Against the wind

34

Wally's thoughts raced as he realized he would never see her again. He couldn't allow Jinx to rot in Arkham. He knew that something was terrible there. If she rotted in prison, his life would be bleak and horrible. Jinx was the person who had made his life so unique and special, without her, what would he do without her? He knew there would be other girls, he was popular and Argent was leaving him voice messages lately, but she wasn't Jinx. And he knew she hadn't burned down the lab, he had been with her the entire time.

If he broke her out, he would be a criminal. He would have betrayed everything he had ever believed, every oath he had ever sworn. He would become a fugitive, tracked down by the people he loved most and suffer the fate he had meted out to so many others. He would have to disappoint his aunt and uncle, break their hearts and for what? For a person he had known for three months. Maybe he wasn't in love with her. He was infatuated. Uncle Barry would say he had a crush on her, that he was letting hormones override his head.

But if he didn't, if he let her go, he would definitely not be a hero. He would have let an innocent person go to prison and suffer needlessly. And despite her criminal past, he knew in his heart that she was innocent. He just didn't have the proof for it, and proof was what he needed to convince his uncle and the rest of society of his suspicions.

To paraphrase Les Miserables, if he acted, he was condemned. If he stayed silent, he was damned. If he let an innocent go to prison, he was no longer a hero. And if he let her go, he was no longer a hero. It was tearing him in two. In times like this, he could always turn to his uncle or Robin for advice and guidance. He had always had the Justice League by his side, to help him. But now, he was alone, because no matter how much his word weighed, they'd say it was his heart talking and not his head. He knew that he would be crossing a line he could never erase either way he chose.

He opened up his now well worn copy of Les Miserables, remembering that Mayor Madeline, otherwise known as Jean Val Jean had faced the same choice. He had to choose between destroying everything his life had become, and letting an innocent go to prison. He remembered reading that and now he finally understood what it meant to have "A TEMPEST IN A SKULL"

When he opened up the pages, he came to a terribly familiar and telling passage.

"He was becoming a thief once more, and the most odious of thieves! He was robbing another of his existence, his life, his peace, his place in the sunshine. He was becoming an assassin."

"He's done it! He's finally done it! That boy is going to be the death of me!" Uncle Barry snapped through the grate, sounding completely infuriated. Wally pressed his ear to the wall, and listened for his verdict.

"You've been saying that for years. And will you please sit down before you give yourself a stroke?" Sometimes, Aunt Iris was the only thing standing between this family and complete Armageddon.

"Military school, that's where he's going! Strict discipline, cold showers, lots of structure, no girls, that will do him some good," Uncle Barry ranted, his footsteps pacing back and forth across the kitchen linoleum. Pacing was never a good sign, it meant that he was losing control of his forced-normal speed and wanted to run.

"And teaching him how to use a gun is better?" Aunt Iris said, wonderfully logical as always. "I fail to catch the logic."
"All right, Catholic school! The Jesuits can keep him in line," Uncle Barry muttered, as some pots jangled. "Somebody has to keep him safe. That little foolish heart of gold is going to get him killed. I hate fighting with him. I hate punishing him. I'm supposed to be his mentor, not his jailer! Yet, he won't stop lying to me!"

"Barry…first of all, we're not Catholic. Second, he's my nephew, I'm worried about him too," Aunt Iris said softly. "I don't know what has gotten into him either. It worries me too."