"FLASH!" Batman yelled, watching the speedster go down, a few bullets peppered in his legs. The bright red man was on the ground, hopefully unconscious, when a wave of dark military men overtook the wounded meta.

The bat vigilante dove to the side to avoid another spray of bullets, then the wall next to where Batman landed exploded in a giant flash bang. He grunted and tugged his cape over himself, grabbing at his grappling wire to swing away. He shot through the sky, eyes blinking out the white spots and breathing heavily with the tough fight.

His escape was cut short as the structure the grapple had latched onto broke, a stray explosive from where Superman was dealing with the bazukas. Luckily he was close enough to only miss the roof by a single floor.

He latched onto a window ledge, heaving himself upwards and over the lip of the roof, landing in a heap on top of a building. Keeping crouched, he scuttled behind a smoke stack, peaking into the battlefield as he drew out his grappling wire, only to have Wonder Woman leap up next to him and offer her lasso.

"We're not getting anywhere here Batman, we need to regroup." She spoke, a few strands of her midnight hair getting in her face and her forehead sported a few scuff marks, as did the rest of her body. Batman stayed silent, not yet reaching for the offered rope and observing the battle.

The offer was retracted as they both dropped because a nearby explosion nearly offed them from the roof, showering dust and building remnants over the duo. "This doesn't seem right." She said, shaking her head that was covered in a layer of fine building dust, her back to the lip and wary eyes located on The Dark Knight.

Batman nodded in agreement, not bothering to dust off and taking a moment to look over the edge and into the war zone below. It was chaos for sure, men in dark combat suits with the acronym M.A.Z.E. stamped on their shoulders were attacking the newly formed Justice League, the League that fought to protect metahumans and their rights. Most people feared them, and they should, but they were not against humans, they just wanted the slaughter of innocent people to stop.

Green Arrow was unconscious, his bow broken beside him and already he disappeared from view just like Flash had. But Batman's quick eyes saw both a flash of green and red further away, they were taking the unconscious leaguers to the side where hidden heavy-duty meta-containment trucks awaited.

The white lenses of his cowl widened in recognition, he eased it back into a scowl as he slid back down, facing the meta before him. "It's a set up, they're here for you."

"Me?" Wonder Woman asked, genuinely confused. Another explosion broke in the sky above them, causing both to shelter for a moment.

When Batman's ears stopped ringing and his eyes stopped swimming he leaned over the edge again, taking in the tide and huffing as he slid back down. "All of you, the metahumans." He clarified, the pit in his stomach since Dick was taken two days ago increasing tenfold at the sight of his beaten teammates.

Wonder Woman was not deterred, giving the bat a slight glare. "I'm well aware of our positions in society Batman, I-"

"They just captured Superman, Martian Manhunter, Green Arrow and The Flash." He interrupted with a snap. "If we don't do something fast then soon there's going to be nothing for Metahumans to look up to. Hope is a powerful thing, granted I would have thought we'd make more of a difference, but Metahumans are still oppressed and living in constant fear. We were the only buffer between Metahumans and their annihilation. If we fall then every Meta will know exactly how horrible the nature of man can be."

They were fish in a barrel down there, more than half of the Justice League was already taken. He didn't need to look to know Aquaman was down, the water no longer reached into the sky to stop explosions and the rest of the league was suffering for it. Green Arrow and Flash were already in the trucks, unconscious and battered. Martian Manhunter had his weakness to fire exploited and Superman was a vulnerable heap at the bottom of a crater, exposed to the rare green element that got past his impenetrable skin and negated his powers of flight, heat vision and strength.

Batman wondered where they got it, or even how they knew Kryptonite was the right element.

They were being separated into different trucks, heavy looking iron shackles being placed on both the conscious and unconscious Metas. The men were moving quickly, shouting orders at each other and having no remorse for the damage they caused the Metropolitan area. Batman noticed a black collar locked around Superman's neck, the meta was still conscious miraculously. But it dug more into the pit as he could see his comrade try to use his powers, his eyes glowing red but no beams erupted.

If that's what it did to their strongest hitter... if they got one of those collars on all of them they were done for.

It was only him and Wonder Woman left, and he could see the military agents setting up their bigger bazookas to bomb them out of their location.

"You should leave then." Wonder Woman said, eyes narrowing on the very human Batman. "You don't belong with us."

Bruce took the jab in stride, while it was true he was not a Meta he sure wasn't about to let an entire race of slightly different humans be slaughtered, or even worse, used as tools. He, and less occasionally Robin, had busted many metahuman traffickers, the league also deployed on many a mission to save compounds full of metahuman slaughter houses. None of it was remotely humane, mass murder of any and every meta, not even caring to check the children for the gene before releasing the mass guillotine. It's what angered Batman most, but it landed him on the side of the oppressed and demoralized. He had hopped his contributions would help as both Batman and Bruce Wayne, but the fact is that it was too damaging to openly help metas, so most of his Bruce Wayne help was either nonexistent or under the radar.

The bat vigilante pushed off the lip and ran across the uneven roof towards Wonder Woman. Battle had worn down the roof and a random stray thought that might have been in Robin's voice said he was thankful M.A.Z.E. decided to confront them in a nearly done construction site- less casualties but damage was definitely being done. He ignored that thought, as clearly Robin wasn't here and he was glad he wasn't.

Yes. Robin shouldn't be here.

Batman pushed that thought aside and grabbed the woman's rope, winding it around his wrist. The rope began to glow as it's truth-inducing chemicals seeped into his skin through the glove.

He locked eyes with the Meta, her face slightly shocked and confused at his actions. "I'm here because I wanted Metas to know that not all humans are like these men. We attack what we don't understand, we fear what we can't control, but that is no excuse for the atrocities done to Metas. Just as Metahumans can become vengeful and stoke the misconception, a human can break the stereotype and be kind."

The adult Meta just looked at him, something like shock and relief passing through her eyes. "...So I take it your not leaving." She said slowly.

"Not when I have work to do." Batman grunted, unraveling the rope and getting to his feet. He hadn't been spotted yet so he took the time to find a target, aiming his grappling hook and watching it loop around a chimney spire. He tugged once before leaping off the building into the throng of angry men.

Wonder Woman smirked as the bazookas were fired, heading straight for her. "If we go down, we go down among friends, fighting for justice," The woman jumped high, avoiding the blast and landing on one of the tanks, crushing it with her strength. "I cannot think of a more noble ending."

-0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0-

"This missing person's case just got plural, more and more people are disappearing off the streets and even in their homes seemingly at random. The Metahuman Apprehension and Zeta Exploration, other wise known as M.A.Z.E., have claimed they have no involvement in these disappearances, but HAVE claimed they captured the seven self-proclaimed 'heroes' who call themselves the Justice League. These Metas have been labeled as terrorists ever since their first appearance a year ago, claiming that they were fighting for Metahuman rights. A single voice that has been now silenced. No one is taking responsibility for these disappearances, but a strong number of the populace think that Metahumans have something to do with it and are celebrating the end of the public terror that is The Justice League." Cat Grant reported.

Dick was curled on the couch, his face slack with fear and a burning hatred rising in his stomach. The entire Justice League... caught?

"Dick?"

The acrobat's head snapped to the older boy before slowly returning to the TV, contorting his face into a mean glare. As if if he could bat-glare at it long enough it might give him his Bruce back.

"Bruce isn't a Metahuman..." Dick mumbled, thinking to himself quietly enough so that the older boy didn't hear. "He must be sent free, or maybe he was kept because of association." He hung his head, digging his fingers into his inky black hair.

"Why can't everybody just leave us alone?!" Dick shouted angrily, getting up from his seat and stomping past the redhead to the stairs, slamming his door behind him.

Wally held a plate of cookies, the innocent victim of his guest's anger.

"You want some cookies?" He asked the empty room, the question he was going to ask Dick, but apparently the kid didn't even want to be near him right now.

A pang of fear ran through the young teen, he had to be careful around Dick. His emerald eyes found the TV again and he couldn't help the cold fear that coiled in his gut. The Justice League was gone. What's going to happen to all the Metahumans now? What's going to happen to HIM?!

The Flash was part of that group, he was his favorite, he had the same powers as Wally did. He had wanted to meet him, maybe the older Meta could have even taught him a few things. He knew it was a long shot and either one of them could get taken by M.A.Z.E. at any moment, but the Justice League looked so unstoppable-- which is probably why they were taken down. But now any and every hope was gone.

Humans were mean and violent. They took anything that resembles non-human power, no matter the age or situation of the meta, and crushed it.

The real terror were the humans, they slaughtered Metas like himself. Parents turned in their children when their powers showed themselves, disgusted they could create such a monster. Wally was actually lucky his powers weren't too obvious and he gained relative control over it since it began.

He was a small fraction of Metas who could actually blend into society, and most of the time he wasn't sure it was worth being so close to his enemies. But then he remembered what happens out there and he immediately felt the need to hug his aunt and uncle and hide under the bed. Entire colonies of Metas in hiding were burnt out all the time, literally, their houses going up in flames with everyone trapped inside. They let them burn. The men, the women, the children. They didn't care. In fact they tried to get the women and kids, they didn't want them to multiply.

It was a war out there, and the Justice League actually helped Metas, on multiple occasions fighting against the military operations that rounded up stray Metas for a mass execution. Metas were killed in droves every day, but the Justice League had at least lowered the number, helping some hide, helping others run away.

Wally had always dreamed of meeting them, getting helped by them. He knew he could be safe with them.

But it wasn't like he was mistreated here, his aunt and uncle just didn't know, and it was getting harder and harder to keep it a secret. It was terrifying to live in a constant state of fear and have to pretend everything was hunky dory or else the nightmares would come true. But the truth was it was all one giant nightmare.

And now his fallback was gone. The one light in his dark tumbling life was snuffed out. The Justice League was captured. His only source of hope in his future was utterly destroyed.

The young speedster looked down at the plate of cookies, he didn't feel like eating with this new development, but he knew he had to eat as much as he could when he could. If Dick didn't want his cookies then Wally would be glad to have them. Eating enough to keep him sustained was one of the things that was getting harder to do, he was always tired because of it and his Aunt and Uncle were starting to take notice.

But Wally couldn't help but feel like something was wrong, beyond the fact that Metahumans might be hunted down like monsters and he was one of them. (He was pretty good at ignoring that problem, he kinda had to be to pass off as human.) Something was wrong with Dick, and Wally had a feeling he knew what it was.

The whole reason Dick was here was because his foster parent abused him right? Wally knew what that felt like, maybe even a bit more intensely since it was his actual parents that abused him. (Thankfully his parents didn't know he was a meta, or Wally would have been taken ages ago. Uncle Barry had visited unexpectedly once and witnessed some of what Wally's father called 'discipline'. The cops came after that and Wally stayed with Uncle Barry ever since.) Wally wanted to make sure Dick knew that he wasn't alone, he knew how isolating it was and that the anger and fear Dick was feeling could combust if he bottled it up inside.

The red head shoved a few cookies in his mouth, putting the plate down in the kitchen and walking up the stairs slowly. Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris were at work, usually they wouldn't considering it's the weekend but Aunt Iris was out shopping for groceries and Uncle Barry was called in because of the missing people. That left Wally in charge of the house and of their new guest.

He knocked on the door cautiously, hearing the boy on the other side shift around a little. The door flew open, revealing an angry little ten year old glaring up at the teen.

"What." Dick asked curtly.

Wally fumbled with his words, an angry ten year old really shouldn't be that scary, "I was just- um- you... al-alright...?"

Dick huffed and crossed his arms but his glare did lower to the carpet. The poor ground. "I'm not mad at you, I just... hate this."

Wally rubbed the back of his head awkwardly, "at least it's not as bad as where you used to be, right?"

Dick's glare went up again and Wally felt uncomfortably vulnerable. "Nothing was bad the way it used to be, Bruce doesn't hurt me like everyone thinks! He never has and he never will! You believe me right?"

Wally definitely felt in danger, but he couldn't let someone else fall into the same trap he did. "Dick... you have hand bruises around your neck... if not from Bruce, where did you get them?"

Dick's eyes found the floor again, his folded arms squeezing each other. "...I can't tell you."

Wally released a breath he didn't know he was holding, "See, Dick there's no one else who could have done it."

Dick's face flushed as he pouted, keeping silent and grouchy.

Wally spoke again hesitantly, "Th-there's nothing wrong with admitting it Dick. He hurt you."

Dick's angry face blew, his hands thrown up into the air as he yelled. "There is something wrong with saying it because IT'S A LIE!" He reached for the door and slammed it in Wally's face.

-0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0-

Wally was home alone again for the second day of the weekend. Uncle Barry was still at work, the redhead wasn't even sure he came back last night at all. Aunt Iris said she was going out, mentioning something about her workplace and the Police Station. She was probably going to drag Uncle Barry back home, he worked too much and was always disappearing. Wally did, however, notice the tight smile she gave him as she left. That was weird, something was clearly off with his aunt.

But being home alone gave the young speedster a tiny spark of freedom and hope inside his chest.

Then he was reminded that Dick Grayson was with him and a frown dampened his spirit.

He leaned back in his chair, super discreetly looking around to see if Dick was anywhere close. His smile came back slowly and he sat forward, placing his hands on the table and drew his feet under his chair.

His grin grew maniacal as he felt the rush of speed dash through his body, familiar lightning sparking at his hands and feet.

Wally picked up his bowl and put it in the sink, the entire trip lasting about .03 seconds. He paused in the kitchen archway, breathing in a sigh of relief.

It felt so good to use his speed.

A light chuckle passed through his lips and he closed his eyes to feel the electricity running through his veins. He would have happily ran rings through the house, but after the first time his wake had made a huge mess that he had to clean up before his aunt and uncle returned home from work. So he didn't do that often unless he knew most of everything was weighted down and/or he had the time to clean it up, a risk he didn't take often.

Wally bolted up the stairs, dashing into his room at light speed, entering his bathroom and closing the door. He didn't see anyone when he sped in, Dick's door was closed but he stayed inside just in case to give the illusion he had taken the time to get upstairs- or had been in the bathroom all along.

The whole trip from down stairs to the bathroom took .07 seconds.

He hummed happily to himself as he went about acting as if he had been in the bathroom for ages. Watching his hands vibrate and the electricity spark between his fingers or the way his eyes would flash. Once he deemed it long enough he settled his excited nerves and exited the bathroom.

He didn't notice that Dick was sitting on the floor on the other side of his bed, in clear view of the bathroom.

Wally froze, eyes locking onto the small boy, and just one look at the acrobat's features made his face drain in record time.

"You're a Metahuman!" Dick nearly shouted in shock, pointing weakly at the frozen speedster with his mouth gaped open and his eyes even wider.

A cold sweat broke on the speedster's forehead and he rubbed his suddenly sweaty palms on his pants, fisting them and gulping. Dick had seen him.

Dick had seen him.

"N-No I'm not." Wally said carefully, wide eyes darting around and slightly backing away from the kid. Like Dick himself was a M.A.Z.E. Agent there to capture or kill him.

Dick sprang to his feet, making the speedster flinch but it either went unnoticed or the younger kid didn't care. "Yes you are! I saw you- you like- teleported or something! There was a big flash of yellow too!" The boy was pointing from the bathroom to where the redhead now stood with startled and gaunt features. "I saw you!"

Wally swallowed thickly, his mouth absolutely dry. "Umm... s-so you- um- will y-you-..." He was completely floundering, his tongue was tripping up before he burst forward with frantic pleadings. "Please don't tell anyone! I promise I'm not evil or anything!"

He edged forward a little bit then thought better of it and stayed back, he really didn't want to startle Dick or make any sudden movements that might be perceived as threatening.

Dick had gone silent, he could see the kid thinking, his face frozen in shock too. It was agony to wait. Or maybe it was his speed slowing time down, dragging out this excruciating moment in his soon to be ending life.

He found his mouth moving again, almost too fast, the familiar hum making his gut sink rather than swell with excitement. "I-I'll do anything, please, just don't tell anyone!" Wally said tearfully, deciding to get down and plead on his knees. He'd seen other meta's do it when they're detained on TV, maybe if he showed complacency Dick would be less inclined to sell him out. "P-please...?"

Dick seemed taken back by his sudden movement to the ground, or maybe he was afraid of Wally, he didn't know. The acrobat just stared at him.

Yeah Wally's speed was definitely the cause of this, Dick hadn't blinked in a suspicious amount of time, but that only spiked his fear because he couldn't... he couldn't stop! Dick was going to hate him for sure!

Maybe... maybe Dick needed something else, something even more subjugating to make him feel safer. Wally quickly bent forward, placing his hands flat on the ground above his head and resting his forehead on the carpet.

He was crying now, he could already see himself being marched away from his now not-so-loving aunt and uncle. His back shuddered from the sobs he tried to stifle, but he was too far gone, Dick had seen too much, he was done for.

"I... I won't tell anyone." Dick's small voice said.

Wally perked, a heavy sigh of relief breaking through his sobs. "Th-Thank you... thank you..." he muttered breathlessly between heaving cry-like hiccups. But still his gut clenched in anxiety. Dick might not sell him out now, but he could at any moment, Dick could make him do anything to keep his secret.

He heard Dick shift, coming forwards until he saw the acrobat's feet. Wally couldn't help it, he flinched back, thinking maybe his mere presence as a meta instead of a fellow human being might upset the normal kid.

Then two hands settled on his shoulders and pulled him up. Wally let himself be lifted but kept his head lowered, tears still slipping down his red face and sniffing in his runny nose. His back shook as new sobs wracked his body, at this point he didn't even know what he was crying about, weather it be for joy or for absolute terror he couldn't tell.

Then those hands wrapped around him, the acrobat's head colliding with his chest and the rest of himself falling on top of Wally's kneeling legs.

Dick hugged him tight and Wally made the half thought out decision to return the hug. His trapped upper arms made it difficult but he latched his forearms over the boy's back, slightly bending under Dick's weight to stuff his face in the boy's shoulder.

"You don- -aff to be afraid Wally." Dick said, slightly muffled by the speedster's shirt.

"I-I don't understand..." Wally started, blinking away tears and grunting a little to get the frog out of his throat, his chest still tight with emotion. "Y-you've only known me f-for a few days, a-and I made you mad y-yesterday... w-why...?"

"Meta-human still has 'human' in it doesn't it?" Dick said as if pointing out something obvious.

Wally froze, then laughed.

Dick let go and sat back on his heels, Wally doing something similar but putting his palms to his face to wipe away his tears. He was still laughing, more like gasping, a weird combination of both laughing and crying.

"Thank you." Wally said, more sincere this time, because maybe Dick wouldn't use his Meta-ness against him. (Maybe, one can never be too sure and this was the first time Wally had to trust someone with his secret.) It felt amazing. He finally looked up and met the acrobat's eyes, finding those diamond blues locked into his own. He broke away first, finding the carpet more interesting as he wiped at his nose with the back of his hand. "I thought I was done for... you have no idea how much this means to me... thank you Dick."

The acrobat only nodded, a small smile on his face and eyes also averted to the carpet.

"But you'd do anything I say?" Dick asked, almost innocently, but that tone was unmistakable.

Wally felt his breath catch in his throat as his gut writhed.

The young speedster nodded numbly, mind already making worst case scenarios at light speed.

"Then here's my question," Wally braced for impact, "What does it feel like?" the very human boy asked inquiringly, shuffling a little on his legs as if he was nervous.

Wally blinked, finding reality a lot different than what he had imagined. "What?"

"What does it feel like to have powers?" Dick clarified, hopeful blue eyes darting up cautiously, as if he looked for too long he would spook the meta.

Wally was quiet for a few moments, letting it really sink in.

He was talking to Dick about being a Metahuman, he was speaking with someone about something he swore to never tell anyone. And Dick was okay with it.

"It feels... normal, I guess." Wally shrugged, "I-I don't teleport tough, I was just moving so fast it looked like I teleported."

Dick's eyebrows furrowed and he spoke exactly what Wally expected. "Like The Flash?"

"Yeah. A lot like him." Wally muttered, picking at his pants. He wished he knew The Flash, he could have someone teach him how to do speedy stuff, and so far his appetite was one to be rivaled with and Wally always had a hard time not eating more than what was considered 'normal'.

"Could you be related?" Dick asked, almost eagerly.

Wally frowned, ducking his head a little. "Well, I don't have a ton of family, a-and I haven't told any of them..."

"Wait, wait, wait... You haven't told anyone?!" Dick asked, also realizing that if Wally really was like The Flash he would need to eat a lot more. But that's probably something Robin would know, not Dick Grayson.

Wally reached over and grabbed his other arm nervously, "No... Parents sell out their kids all the time... a-and my real parents already didn't want me, I don't want my Aunt and Uncle to hate me too."

Dick looked like he was at a loss, but he quickly filled the silence. "Alright, valid point... have you tried getting to the Justice League?"

"Never got the chance... or the courage..." the older kid mumbled, eyes on the floor. But then his emerald eyes flicked up, still trepidatious. "What about you? Why do you not hate Metas?"

Dick took a deep breath, his eyes darting around for a second before they focused back on the speedster. "There was an act in the circus that was Metahuman, not everyone knew but me and my parents would hang out with them all the time. Then when I started living with Bruce..." his eyes darted around again and he shimmed in his seat, lifting a flat hand to cover the side of his mouth. "Don't tell anyone... but Bruce is a big supporter of Metahumans too. It makes him mad that he can't do more public things to help you guys, he's trapped by social standards and ya know... the penalty for helping Metas... but he still finds ways to help."

Wally wanted to ask a question about the circus, because Dick was talking like he was a part of it instead of a goer. He didn't know much about Bruce Wayne's Ward, much less the billionaire himself. He was rich and in Gotham, nothing Wally should care about. But once he heard that billionaire Bruce Wayne wanted to help meta's, his eyes got as big as saucers, "Really...? The JL aren't the only ones helping Metas?"

"Well..." Dick shrugged and winced, "Like I said, he's pretty limited, but I heard him talking to Alfred once about building something, like a safe house for Metas."

"Whoa..." The speedster breathed, a hand coming up to run through his hair. Then his face twisted, "but how does that work with the whole... abuse thing...?" He asked slowly.

Dick's face instantly soured and he folded his arms angrily. "He doesn't abuse me! He's the only adult who ever understood what losing family feels like! He listens to me, he doesn't pity and he's nice where it counts. He's not perfect but he's... he's Bruce. And I wouldn't want anyone else."

The duo sat in silence for a while, Wally feeling a question bobble up but before he could stop himself it was already out of his mouth. "Not even your parents?"

Wally tensed as Dick froze. The ten year old shifted onto his haunches and gripped his knees, looking at the ground far to the left. "They're gone. No amount of wishing or wanting is going to bring them back. I just don't want to lose Bruce too..." his small voice said barely above a whisper.

"Sorry! Sorry-!" Wally blurted, feeling flustered that he upset the only person who knew his secret, "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable or anything it just slipped out!" Because yeah, Wally did actually miss his parents and would want them back if they weren't such pricks, at least his mom.

Dick turned to face him again, his frown looking permanent and face passive. "It's fine, I shouldn't be taking my anger out on you guys, you've taken me in so I don't have to be in an orphanage and that's the best thing about this whole situation."

He didn't look happy, but Wally could tell he really was grateful, he just hoped the kid wasn't faking all this niceness.

"C-can I ask another question about the uh... the suspected abuse?" Wally asked carefully, watching the boy and picking at his pants.

The small acrobat sighed, and a small smile twitched in his lips. "Only if you show me more of your speed."

"Okay." Wally said a little too readily, he hadn't realized Dick would WANT to see him use his powers, he figured the kid would want him to stuff it away like Wally normally did. "If Bruce doesn't abuse you... how did you get those wounds?"

Surprisingly Dick didn't react, not a gulp, not an eye flutter, not even a change in breathing.

"There's other people that want me hurt or dead. Kidnappers, over enthusiastic fans, enemies of Bruce." He said, staring blankly at the floor. "I ended up at the wrong place at the wrong time, I was nearly strangled, but Bruce showed up and everything turned out alright." His head hung and he rested his chin on his drawn up knees, one hand coming up to gently brush across the scar running along his cheek and ear. "Well... nothing is alright anymore... but I guess it's nice knowing a lot of people are looking out for me? It's strange really, people- Gothimaites especially- don't exactly have any reason to be kind or look out for a kid like me."

Wally could sense the frustration and dared to ask another question. "A kid like you?"

"Circus folk, gypsies," again Dick looked vacant, blank like any emotional investment was prohibited. "I'm originally from Romania, English is my second language."

It all came back in a rush, just then remembering why Dick was the ward of Bruce Wayne. Wally didn't care much about the goings on in Gotham but it was impossible to forget about the trapeze artists who died during a show, orphaning their eight year old.

"But that's cool, not weird..." Wally said, trying to curve his own thoughts on the matter, Dick really wasn't that weird, at least not to Wally. More unique than weird, but yeah weird was kinda a side effect of unique, but that was not a bad thing.

"Well." Dick huffed. "I guess you would know what it feels like to be the minority and have people against you." He paused and looked up, quickly leading on. "I mean that- I'm not trying to make light of your situation- or make mine the same as yours- or insinuate that-"

"Dick." Wally interrupted, a lopsided smile on his face. "It's okay, I get what you're trying to say. We're pretty similar in the public oppression department."

Dick cracked a smile too and Wally mentally fist pumped. "Alright, mushy stuff is over," the acrobat got up to his feet and held a hand down to Wally. "I wanna see how cool your powers are."

Wally's smile grew into a tight grin, taking the hand and being pulled up. "Is it alright if I eat first? Part of the speed is I get really hungry really fast."

Dick shrugged, his smile widening like he was expecting this. "Makes sense, just don't put too much of a dent into the pantry."

Wally laughed, "Believe me, I know."

The acrobat raised an eyebrow. "Race you down stairs?"

The speedster puffed out his chest. "You sure? My fastest time is .07 seconds!"

Dick shoved him back, the speedster wasn't expecting that and fell backwards onto the bed.

His wide emerald eyes looked up to see the back of Dick's shirt run out the door and his feet pound against the stairs. Wally felt a cold knot in his stomach, not even blinking yet as his mind figured the kid was running to escape him, to hide and find an adult who could contact M.A.Z.E. Then Wally would get exactly what he wanted, time with The Flash in a jail cell. If they even do that sorta thing.

All cold feelings left as the kid's thrown voice shouted behind him, warming the speedster and fighting off any worms of fear.

"Catch me if you can Peter Cottontail!"

Wally laid on the bed for a moment, stunned, then his face split into a real grin. "Real smooth Dick! I'll still beat you!" He replied as he bolted, the lovely familiar feeling of his blood lighting up and igniting the speed within.

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