I was sure they'd take our masks. And believe me, they threatened to, along with our heads! My mentor…dragged me home by the ear, and well…what happened next wasn't too pleasant. I didn't exactly make it easy on myself," Wally said with a wince. The next few hours had been Hell on Earth and Wally had sworn never to earn himself another dose of his uncle's belt. "Now…watch, the play's starting. I hear the beginning is incredible."
"You're not being fully honest with me," Jinx teased, poking him in the ribs. "Suddenly, you clam up. Come on, play fair. This is a relationship, we're supposed to be honest with each other."
"Fine. After we finish this drama, I'll share mine," Wally mumbled, holding out his arms so they could snuggle. That would make him feel much better.
"All the world's a stage…" she whispered, nestling in his arm. She fit perfectly.
Three hours later, the sanitized play was over to rousing applause. Wally was quite happy. He had enough information to do his field report and he was holding his girl. Now, if he could just move out of Star Labs, he could be a very happy man.
Jinx leaned back, biting into the hot dog she had just purchased from a vendor. "I would have loved to see a prequel to any production of King Lear, showing how Edmund had gotten to be such a manipulative sociopath. I mean, there has to be some incredible story there. Did you see that wonderful soliloquy? "Thou, nature, art my goddess; to thy law, My services are bound." That is what a true master of evil sounds like," She was enjoying Edmund way too much. "And he had such nice eyes. He looked so delightfully."
"A story of a guy who basically screws over everyone he knows and even when he tries to do good, does bad? Not exactly a page turner," Wally said, stretching out. And the actor was way too much of a pretty boy. Okay, so maybe he was jealous. Did they have to cast such a good looking actor for a villain?
"Maybe he grew up all his life, being reminded of his mother not being a wife but just a bed-warmer to a spoiled rich man and realizing that in obedience, he could hide his anger, because any show of spirit would have had him severely punished." Jinx clearly had sympathized with him, which was not going well for her rehabilitation.
"Or maybe he was just a jerk," Wally said lazily. He liked Edgar better, nice guys should not finish last. Especially to evil guys who let their own father's eyes be gouged out. Wally had one word for a guy like that: cretin. Having lived with two father figures and many uncles, he'd die before he let anyone hurt them. Of course, his current "family" was indestructible. But the sentiment was there.
"Maybe he fought in great battles and realized nobles and great men were just fat men born to wealth, even if they lacked talent." Jinx was making some very good points here, but he couldn't let her win the argument.
"Some great men actually earn their position. Though yes, a lot are pompous blowhards, I'll give you that," Wally admitted. "But come on, you can't approve of what he did. He allowed his father to be tortured!"
"Well, alright. But maybe
he tried to use his talents for good, but only got himself further
into trouble for his pain. That...that I would like to see."
Jinx was getting that look on her face, the normal creative look of a
girl who wasn't plotting imminent doom.
"So why don't
you write it?" Wally challenged. "I know you have other
talents besides crime. I bet you're a great writer."
"Who'd want to read it?" Jinx asked, obviously trying to hide her curiosity. She had always enjoyed the arts but he had most likely been the first to notice. When he had invaded the Hive hideout, he had the audacity to flip her doodles of unicorns, yes, but he had looked. She had seemed so shocked that he'd notice. He wanted to know everything about her.
"I know I would," Wally said, giving her his million watt smile. "I want to know everything about you." He slipped a paper into her hand. "When you get home, read it. It's my gift to you."
Jinx smirked. "I have a gift for you," she said, tackling him to the grassy ground and pinning his hands above his hand. "I'm going to take you prisoner and do whatever I want to do with you," she whispered, straddling his chest with a satisfied smile.
Wally gulped and smiled. Lying flat on his back under her was a pleasant feeling, if he wasn't entirely sure that this would end with his morals intact. "So, I finally won you over."
"Well, the Hive taught me a lot about penetrating the enemy's defenses, exposing the gaps in their strength and making them weak in the knees. Well, actually that meant knee-capping them, but I prefer my method," Jinx said happily, leaning down to kiss Wally's neck.
Wally was aware that this was in public and most likely not appropriate, but a good bit of making out had never gotten anyone killed, unless the person doing the kissing was Poison Ivy. Okay, more necking, less thinking. "I'm your humble captive. Try and work your magic," he surrendered, quite prepared to enjoy this.
"As Vandel Savage once said, ve haf vays of making you talk," Jinx whispered, continuing to kiss his neck. "I'm going to take every vision of the Brazilian bimbo out of your mind." Wally was definitely sweating as Jinx continued her way up to his ears, sucking on an earlobe. She was fiddling with the first button of his shirt and there was a very hungry look in her eye. Robin and Wally had participated in late night conversations with Speedy on the subject of "getting to second base" and Wally was having the feeling he was about to learn first-hand what it meant.
And of course, fate intervened. Wally's communicator had gone off. "Robbery on Maple and Fourth Street, meta-human activity. All Titans, please respond," chirped a clear voice. Wally could curse in fourteen languages and at that moment, he wanted to use his entire knowledge at once.
"Duty calls?" Jinx asked, her eyes narrowing. "We can go back to my place and just…play hooky," she offered. "Think of it as learning some enemy positions, from the Kama Sutra."
Wally reluctantly shook his head. "I have to go. If I don't respond, people will know that something is up. I'll be back in a few seconds, I'm really fast." He was not in a good mood, how many times did he got to snuggle with Jinx now that she was allowing him to be…more romantic?
"Just this once? Come on, you're offending me. Putting my fellow villains away is bad enough, but on a date? You're the worst boyfriend ever," Jinx sighed, looking upset.
Wally winced. He had done it now, he had brought her to this level of comfort and now he was proposing to just abandon her. "All right, just this once." He could make out in the park with a girl. What is the worst that could happen?
Jinx grinned and began kissing again. "I'll make it worth your while." And Wally decided to believe her.
AN-But nothing really is consequence free! So, what will Wally's consequences be for shirking his duty?
