Detention League

Chapter 3: The Lanterns

A/N: Just a small reminder: This is an au, so the scenarios and little references I make may not be the same as in the comics.

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"How... how the hell did you do that!?"

"...shit.."

****EARLIER****

(Barry's POV)

The weather was muggy and cold in the September air and gray clouds blanketed the sky, as if calmly threatening to water the ground again.

Barry's bike coasted to a stop in front of Dave and Buster's. (A/N: I have never been to D&B's! So please don't judge if something is wrong!) He checked his phone again and frowned. It was a little over an hour or so after their first detention ended, and Hal had programmed his number into Barry's phone. They were supposed to meet there at 6:00. But it wasn't surprising that the speedster was late. Apparently, super-speed does't cancel out super-tardiness.

Barry locked up his bike and opened the doors. Music and sound effects spilled out like a wave and he stepped inside.

To say it was crowded was an understatement. The arcade didn't have an age limit, so kids, as well as adults, chattered while they played. Some were raging, others celebrating.

Barry felt very out of place. -He had played Pac Man a couple of times, but that was about it.-

The blue-eyed boy turned to a hand on his shoulder to see Hal grinning.

"Hey! Glad you made it. Come on." Hal began weaving through the crowd as Barry followed, close enough to not lose him ("lost-puppy" Barry). The crowd thinned at the snack bar, the area empty with the exception of two other boys and the cashier.

"Hey guys, this is Barry. Barry, this is John," Hal nodded toward the cashier, a mature-looking boy with a rather serious expression, "Guy," A ginger boy lazily sipping a cola, "and Kyle." Kyle was a black-haired boy with his nose in a sketchbook.

"Nice to meet you Barry." John shook his hand over the counter.

"This is where I work," Hal chimed in. "I had to take John's shift because of detention, so he's working now as opposed to later."

Barry noticed that John, Kyle, and Guy were all wearing green polos. "Do you all work here?"

"Yup." John replied. "Kyle's on break and Guy is supposed to be manning lazer-tag." John gave Guy a look and Guy sighed.

"Fine! I'm going. Nice to meet you Gary." Guy brushed past Kyle and disappeared behind the crowd in the direction of the far corner.

"Anyway, John can I have a coke? Barry?"

"Uh, I'll have a coke too please."

John nodded and handed them two large fountain drinks before beginning to restock the snack bar.

"So Barry, where do you work?"

"Oh... Well, I'm actually more of an intern. I work at the Police Department."

"So you like, get to chase down bad guys?" Hal leaned forward, intrigued and Barry's ears turned red.

"No... more like I'm analyzing blood and stuff... I don't run anywhere really."

Hal scoffed. "You were running pretty damn fast this morning. Knocked me clean on my ass."

Barry laughed. "Well, I was late... By the way, you're going to wreck your lungs if you keep smoking." Hal groaned at this, throwing his head back.

"Not you too..."

"See?" John cut in, "I'm not just getting on your ass." John turned away and Hal flipped him off, annoyed. "I saw that."

"Save it, do-gooder."

Barry played with the ice at the bottom of his empty cup and Hal's mouth dropped.

"How are you done with that?!" Barry's cheeks turned pink with his ears this time.

"I was thirsty?"

---

"Again, sorry I got you detention." Hal was standing near Barry's bike as he unlocked it. It was 6:45, and his shift was about to begin.

"It's okay. This was actually kind of fun." He and Hal had played a couple of arcade games, Hal claiming to go easy on him before Barry kicked it up a notch and started wiping the floor with him. -It may or may not have involved a tiny bit of perception speed on Barry's part.-

"See you tomorrow I guess." Hal turned and walked back inside. Barry began to walk his bike through the darkening lot when a familiar voice echoed behind him.

"Allen!" Barry's stomach dropped as he turned. Lenard Snart, a senior from a different school walked up to him, his sister close to his side. "Never thought I'd see you in this neighborhood."

"What do you want?"

Snart's smirk twisted into a toothy grin as he gritted his teeth.

"Don't you remember what I told you? About if I ever saw your goddamned face again?"

Snart pulled a revolver out of his front pocket, firing two shots. For half a second, Barry was too shocked to move. He never thought Snart would pull a gun on him. One bullet hit his shoulder, grazing it, and he quickly dodged the next, ducking what could have been a chest shot. He slowed down, when out of nowhere, something glowing and green knocked Snart and his sister backwards and unconscious.

Barry blinked. A large, comically large bat had been what hit them both in the face. A green, glowing thing made of... energy?

Barry looked to his right to see none other than Hal Jordan, standing with his fist held in front of him, the ring on his finger glowing brilliantly.

The construct faded as Hal noticed Barry staring, realizing that he had seen what Hal had just done.

"How... How the hell did you do that!?"

"... shit..." Hal's ring stopped glowing as he shook his head. "Well, fuck."

The pain in Barry's shoulder became apparent as Hal seemed to have some sort of mental crisis. It was barely a graze, but still painful as his skin began to heat up. Hal seemed to notice this and forgot his issue.

"Oh shit he hit you! Where's the other bullet hole?!" Hal searched Barry's chest for any bleeding, but the only blood came from his shoulder. Hal looked behind him. Right behind Barry's chest, a clean round hole was embedded in a truck door.

"How...?" It should have hit him!

Barry's skin heated up more as the bleeding stopped. His skin healed very quick, and considering that it was a nic, it would be a matter of minutes before he was perfectly fine. But the process hurt like a bitch. Sure, the healing was quick, but all the pain of healing was still in the process.

Hal looked back at Barry's shoulder to see a tiny dent in his shoulder, but no wound.

"How the fuck...?!" Hal wiped off Barry's shoulder to look closer, but the source of the blood was healed.

"S-See?" Barry brushed him off. "I'm fine!"

"Like hell." Hal growled. "You were just gushing blood, and that other bullet should have impaled you and it, what, fazed through? What the hell is going on?!"

"What the hell is going on with me? What the hell is with you!? You created a huge green bat out of nothing!!"

They both stared at each other. Extremely confused, both not sure if their secrets could remain that much longer.