Author's Note: Who wants to see a Bully fic with Wally in it torn to pieces? Anyone? Just me? Well, I'm sure this will make me smile.
The last bell for school rang and Wally hummed a tune under his breath as he collected his things from his locker. Right as he pulled the last book into his bag, the locker door slammed shut, barely missing his fingertips.
"Well, well, well," a new voice drawled behind him, "Wally Whimp getting his loser books."
There was a short round of chortles and Wally rolled his eyes.
"Can you not be so cliché, Josh?" Wally asked, bored. "Seriously? 'Well, well, well'? Who taught you that, a turtle on weed?"
He ducked out of Josh's fist as it flew towards him and hid a smirk as it crashed into Wally's locker instead. At least Josh had the wits not to scream out, in case any teachers came by to investigate. Josh's 'friends' looked on in collected shock and confusion. They weren't accustomed to a target facing them with wit and ability to dodge.
"Can you please not wreck the lockers?" Wally faked a yawn and looked at his watch – he was going to be late for the next training session with the Team and Raquel promised to show him some grappling techniques. She didn't seem to be used to being in a large group of friends her age, it seemed, and must have cherished her time with everyone just as much as M'Gann , Zatana, and Conner did. "I have to be somewhere soon."
"Where?" Josh snarled, failing to appear intimidating when he was still nursing his bruised and bloody hand. From the looks of it, he might have dislocated a knuckle. "To your boyfriend's house?"
This brought on another chorus of chuckles; though there wasn't that much heart put into it now.
"He gonna dye your hair pink, Ginger?" One of Josh's friends added. "Maybe so your parents won't throw you out for being a soulless freak?"
"Okay, this is really getting boring and stupid, now," Wally sighed, "Now if you'll excuse me, I am leaving this space before I lose any more brain cells from your company."
Someone tried to grab for his bag, but Wally swerved out of the way in time. Another set of hands had grabbed a hold of his shoulders and held him there while someone else reached for his bag again. This time, Wally wrapped his arms protectively around it, looking over at his opponents. Black Canary's words rang in his ear from the Team's first lesson with her: Combat was about controlling the conflict and putting the fight on your terms. Always act and never react.
"Look with your eyes," she quoted once, after another sound defeat left Wally sprawling.
"I was looking!" Wally protested.
"You were seeing," Black Canary corrected him, gently, "You're using your speed in a fight, and that can be used against you. If you go too fast, your opponent can redirect your energy against you. You were so focused on your attack that you didn't see me stick out my leg in time. Just like you saw my punch, but didn't look to see my aim was really for your legs on the first day." She held her hand out to him.
"Is that how you got on the Justice League?" Wally accepted her hand and was pulled back to his feet, "You 'looked' in a fight?"
Black Canary's chuckle was soft, like a bird chirping, "It's how I've been able to stay alive for so long. Don't depend too much on your speed, save it for when you need to act. Look at the enemy and see how you can make the battle yours."
Back to his current situation, Wally looked. He counted one…three…six of them in total, including the one restraining him from behind. He thought about what he knew of Josh. He always had a group of people following him and surround their victim on all sides, like they did just now. They would insult and put down their prey to catch them off guard, make them unable to focus…which would be more effective if they didn't try so hard at it. Josh punched with his left hand, which was now bruised and bloody from the locker. If he was correct, then that meant Josh's aim with his right hand was bound to be sloppy. He could take advantage of that opening, if he didn't blow his cover.
The others were bound to attack him right after Josh, it would be all at once. Wally had to force himself not to smile, the battle wasn't won until he could get past Josh. Josh stepped up, malice clear on his face. Wally tensed up and waited.
"I'm gonna enjoy this," Josh sneered before he punched with his right hand, just as Wally predicted. He tilted back just enough for the punch to miss him and hit his captor on the shoulder. The grip loosened and Wally wiggled free, sidestepping away a few steps while Josh threw another punch, not realizing that Wally wasn't where he was supposed to be anymore.
Thud!
The one that was holding Wally had crumbled to the ground.
"Um…I'm confused," Wally tapped at his chin thoughtfully, hiding his smile behind his hand as the rest of them gaped at him, "Isn't the point of you ganging up on me to beat me up?" Someone closest to his left side leaped forward. Wally ducked out of the way and continued to lean away from the blows until he knew Josh was behind him. When the next hit came, Wally was already gone and the wet crack! of flesh on flesh was music to his ears. Everyone was so focused on Josh's screaming that they didn't notice the strong draft that came in the windowless hallway.
Wally moved quick as a snake and shifted the positions of two of the boys so that they were facing each other with their fists flying towards their jaws. Two more cracks! followed and Wally could hear the two screaming at each other, making accusations and throwing insults without care for how loud they were. Wally saw someone trying to hit him, but he was too quick and ducked out of the way, making sure to redirect the idiot who tried to hit him so that his aim would be towards the last one untouched from the onslaught. The aim was true and they tumbled together onto the floor.
And just like that, the battle was won. In their fury at being seemingly "betrayed" by one another, all six boys got to their feet and began to focus their anger and fury on each other. Wally never knew a sight so beautiful.
"What's the meaning of this racket?!"
The new voice momentarily put an end to the fighting. Wally hid himself behind one of the trophy cases as he watched Mrs. Burke come strolling down the hallway. She was an elderly woman nearly her ninetieth year, mean and cross at everything. She taught Wally's History class and seemed to see everyone in her class as a complete and utter nuisance. But Mrs. B urke seemed to take special exception to Wally for some reason; even when he did well on tests or papers, she tried to look for the flimsiest reason to accuse him of cheating and flunking him.
And she was so close to Josh at the moment…Wally hoped that God would forgive him for what he was about to do. He knew everyone would be too distracted fighting each other to notice and there was no way they would have been able to prove it was him. They might even say the school was haunted by a late student or faculty member. But when Wally appeared behind Mrs. Burke and made a face at Josh, he knew he was going to laugh himself silly all the way to Happy Harbor when Josh tried one last punch, missing Wally and hitting Mrs. Burke right in the jaw…
The lecture he got from Uncle Barry was well worth it.
"Wally, what have I told you about using your powers in school?!"
"Not to use them to fight," Wally leaned back in his chair smug, "Never landed a hit."
"Josh and his friends saw you!" Uncle Barry looked at him, incredulous, "There were witnesses!"
"They don't have proof and I know some of them are starting to think I wasn't there to begin with," Wally countered, "Besides, what was I supposed to do? Let them beat me to a pulp and affect Kid Flash's performance later?"
"You've been talking to Dick, haven't you…" Uncle Barry pressed his hands to his face, "You can't fall on a 'I'm rich and important enough to have self defense classes' excuse when you're in public."
"I wasn't, though," Wally protested, "All I did was dodge and no one is gonna believe I'm Kid Flash just because some jerks say I am. Who's going to believe that the slowest kid in gym is a superhero?"
Uncle Barry groaned and Wally knew he had won the argument.
"Did you have to have the History teacher go to the hospital, though? Wasn't letting Josh and his friends beat each other up enough?"
"After all the times she tried getting the principal to think I was a lousy cheat, yes. I heard some of the girls wanted to send Josh flowers for hitting Mrs. Burke. You think I should send him some, too?"
Author's Note: Obviously, Wally can't make a habit of fighting back without exposing himself, but that doesn't mean he can't play smart about it. Besides, being forced to take hits in school would be him in danger against the Rogues or anyone holding a gun later on. God, I hate these bully fics. Thanks for your patience, feel free to critique me, I know for a fact that Mrs. Burke getting hit in the jaw would be dangerous at her age.
Hope to post again really soon on my new tablet/laptop.