i just learned something today:
due to the attitudes of the time period and the transphobia of the more affluent areas, wally might actually be barred from his inheritance until he marries barnaby.
so the ECOA passed in 1974, and SWD takes place two years later in 1976. however, i'm reading a lot of first hand recollections of women living in that time period, even as late as 2018 and beyond where women were being refused service at banks and the like without a father or husband signing for them.
yeah, wally's a man, but he's a mixed race unmarried trans man in the 70s trying to claim his inheritance from a grandfather who died when he was six, and was the richest man in the country at the time of his death. he's not gonna be treated like he should even with mr. patches backing him.
sure, he could file a complaint, but the world is cruel and doesn't work how it should.
yeah, him being refused service is illegal at this point in time, but considering how much of the city is still in william's pocket, and just general attitudes of banks and the dragging of heels... just because something's illegal doesn't mean people stop doing it.
it also probably doesn't help that, unlike eddie, wally never actually legally transitioned on account of not having access of his birth certificate or anything due to being a runaway
which makes me think that Applebite Wedding happens sooner in this timeline than i thought