Okay, so if everyone has stuck around after that poor-attempt at a drive-thru song, here's the next episode... where we may get a LITTLE drama...

*readers begin to click out*

I SAID A LITTLE! Sheesh! Roll the ep!

d~b

~Episode 5~

Pugsy... the Bully?

It was a nice morning in the city of Toonopolis...

Unless your name is 'Flip Chan' and you're being hunted down by Derek Generic.

Yes, the young 12-year-old boy was once again being harassed by his bully, only this time it was on the way home from school. Flip had taken a different route home, as Pugsy had a meeting after work and wouldn't get off until 4, the kid deciding he'd walk by the station after school (which was only a couple blocks away) and hitch a ride home with him. ...However, he never noticed that the Junior-Detective Middle School was just down the street from the regular public-school, which was on the corner of the block adjacent to the radio-station, meaning Derek had a good view of Flip when he got out of school.

"HEY CHAN!" Derek had shouted, running after him. After a long day of school, he felt beating someone up would help him relax. Jerk.

"Yipe!" Flip cried out, and had taken off running, hoping to reach the radio-station before the brute could catch up to him.

No such luck. Derek caught him before he could reach the door, pinning him against the wall in an alley. "Alright, dork, you have ten seconds to give me twenty reasons not to bury you under the concrete!" the bully threatened.

"C-C-C'mon, Derek! What are you beating ME up for?! I didn't do anything!" Flip stammered, thrashing in his grip.

"You crossed my path, you ran, and you're squirming- that's enough of a reason!" Derek raised his fist. "Besides, I could use a few swings at something..."

"So get a punching-bag!" snapped a voice.

Derek turned, his eyes widening as he dropped Flip. Standing behind him was Pugsy... who didn't look happy at the moment. "Yikes! Uh, sorry man! W-W-We were just kidding around!"

Pugsy only sneered. "Yeah, right. Flip, you alright?"

Flip nodded, walking around Derek and over to his friend. The bully looked up at the older man, giving a weak grin.

Pugsy stepped up to him. "If I catch you bothering him again, you're going to be answering to me- and buddy, I'm heavy on discipline,"

Derek only sneered, looking at Flip. "Oh, I bet, seeing how you're picking his own fights. ...Good thing someone else is always babysitting you, right Chan?"

Flip blushed, and Pugsy clenched his fists. "I mean it, Derek. Don't make me do something I'll regret!"

Derek paused, the line sounding familiar... and here's where we get a quick flash-back!

~Off to Flash-back Land! Wheeeeee!~

We get an image of a five-year-old Derek standing against the wall... cornered by a 14-year-old Pugsy, cracking his fists. "C'mon, Derek, don't make me do something I'd regret!" Pugsy says.

~End of ridiculously-short flash-back!~

Derek then begins to shake. "Y-You...! I remember you!" he stammered.

"Huh? Remember me from where?" Pugsy questioned, confused.

"Like you'd forget! You used to bully me in school!"

"What?" Flip and Pugsy both stated.

"Don't play dumb! Back in school, at Animation-Ranking Public! You used to corner me in the hallway before school, all the time!"

"Yeah right!" Flip snapped, not convinced. "Pugsy wouldn't harass a little kid! Right, Pugs?"

However, Pugsy was thinking, suddenly recalling a piece of his past. "I... um..." he began to say, unable to find his words. "I do remember going to that school... and picking on a kid... wait, that was you?"

Flip's eyes widened, and Derek gave a nervous nod. "Oh yeah... Your 'friend' here used to torment me, until my family got the chance to move! ...Speaking of 'move', I'm getting outta here!" Derek stammered, then took off, running as fast as he could.

Flip looked up at Pugsy, stunned. "Is it true? You... You used to bully Derek?" he asked. Sure, it sounded cool that one of his friends could intimidate his bully... but the thought of his friend being a bully- especially one that harassed kids 9 years younger than he was- made him edgy.

"Um... *sigh* Yeah. Back in Junior High, I tended to pick on him- and a few others." Pugsy confessed, though cleared his throat. "B-But, it's in the past now. Lets just not bring it up now, okay? We should get home,"

Flip nodded, though couldn't shake off his shock. Sure, Pugsy was known for being a jerk from time to time... but a full-out bully? What all had he done, before I met him? he couldn't help but wonder, nervously.

d~b

After they got home, Pugsy sat down on the couch to watch TV, while Flip said he was going in the backyard to wait for Holly. Shaggy was back there, lounging in a lawn-chair... asleep with a comic-book on his face, snoring softly. "Hey, Shaggy, can I ask you something?" Flip asked him... though only got a snore in reply. He sighed, then shook his friend. "Shaggy!"

"Gah! Whoa! I'm up!" Shaggy yelped, sitting up, the comic-book dropping in his lap. He then turned. "Oh, hey, Flip. What's up?"

"Shag, you went to school with Pugsy, right? Was he ever, um... a bully?"

Shaggy looked at Flip, blinking a couple times. "Um... we ARE talking about the same Pugsy who once dragged me out on his lawn while I was sleeping, and turned the sprinkler on me, aren't we?"

Flip gave him a look. "Shaggy..."

Shaggy waved his hands a bit. "Alright, alright. Yes, we went to school together in Junior High... but we weren't really close friends, considering the gang and I were always solving mysteries together- and the only bully I dealt with was Red Herring, but as for Pugsy... I don't know if he was a bully or not. Why do you ask?"

Flip began to reply, but Pugsy stepped out just then. "There you are, Shag." Pugsy said, crossing his arms. "Care to explain why you skipped out on the meeting this afternoon and didn't give me a lift home?"

Shaggy gave a jolt, facing Pugsy. "Um... well, you see..." Pugsy continued to look crossed, making him feel nervous. "I think he was," he quickly whispered to Flip, then took off running.

"Get back here, pinhead!" Pugsy shouted, racing after him.

Flip watched the stocky young man chase after their lanky friend... and for a minute, thought about how much it looked like how Derek always chased him. No... it couldn't be... could it? he thought, not wanting to believe Pugsy was a bully...

...or could still be.

He walked back into the building, heading up to the apartment... just in time to see Derek poke his head out of the elevator. "Oh, jeez, Chan! P-Pugs ain't around, is he?" Derek asked, timidly.

"He's outside with Shaggy... but he'll be back in, soon." Flip replied, a bit happy to see Derek scared for once.

"Cripes, in that case, I'm bolting! I'm surprised you're not doing the same!"

Flip arched an eyebrow. "Why would I? We share the same apartment."

"Holy crud, you do?! How can you get any sleep with him around?!"

"Well, we're friends. I'm not scared of him,"

Derek scoffed. "You would be if you saw the things he used to do to me!"

Flip crossed his arms, growing curious. "Yeah? What did he do?"

Derek motioned him to come around the corner, looking around to make sure no one (mostly Pugsy) was around to hear. "I don't know whether or not he told you- which I doubt he did- but your 'friend' used to be a total brute! I went through school with the nickname 'Toilet-Boy' thanks to him and all those swirlies he gave me!"

"Swirlies? ...No way. I don't believe it,"

Derek gripped him by the shoulders. "Believe it, Chan! He was a total jerk! I used to fake sick every day just so I wouldn't go to school, and kept asking the teacher if I could take a baseball-bat with me whenever I had to go use the bathroom, worried he'd be waiting to pounce!"

Flip rolled his eyes. "And I take it he wanted your lunch money too, right?"

Derek shook his head. "No, he wasn't that kind of bully... That was some other kid, Red Herring- but he wasn't as bad as Pugsy. Pugsy would pick on others just to show who's boss, picking on the weaker guys, even little kids, just to show that he showed mercy to no one!"

"You mean like YOU do?"

"Duh! You think I got this brutal just by watching wrestling on TV?! I became a bully so I wouldn't have to go through that twisted year of kindergarten again- and it's all because of Pugsy,"

Flip shook his head. "I-I don't believe it. Maybe he did pick on you, but I doubt he'd be that brutal!"

There came a *ding* from the elevator, and Derek looked around the corner. "Oh yeah? Look at that and tell me he's not brutal,"

Flip looked... seeing Pugsy had Shaggy caught in a head-lock, dragging him down the hall. "...And next time, you wait around for me rather than take off, got it?!" Pugsy was lecturing.

"Like *gack* got it, Pugs! C-Can I get some oxygen, now?" Shaggy whimpered.

"Not until we get to the apartment- I don't want to have to chase you through the hedges, again,"

Flip bit his lip, still trying to deny it, until Derek whispered in his ear, "Face facts, Chan- you're living with a bully, worse than I am,"

Flip shoved him away. "No... he's not a bully! He's..." he stammered, but couldn't come up with a retort.

"Yeah. Sure." Derek huffed, walking away.

Flip slowly walked back to the apartment, his feelings in a bunch. He couldn't believe Derek, he'd never believe Derek! ...But, why did he feel his bully had a point?

Meanwhile, Derek smirked to himself. "Heh heh... Looks like I really got to him this time. If I can get Flip to see Pugsy as a threat, he'll have one less 'body-guard' for me to deal with,"

"You do realize talking to yourself about a sinister plot is over-used and cliche, let alone violates the discretion of its secrecy, don't you?" Sheldon Cooper commented, passing by.

Derek looked at him. "...What?"

Sheldon only sighed, walking off. "Never mind. (I swear, talking to bullies is like lecturing a brick),"

Derek shook his head, then walked off, thinking up what else he could tell Flip about Pugsy...

d~b

The next day, Flip got up, deciding he'd call up Holly and see if she wanted to hang out. When he stepped out, he noticed Shaggy in the kitchen-area, looking quite worn out, even though it was nearly 10 in the morning. "Hey, Shaggy... Whoa, you don't look good. Didn't get enough sleep?" Flip asked.

"No. I had to drive 'his royal pain in the highness' to work this morning for 'ditching' him yesterday." Shaggy sneered. "And he made me get up at 6 AM! SIX IN THE A-M! On a SATURDAY!"

*thunk!*

Shaggy made a face-plant on the counter, exhausted. "Um... Don't you guys both work at the radio-station?" Flip questioned.

"I only go in with him during the weekdays- Pugsy goes in by himself on Saturday mornings, then I take the night-segment."

Flip arched an eyebrow. "Why don't you guys both do a segment on Saturdays?"

"Budget cuts- the manager said that having a two-man show five days a week is enough... thank God, too, I don't think our two-man show would go so well after he made me drive him over there before the sun was up... on a weekend!"

"O-Okay, Shaggy, take it easy. Why didn't you just go back to your room and get back to sleep after you dropped him off?"

Shaggy scoffed. "Because on the way home, some maniac on a motorcycle zipped out in front of me and nearly made me swerve into a semi, and I've been wide-awake since!"

Just then Zippy came through the balcony door. "Sheesh, you won't believe what happened to ME this morning!" she scoffed. "I was riding my new motorcycle across town, and some idiot in a red van nearly runs me over at a yellow-light!" she then turned to Shaggy. "Hey, Shaggy- whoa, what happened? You look like you nearly got hit by a truck!"

Shaggy only gawked at Zippy, then face-palmed. "N-Never mind... I'm going back to bed," with that, he walked down the hall back to his own room.

Zippy turned and looked at Flip. "What's with him?"

"Um, Pugsy made him drive him to work- long story," Flip answered, deciding to avoid the 'traffic' subject.

She shook her head. "God bless that man- having to put up with so much from that jerk. I know I couldn't handle it," she then took out a spiked-ball and chain. "Well, time to head to my self-defense class! See you around, Flip." With that, she walked out on the balcony, stuck out her thumb, and a jet hovered over, opening a door which she stepped through, then shot off.

Flip sat at the island-counter for a while, noticing how increasingly obvious it was that everyone saw Pugsy as a jerk. He decided to get dressed and take a walk, figuring he could call up Holly later.

On his way out, who should he run into but Derek. "Oh, good, you're still alive." Derek quipped, walking beside him. "From the way Pugs was throwing Shaggy around the halls last night, I was worried he went after you next,"

"Shut up, Derek! I don't care!" Flip snarled, not wanting to hear any more talk from the bully.

Derek clenched his fists, ready to pummel Flip for snapping at him... but decided to mentally torment him instead. "Hey, I'm just joking. I think you're a tough kid, sticking around with Pugs. He must really like you, if he doesn't pick on you- he, uh, doesn't pick on you, does he?"

Flip then thought about it. True, Pugsy didn't really torment him... but from time to time he did make a wise-crack about his crush on Holly, or bossed him around when it came to chores. But that wasn't really much of bullying- even if it was, he wasn't going to tell it to Derek. "Since when do you care? You torment me all the time!"

"Yeah, but considering you're living with another bully... I may have to lighten up. It's the Bully Code not to torment someone else's victims, unless you wanted to have a wrestling-match about it- and I've been beaten by Pugsy enough when I was little! One time, I was on the playground- all the Middle School kids were having a passing-period at this time- and I was looking for a ball to play with. Well, Pugsy was outside, grabbing a ball I was about to grab, and when I asked him if I could have it, he said he'd give to me... in the face!"

Flip sneered. "You're making that up."

"Oh yeah? Ask my mom! The teacher called her up about it when she found me with a bloody nose! ...Then there was this time he gave me a wedgie and hung me on the flag-pole, just as a warning to the new kids!"

Flip shook his head, not believing it. "Are you sure you didn't just do something to make him mad? Because that's pretty much the only time he torments anyone,"

"Ha! Don't I know it! Back then, anything you said or did could set him off! I once saw him slam a kid into a locker just because they bumped into him! Another time, he shoved a kid down the stairs, just because they wouldn't lend him a dollar for the soda-machine! And then there was a time he punched a kid in the face, just because they were talking to a girl he had a crush on-"

"How can you remember all this stuff, if you were only five at the time?"

Derek paused. "Well... You remember a lot of things when you're scarred for life! I think Shaggy could even tell you that!"

Flip considered this. "True... b-but I doubt he was that mean!"

Derek sighed. "Oh, Flip... I know you probably don't believe it. I don't blame you- if someone was telling me a good friend of mine used to be a creep, I wouldn't want to believe it, either. But, it's like I always tell my little brother, Bobby- be careful who you hang out with."

Flip gave him a deadpanned look. "YOU told him that?"

"Duh! Big brothers always have to give their little brothers some kind of advice! I don't want my little bro hanging around with some creep who may end up stabbing him in the back! ...Trust me, I have experience in that,"

"Yeah, you were probably the back-stabber,"

Derek sneered. "Hey, I'm trying to help you out here, Chan, so knock it off with the comments!"

"Since when do you ever want to help me out?"

Derek scoffed. "Because I feel sorry for you. ...I'm warning you, be careful around that guy. The littlest things can set him off! ...But, hey, if you don't want to believe the kid he bullied to the point of no return, go ahead. It's your funeral." With that, Derek walked over to the elevators, taking one down.

Flip shook his head. "What a liar," he said to himself, then took the stairs down, going out to the backyard. He still refused to believe Derek's stories... but at the same time, he was beginning to feel a bit... uncertain. After all, Pugsy was a jerk sometimes- chasing after Shaggy and forcing him to do his bidding was enough to prove that. And there was the time, three years back, when his own gang kicked him out just because he was being brutal...

The more Flip thought back to it, the more tense he was becoming, and he didn't know which was worse- that Pugsy was a bully, or that Derek was right for once.

A hand gripped him by the shoulder just then. "Augh!" he yelped, turning around.

"Whoa, easy, Flip! It's just me," Pugsy said.

Flip calmed down, but couldn't keep himself from growing a little pale. "Oh, P-Pugsy... I thought you had to work until noon,"

"Ah, I had to come home early. For some reason, a gigantified robot-head flew through the air and knocked over the antenna on the building, so we're going to be off-air until it gets fixed." he arched an eyebrow, seeing Flip's complexion was losing its color. "Say, you alright, Flip? You don't look so good-" he reached out his hand to feel Flip's forehead.

The 12-year-old flinched, taking a step back. "I-I'm fine! I'm, um, going to go over to see Holly... is... that alright?"

Pugsy only gave him a confused look. "Um, yeah. You don't need my permission... you sure you're okay?"

Flip nodded. "Yeah, I'm good! See ya!" With that, he took off around the corner.

Pugsy scratched his head. "What got into him?"

"Oh, now it's the 'Wonder Out Loud to Yourself' cliche... *sigh* Doesn't anyone keep their thoughts to themselves, anymore?" Sheldon Cooper stated, passing by again.

Pugsy gave him a look. "Don't you?"

Sheldon paused. "No. But that's because my thoughts should actually be heard by others."

Pugsy shook his head, walking off. "Pass,"

Sheldon huffed. "That's what the last 15 people said. Clearly, no one wants to hear any constructive criticism. Oh, how I weep for humanity." he looked over at some bushes, and sighed again. "Great, and it's followed by the 'antagonist secretly watching from a secluded place' cliche... does no one believe in originality, anymore?"

Derek popped up from the bushes. "Dude, speak english!" he commented.

"I DO speak English. You just need to upgrade your vocabulary," With that, Sheldon walked off.

Derek rolled his eyes. Despite the nerd-cameo's comments, he couldn't help but smirk at the fact that he had gotten into Flip's head, then walked off to spy on him.

Meanwhile, Robotnik stormed towards the building, him and his lackeys looking charred. "I TOLD you idiots not to push the red button!" he snarled.

"Hey, it's not our fault those giant robots combust so easily!" Scratch argued.

"Yeah, well, thanks to you, not only did you ruin our plans YET AGAIN..." Robotnik pulled out a small radio, which was only making a static-sound. "But now we don't have any decent music to listen to!"

"Aw, and they were going to tell us who won the tickets to the Skillet concert today, too..." Horace whined as they walked in.

d~b

Flip, meanwhile, met up with Holly, telling her about his new anxiety. "I know Pugsy would never hurt me, Holly, but after hearing that he was a bully, and thinking about how brutal he tends to get, I just got all jumpy," he confessed to her.

"I know how you feel." Holly told him. "My ex-stepsister, Brattina, used to tell me scary stories about her grandpa when we were little, when he was coming over to visit. She scared me so much that when he came over, I was afraid to talk to him! ...But, once I got to know him, I found out he was actually pretty nice, and that Brattina was only trying to scare me. I think Derek's doing the same thing to you,"

"Yeah, but... the scary thing is, I know Pugsy pretty well, and he does tend to be a jerk. I'm just worried I might set him off!"

Holly rolled her eyes. "I doubt he'd give you a swirly if you did, Flip. And you had a point earlier- Pugsy would never do anything to hurt you... Don't let Derek change your mind about that."

Flip nodded. "Alright. Thanks, Holly."

"Anytime. If you want, we could-"

"Hel-LO, Holly!" Derek called, walking over. "Feel like going and getting a soda?"

Holly sneered. "Actually, I feel like I'm going to vomit,"

"Oh, come on, don't you want to hang out with me?"

"Sure. Close your eyes, first, for a surprise."

Derek did so- and puckered his lips, just in case. Holly grimaced, and grabbed Flip's arm, pulling him away. "What's the surprise?" Flip whispered once they were around the corner.

"He's going to find I'm not there," Holly whispered, smirking.

Flip chuckled. "Not really that surprising."

Derek, meanwhile, opened his eyes, looking around. "Where'd she go?" he wondered, scratching his head.

d~b

Back inside the apartment, later, Shaggy and Pugsy were sitting in their living room with Shawn K., Uncle Ted, and Zippy. "Any idea what was up with Flip today, Shag? He was acting weird when I came home," Pugsy asked.

"Well, he did ask me if you were a bully back in school. I told him we weren't so close back then, so I didn't know." Shaggy answered. "Actually, I wonder why he asked..."

"Really? It's that hard to figure- mmf!" Zippy began to quip, until Shawn clapped a hand over her mouth.

"Don't start," Shawn warned.

Pugsy sighed bitterly. "It's because of Derek, I'm guessing. The kid brought up I used to bully him when he was in kindergarten," he muttered.

"Oh yeah, I remember my sis telling me about that!" Uncle Ted said, eyes wide as he looked at Pugsy. "That was YOU? ...Huh, who would have thought? One of my buddies was a bully,"

"Seriously, I doubt anyone could miss- mmf!" Zippy tried to state again.

"Zippy, this is a sensitive subject, I suggest you NOT make any comments." Shawn said, sternly. "We've all had our share of bully-problems, I doubt you should be one too."

Zippy tore his hand off her mouth. "Hey, I was only joking! He's not a bully anymore- I think."

*DOOF!*

Pugsy chucked a pillow at her face. "...Scratch that." she muffled.

"Back to Flip," Shawn sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, then looked at Pugsy. "What did Derek tell him, exactly?"

"Just that I used to torment him until the family moved, then he scrammified," Pugsy replied, then rubbed his chin. "I wonder if he's not telling him anything else..."

"Derek always did exaggerate," Uncle Ted said. "One time, he said Pugsy chased after him with a machete!" he then looked at Pugsy. "Um, you didn't, did you?"

Pugsy gave Ted a look. "No! What the...?! What kind of kid brings a machete to school?! ...Besides ZIP?"

"...it was for show-and-tell..." Zippy muttered.

"I don't think I'd believe everything Derek would say, either." Shawn said. "He might just be making a few things up just to get Pugsy into trouble,"

"You think? Come to think of it, that's how it was like in school." Pugsy said, thinking back. "I remember the twerp brought a water-balloon to school, probably out to prankify someone, but it exploded on him. I laughed a little, and he told the teacher I gave him a swirly, and landed me in detention! ...So, I got back at him, by nicknaming him 'Toilet Boy'."

Zippy arched an eyebrow. "You- a kid in Junior High- wanted to get revenge... on a five-year-old?" she questioned.

Pugsy crossed his arms. "It was the grade of peer-pressure, and he wasn't exactly the nicest kid, Machete-Girl," he looked back at Ted. "I never did anything brutal to him, though- okay, one time I hit him in the face with a dodgeball, but it was an accident!"

"How would that be an accident?" Uncle Ted questioned.

"Because he was aiming for me, and I ducked," Shaggy admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. "B-But in our defense, Derek shouldn't have snuck off the playground!"

"So, you weren't a total bully," Shawn said to Pugsy.

Pugsy sighed, looking up at the ceiling. "Actually... yeah, I sort of was. Not to Derek, but to some other kids in my own grade." he confessed, then shook his head. "But you have to understand, guys, I've changed since then." he then stood up. "And right now, I've got to go find Flip, before Derek puts any more ideas in his head,"

He walked out, and the others turned to each other. "Wait... he used to be worse than he is, now?" Zippy questioned.

*Whap!*

Shawn hit her in the face with another pillow.

"Boy, I sure hope things get cleared up," Uncle Ted said. "I'm going to have a talk with Derek, too. If he wants to keep coming here, he's going to have to learn to treat others nicely!"

"No kidding," Shaggy agreed. "It's hard seeing Flip deal with bullies- makes me think about how I was always picked on in school,"

"Too right. I remember my own bully problems back in school," Shawn added. "Some kid always poked fun at me, just because I was so popular- filling my locker with jell-o, tying my shoe-laces together... One time, he switched my shampoo in the locker room out with pink hair-dye, and called me 'Cotton-Candy Head' for six months!"

"I think I could beat that. At my old school, during gym class, the girls switched out my clothes with a frilly dress, so it was either go the whole day in sweaty gym clothes, or look like Princess Peach," Zippy said.

"But, you're a girl, couldn't have been too bad to wear a dress." Uncle Ted stated.

"Who said I wore the dress? I got back at them, though. I sat by them at lunch, and lifted my arms, forcing them to breathe in-"

"I had a worse bully problem!" Shaggy said quickly, before Zippy could cause anyone to lose their lunch. "At my school, before the gang and I were close, Red Herring once pantsed me in front of everyone, then stapled my pants to the ground so I couldn't pull them back out. ...Three teachers and a custodian couldn't restore order, and I had to go home- for a week."

"Sheesh, I never had problems like that in school! I was kind of liked, actually!" Uncle Ted responded. "One time, I opened my locker, and saw that someone left a pet snake in there for me! And then someone filled my desk with silly-putty, which I had fun playing with; and someone always posted funny comics of me on the bulletin board- and they were hilarious, I tell you what! Everyone was sharing their jokes from sixth grade to graduation!"

Everyone looked at him. "Um, Ted? I think those were pranks some bullies pulled on you." Shawn spoke up.

Ted scratched his head. "Really? Huh. I guess I didn't think about it since I was getting such cool stuff,"

"Back to the matter at hand, I wonder what kind of bully Pugsy was," Zippy said, then flinched when Shawn raised a pillow. "And I'm just asking out of honest curiosity!"

"He wasn't as bad as you think," came a voice, and everyone looked over, seeing that- while they were talking- someone new had walked into the apartment.

d~b

Back with Flip, he was walking out of Holly's apartment, sipping a soda. He felt a little better, convincing himself that Pugsy wasn't a total jerk and that Derek was just trying to get to him. He thought about how he just freaked out around his friend earlier, probably hurting his feelings. "Maybe I'll go talk to Pugsy, just to make sure I didn't upset him," he said quietly to himself, walking around the corner, noticing Pugsy walking by.

"'Soon as I find that pre-teen twerp, I'm gonna murdify him," Pugsy was saying to himself. Now, we know he's no doubt talking about Derek, but unfortunately Flip didn't know that.

Flip gasped and went back around the corner, pinning himself against the wall. "He's more upset than I thought!"

Pugsy came around the corner. "There you are, Flip. We need to talk," he said.

With a yelp, Flip took off running in a panic.

Pugsy sighed. "Dang it, of all the times to copy Shaggy's influence-!" he ran after him. "Flip, come back! I just want to talk!"

They ran past Sheldon Cooper, who sighed. "Why do I get the feeling it's the whole 'misunderstanding-issue used to extend the plot' cliche? ...Oh, forget it, I'm going back inside until this is over." he said, walking off.

Flip ran through the lobby doors, quickly pushing the button on the elevator, hitting the button for the top-floor, then running out and hiding in a closet. Pugsy ran in, and- seeing the elevator going up, assumed the kid was going upstairs. "Dang it, Flip..." he muttered, getting into the second elevator to catch up to the other one.

Flip poked his head out, then walked out breathing a sigh of relief... until he felt a tap on his shoulder. "Gah!" he yelped, spinning around.

"Hey, take it easy, kid! I ain't gonna hurt ya!" came a reply from a young man of about 21, with light-brown hair, wearing a white-shirt covered by a brown open-vest, blue jeans... and a red-orange baseball cap that he wore backwards. "Don't you recognize me?"

Flip looked at him a moment, taking note of the cap. "You do look familiar... Wait... Fangs? Sherman Fangsworth, Fangs?"

Fangs smiled, nodding. "Ooh, ooh, you got it right."

"What brings you here?"

"Just came by for a visit... and, well, I heard you've been hearing some stuff about Pugsy's bullying back in school, and how freaked out you are."

Flip cringed. "Y-Yeah... I know he's not really a bully anymore, but... I can't help but get jumpy!"

Fangs shrugged. "I know. I used to be the same way- Pugsy wasn't exactly the nicest kid in school... but that's because some of the kids weren't nice to him, either. Are you familiar with the term, 'it takes a bully to make a bully'?"

"No."

"...Yeah, neither am I. Shawn had to explain it to me. ...But, back in school, before I transferred there, Pugsy was picked on quite a bit- because he was short, because of his vocabulary, or just because some goon wanted a laugh. What made it worse was his temper, so a few guys picked on him just to get a rise out of him. By sixth grade, he was pretty brutal towards a lot of kids- used to call everyone names, shove people in the halls... but nothing too brutal. That is, until I came along,"

Flip looked up at him. "What did he do to you?"

"Well... I had been home-schooled as a kid, so when I went to public school... well, he kind of started picking on me. One day we got into a fight, and he started getting more brutal- punching me in the arm, calling me names, hitting me in the face with a dodgeball... You know, one time he threatened to chase after me with a machete?"

Flip withheld a comment, and instead said, "How did you get him to stop?"

Fangs shrugged. "One day... he just stopped. He came up to me before class one day, apologized, promising he wouldn't torment me like that ever again. I forgave him, and we got along better after that, pretty soon becoming friends."

Flip sighed with relief. "But... do you know about the things he did to Derek Generic?"

Fangs sneered. "THAT kid? Oh jeez, yeah. But he never did anything brutal- called him 'toilet boy' when the kid went around saying Pugs gave him a swirly, or accidentally hit him in the face during a dodgeball game when he snuck off the playground, but nothing brutal. Pugsy was a jerk, but he wouldn't hurt a little kid!"

"Ha! I knew Derek was lying!" he then cringed. "I just wish I believed it, sooner."

Fangs patted him on the back. "It's alright, Flip. We all make mistakes."

Flip walked towards the elevator. "I'd better go find Pugs and apologize. Thanks, Fangs!"

"Anytime!" Fangs said, waving to him.

"Argh! Next time you have a tender-moment, take it elsewhere! You're making my job feel like a hostile work-place! And I'm the only one who's supposed to make it feel that way!" Robotnik snapped, having been reading a magazine from behind his desk, storming off.

Fangs blinked, then turned to Sheldon Cooper who just walked in. "He's not a very nice manager," he said.

"I know- he has this bad habit of announcing his plans for world domination out loud, too." Sheldon scoffed. "I don't do that. I just write them down to share later."

Fangs blinked, watching Sheldon walk off. "O-kay then..."

d~b

Flip walked out into the hall on his floor, rushing back to his apartment. "What's your hurry, Chan?" Derek asked, standing against the wall. "Going back in your apartment to face that goon you're living with?"

Flip clenched his fists, getting sick of Derek's comments. "Maybe after I deal with the goon I'm looking at now!" he retorted. "Back off already, Derek!"

"Hey, I'm just telling you-"

"All your telling me is a bunch of lies! I know Pugsy better than you- he might have been a bully before, but he's changed! And he's not as bad as you say he is- you're just making everything up to scare me. You're the real bully!"

Derek scoffed. "Ooh, I'm SO hurt..." he then gripped Flip by the shirt-collar. "Well, if you want a bully, you got- OW!"

Flip kicked him in the shin. "That's for the lies!" he then punched Derek in the stomach. "And that's for my friend!"

Derek growled, then shoved Flip into the wall, pinning him to it. "That's it! Now you're really going to get it!" A shadow loomed over them just then, and they looked over, both of them gasping.

Standing before them was a hockey-masked figure, holding a machete!

Zippy lifted the hockey-mask. "Is there a problem here, boys?" she asked, suspiciously.

"No problem! Just, um, saying goodnight! 'Night, Flip!" Derek said quickly, then ran down the hall. "UNCLE TED!"

Flip sighed with relief, then turned to Zippy. "You didn't have to scare him off, Zippy. I could handle it," he said to her.

"Oh, I know. I was just on my way to 'Horror-Con', it starts in an hour... Don't know why that kid took off running though." she replied. "You'd think he never saw a girl walking around with a machete before! ...Well, see ya." With that, she walked off whistling.

Flip shook his head, then walked to his apartment. In Shawn and Ted's apartment, he could hear Uncle Ted trying to calm down a startled Derek. "Now, Derek, it's alright! Zippy won't stab anyone with a machete... um, won't she, Shawn?" Ted was saying.

Shaggy walked out of their own apartment. "Hey, Flip. Where've you been?" Shaggy asked.

"Just had to clear my head." Flip replied. "Where are you going?"

"To work, where else? They finally fixed the antenna on the radio-station. So much for a night off, huh?" he thumbed at the door. "Pugsy's waiting for you inside, too. And, ah, don't run this time- he hates that."

Flip nodded, biting his lip and turning to the door, while Shaggy walked off. He walked inside, seeing Pugsy sitting on the couch, watching television, which he turned off when he noticed Flip come in. The 12-year-old took a deep breath, walking over. "Pugs... um... I..." he began to say, quietly.

Pugsy held up his hand, having him pause, then held his arm out, motioning Flip to sit down next to him.

Flip did so, walking over, sitting down, then hugging him, wincing. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

"It's alright, Flip. Sometimes it's a hard fact to face... I guess it's just payback for the bullying I did," Pugsy replied, patting him on the back.

"Yeah, but... you're not a bully now. You're a jerk sometimes, but... you don't really do anything to hurt us. I shouldn't have let Derek scare me... I'm sorry I hurt you,"

"You didn't hurt me- alright, I was a little disappointed when you kept freaking out... but then again, you're not the only one."

"Yeah... Fangs said he was the same way, until you changed. He also told me why you were a bully, and... well... I finally remembered you've changed, too. I just forgot after hearing Derek make up those stories, and seeing how you chase Shaggy around..."

Pugsy rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, I've still got a lot to change... But, Flip, keep in mind that, even if I lose my temper at times, I won't hurt you- maybe lock Shaggy in a head-lock once in a while, but I'll never be the jerk I once was. I regret the things I've done, and I'll still have my regrets... but I'm willing to move on, and all I ask is that others do the same,"

Flip nodded. "I'll move on, too... I hope Derek does- which may be quick, since Zippy just traumatized him!"

Pugsy chuckled. "Yeah, well, who wouldn't that girl traumatize? ...Wait, did you say Fangs told you everything?"

"Yeah. He said that one day, you just apologized. ...Why did you finally decide to do it?"

Before Pugsy could reply, there was a howl, and suddenly something charged through the door and tackled Pugsy, Flip diving out of the way just in time! He looked over, seeing a well-built werewolf, wearing blue-jeans, a brown open-vest, and red-orange baseball cap, was shaking Pugsy around!

"Gotcha, Pugs! *grr* I knew one of these days I'd find ya!" Fangface exclaimed.

"This- is- why!" Pugsy answered Flip between shakes, then turned to Fangface. "Alright, nit-wolf, you got me! Is this how you greet your best-friend?"

Fangface paused, dropping Pugsy. "Ooh, ooh, sorry Pugs! *grr* It's been a while. Old habits die hard, I guess,"

"Alright, I forgive ya... How did you find out where I lived, anyhow?"

"Ooh, ooh, I ran into Shaggy downstairs, and he told me you guys lived up here! *grr* Ooh, he had a message for me to give you, too!" Fangface reached under his cap, pulling out a note and handing it to Pugsy.

It read: "That's for making me carpool you at 6 AM on a weekend!"

Pugsy sneered, standing up. "Alright, where'd that pin-brain go?" he snarled, crumbling the message.

"He said he was heading to work now that the antenna was fixed," Flip said.

"The antenna won't be built until next week..."

"Oh. ...Then I have no idea."

"Ah well... he has to come home sometime,"

Flip crossed his arms. "Pugsy, remember the talk we just had?"

Pugsy looked at him, then sighed after thinking about it. "Alright, I'll let it go this one time."

"Great! I'll go tell him he doesn't have to hide in the garage!" Fangface said, walking out.

Pugsy and Flip exchanged looks, then shrugged, deciding to put the events of the day behind them.

d~b

"For the last time, Derek, there's nothing to be afraid of!" Uncle Ted was telling a still-shaken up Derek. "Now, I want you to march across that hall and apologize to both Flip AND Pugsy,"

"C-C-Can I take a baseball bat with me?" Derek asked.

"Oh, just go, Derek. You're a tough kid, aren't you?" Shawn said.

Derek nodded. "Right. I am! I can handle some freaky-" he opened the door...

...seeing Fangface walking by. The werewolf looked at him, gave a short growl and nod, and continued walking.

He paled a bit, his eyes rolling back as he fell to the floor, fainting.

d~b

A/N: Sometimes the worst kind of bullying is reminding someone of their past.

Please review, don't flame, and we'll see what happens in the next episode!