Summary: Because nothing in life could be that simple, wave your wand and it's fixed.
Wally sat at the edge of his bed in Mount Justice, reflecting on that day's mission. It had involved magic.
That was the problem. Magic.
It couldn't exist.
Everyone on the team was telling him to open his eyes; that magic was going on right in front of him and all around him. He didn't care. Everything that had been going on that day didn't make sense. Yes, there was a possibility that magic existed. Science couldn't explain everything that had happened no matter how much he reasoned. But he wouldn't admit it to Superboy, M'gann, Kaldur, and that Roy replacement Artemis. He'd never admit it to any of them because he couldn't even admit it to himself. Because nothing in life could be that simple, to just wave your wand and it's fixed. He sighed and glared at the souvenirs on his shelf, more specifically the newly added helmet of Doctor Fate. Kent Nelson had told him he had to believe and for a moment, he had. He let himself believe that magic existed, that unicorns, dragons, Hogwarts, and fairy tales existed.
It had saved his life.
Wally growled and flopped backwards onto his bed.
"Let me guess, you're frustrated because your attempts to dazzle M'gann with your wit and compliments didn't do anything. Again." Wally sat up to look at the person that stood at his doorway; Robin was decked out in his shades, he was Dick Grayson, his best friend.
"Dude, you have no idea what happened to me today," Wally started.
"Actually, I do. Red Tornado filled me in on my way over. Doctor Fate and Klarion the Witch Boy; sounds citing." Robin took a seat next to Wally.
"Citing, really?"
"Opposite of exciting, take away the prefix ex-."
"But citing is already a word."
"True, though that doesn't mean I can't give it more than one meaning." Wally smiled, putting up his hands in defeat.
"I won't argue any more about messing with the English language, but Red Tornado only got the mission details. The entire time the team was trying to convert me—"
"To believe in magic. Yeah, heard about that too. I could hear Artemis raving about what a flirtatious, pessimistic, egotistical, self-centered, moronic, non-magic-believing, jerk you were from her room."
"You won't let me finish a sentence today, will you?" They shared a brief laugh. "I can see why she thinks of me that way. I wouldn't be surprised if the entire team thought I was flirtatious, pessimistic, egotistical, non-magic believing, etc, etc, etc." Dick raised an eyebrow.
"I think they do, because you are." Wally rolled his eyes.
"Thanks for always being on my side."
"I am," Robin smirked. "I can't help it if you're giving off that kind of impression."
"Whatever."
"Checkmate. Robin wins another round. The second one in less than five minutes! The crowd cheers." Dick impersonated cheers and applause. "Seriously, though, I know you have your reasons for not believing in magic, but couldn't you humor the team a little? Just go along with it?"
"I did. Only it ended up nearly getting us fried by a volcano." Robin laughed.
"So that's why you guys nearly got scorched. In Kaldurs report it only said that 'a hologram opened up a volcano below us'."
"Yeah, because I tried to impress M'gann and lied to that damn hologram. Kaldur is way too nice for his own good. I'd be given a long lecture from Bats if Kaldur had told him the details."
"That you would."
"Rob, if only you'd been on the mission with us. You'd have made them stop about the whole 'magic is real' deal," Wally said, wishing Dick didn't have to go do the 'Boy Wonder' thing with Bats today of all days.
"I probably would have. But you could have told them why you so firmly don't believe in magic, regardless of whether I was there or not." Wally shrugged, Dick had him there.
"They'd find it stupid."
"No they wouldn't. They'd probably be thankful that you told them. "
"I just don't want to tell them, all right?"
"You don't trust them?"
"Rob, you know that's not true. I trust them."
"But not enough, apparently."
"You know that's not it."
"So what's stopping you from telling them? Do you think they're going to think you're stupid? Afraid M'gann's not going to like you? Just a heads up, she and Superboy are obviously in love—"
"I know, but that doesn't mean I can't flirt."
"—Kaldur's already shown he can handle whatever you throw at him, and Artemis probably won't care."
"Probably will care." Robin arched an eyebrow.
"Oooh, did I hear something I shouldn't have? Haha, Artemis and Wally, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G." Wally blushed slightly.
"You know how we don't get along. I don't want her to have something to use against me." And that's completely ignoring what Kent Nelson said about Wally needing to get his own little spitfire. Nelson was blatantly hinting at something there, also known as Artemis. He had seen the way they squabbled and probably took it as flirting.
"Something to use against you? You must be joking. She's on our side, she's on our team! I don't see how or why Artemis would use it against you," Robin cried, exasperated.
"Listen, Rob, I have my reasons for not telling. Just leave it."
"Fine." Dick got up and headed to the door. "You're going to need to tell them someday, Wally." He turned and Wally watched as Robins shadow left his view. Great, Dick didn't seem to support Wally's no telling plan. Still, there was no way he'd tell the rest of the team. Yes, he had endangered them, but they had spent the rest of the mission and the day trying to convert him into believing in magic, which could get extremely annoying. And he'd seen the crap Kaldur had said about him while he and Artemis were gone via the magical cane wand; Robin wasn't the only one who had read the mission report. To think that Kaldur had mentioned that in the report had made Wally irritated. He didn't 'use his understanding of science to control what he couldn't comprehend' or anything even related to that. Now that Wally thought about it, maybe he'd tell them just to prove Kaldur wrong. No, no, no, let Kaldur be right. Let them think he needed science to control what he couldn't understand. It'd be a lie, but it'd be better than the truth.
He'd meant it when he said that magic was the real lie.
Eight year old Wally West stared out his bedrooms window. He was in Central City orphanage, the same place he'd been for three years. It was late at night and he stared determinedly out the window, as if expecting something.
"I don't see why you say up so late," the boy who had the bed above him and was a close friend of Wally, Tim, said, sitting next to the boy. "All of that shooting star wishing stuff isn't real."
"No it's not," Wally said, not taking his eyes away from the night sky. "What time is it?"
"11:10."
"Tell me when—"
"I know, Wally, tell you when it's 11:11. I don't see why you believe in that either. Just by wishing for something at a certain time doesn't mean it's going to come true. Same with the shooting stars."
"Wait, I think I see one!" Wally exclaimed, pointing out the window. The other boy looked up and searched the night skies, finding what Wally was talking about.
"That's a plane."
"No it's not!"
"Yeah, there are red lights. Shooting stars don't have red lights."
"Fine," Wally pouted, still looking out the window. "What time is it now?"
"Wait, wait, 11:11. Get wishing, Wally." Wally closed his eyes, repeating a wish, the same wish he wished for every night for the past three years, over and over in his head. "All right, 11:12. I'm going to bed." Wally nodded and hopped into his bed, Tim climbing into his. It was a routine, every night. Wally would look for shooting stars to wish upon, and only once he had seen a real shooting star. Tim would stay up way past their bedtime with him to keep track of the time until 11:11. Wally would wish for the minute and at 11:12, they'd go to bed.
The next day they had gone to see Cinderella. The boys had complained about how girly it was, but watched it nonetheless. Afterwards Wally was bouncing around Tim, exclaiming about how perfect it was.
"I'll just ask my fairy godmother! She'll use her magic to make my wishes come true! One of these days she's going to come and just take me away to huge mansion where they'll be butlers and maids and chefs to make me cake in the middle of the night and a huge video game room with a TV and any toy I want! All I need to do is wish for it."
"Wishing for it isn't going to make it happen, Wally," Tim said, crossing his arms.
"You'll take that back when it happens, Tim. It won't happen to you because you don't believe in magic. I believe in magic. And wishes. Who knows, maybe I'll become a sorcerer and learn how to use magic and I'll just poof myself wherever I want to go."
Wally sighed. Tim had been adopted half a year after they had gone to see Cinderella. He didn't even believe in magic and yet his dreams had come true years before Uncle Barry stopped by.
It wasn't fair.
All those years he believed in magic and nothing had happened. To think that magic was indeed real pissed Wally off. He had done everything he could to make something happen to him while people who could use magic were making strange houses with lava pits and trapdoors leading to wintry tundra's. Wally had used up all of his belief long ago. It didn't matter how much magic was shoved in his face. A unicorn puking rainbows could pop in here racing a leprechaun riding a dragon for all he cared. If magic was real, then where was it when he needed it most? His disbelief in magic was just a way to get back at it, for playing him like that all those years and doing nothing. It didn't matter whether Superboy, M'gann, Artemis, and Kaldur thought he was a stupid kid trying to explain everything with science. Robin wouldn't tell them Wally's real reason and neither would Wally.
Screw magic, science hadn't betrayed him yet.
AN: Basically, magic screwed Wally over for years and Wally can't find it in him to believe in it anymore. Yay for personifying concepts. I can't say I'm pleased with the way Wally's being portrayed in YJ, but I have hopes it's all a clever ruse to hide some angst and/or serious smarts that could come up in future episodes. In the meantime, I'll kick canon in the balls while giving some insight to Wally's whole 'magic doesn't exist' deal that the YJ team doesn't seem to want to respect Wally's opinions on.
Oh yeah, I took a stab at trying to be Robin. It's too hard; I'll just use the set of words I've been given and not mess with them. Seriously, what was I thinking, citing? Lame…
Sorry if they're OOC, I just can't write YJ Wally. I've gotten too used to the fanfiction version of Wally OTL; as well as the JL version of Wally who's secretly smart enough to be a forensic scientist. grins