Hold the B button on controller 2 and your character will never get pulled to fight on the world map.
Press Select during battle to escape.
While on the map screen, press A to open up your menu, THEN hold the following buttons on controller 2 and press Start (enemy will be moving) or Select (enemy will be standing still) on controller 1 to start the fight.
To revive a fallen character, open the menu on the map screen, hold Up & A on controller 2 and select a fallen character with controller 1.
To manually trigger fights while on the map screen, press: