Initiation

Raven appeared in the Teen Titan's common room with a flurry of black energy, startling the Titans out of their various morning routines. When it cleared, she stood there and waved the silver thermos at her startled teammates. "Here's the ghost you wanted." She said triumphantly.

"Uh, Raven?" Beast Boy asked confused. "That's a soup thermos."

Raven rolled her eyes and opened the thermos, pressing the button at the side and focusing her energy through it. In a flash of black, Phantom was released and he landed on the floor in a tangle of limbs. He disentangled himself and stood up, grimacing. He was greener than usual, and looked at each Titan in silent awe. When his eyes fell on Raven, he glared at her.

"How could you do that all the way from Amity to here? What kind of crazy girl are you?!" He shouted.

The Titans watched in shock. Phantom was either braver than they thought…or dumber.

"You were being pig-headed and difficult. What did you expect?" Raven asked meeting him with a glare of her own.

Phantom took a step closer to her, his neon green eyes glowing. "Well, if you had just explained it to me like a rational being -"

Raven scoffed and also took a step closer to him, bridging the gap between them and effectively getting up in his face. "You didn't let me even get close enough to-"

"You pounced on me from a tree, for crying out loud! Who does that?"

Raven was scowling by then. "Which brings us back to you being pig-headed and-"

"Easy Raven," Robin mediated as he stepped between them, effectively separating them. "I know you both had a stressful trip."

"Some more than others," Phantom muttered.

"Oh, don't you start," Raven snarled. The sorceress reached past Robin and gripped Phantom by the front of his jumpsuit. The halfa's green eyes widened in surprise. "I hunted you for weeks before-"

"Friend Raven! You must not scare prospective friend Phantom!" Starfire exclaimed as she physically restrained Raven.

"Thank you Star." Robin said gratefully.

Starfire nodded. "I shall take friend Raven to her room. Perhaps she is simply tired."

Raven said nothing as the Tamaranean girl escorted her out, but maintained her steady glare at Phantom. He glared back, unwilling to back down.

"Is she always so crabby?" he asked, finally acknowledging the other Titans for the first time.

"Not really." Beast Boy replied. "You must've done something really bad for her to get physical."

"So Phantom," Robin began eager to change the subject.

"Call me Danny. Danny Phantom."

Robin nodded his acknowledgement. "We would like you to join the team. Are you interested?" he asked.

"Heck yeah, I'm interested!" Danny exclaimed enthusiastically.

Cyborg smiled. "Great. You've got an entire week of initiation rites ahead of you." He announced.

Danny faltered. "Wait. A week?" he asked.

Beast Boy nodded. "It's actually five days. One for each of us to test you, then on Saturday, we have your party." He said.

"My party?" Danny asked.

"Well, yeah." Cyborg said. "If you pass initiation, you'll be a Titan. What better way to get to know the other Titans than through a party?"

"Seriously? I can't wait!" Danny shouted.

Robin grinned. "Great. Your first test is tomorrow."

"What?!"

"Calm down, dude. I'm sure it won't be so bad. Just don't work yourself up." BB said.

"Let me show you to your room." Cyborg said. "You're going to need to rest up."

Danny allowed himself to be guided to his room. He wasn't really focusing on what was happening, and only realized he was in the room when the door slid shut behind him. He blinked and flopped down on the bed. As he lay there, he examined the room. It had once belonged to someone named Terra; her name was on the door.

It was comfortable enough, made him feel like he was sleeping in the Grand Canyon. Danny didn't dare change back into Fenton, in case there were cameras. He just hoped he wouldn't change back in his sleep. He wondered what this week had in store for him. He really, really, wanted to be a Titan. He just wasn't sure he'd be able to pass their test. Especially Raven's. The girl already had it out for him as it was.

With a sigh, he closed his eyes and slept.

/

Danny awoke suddenly and felt an apprehensive knot in his stomach. For a few long seconds, the ghost boy couldn't figure out why he was so nervous, but then he realized why. Today was the first day of his initiation. He sighed and rolled out of bed, grateful that he was still Phantom. He phased through the door and stepped into the long corridor. Danny retraced his steps from yesterday and found himself in the common room. Oddly enough, no one was there.

"Where is everyone?" he asked aloud.

Almost in a response, the monitor flashed on. Danny looked up to see Cyborg smiling down on him.

"Nice to see you're finally up," the cybernetic teen remarked with a teasing glint in his eye.

"You try being cramped in a thermos for eight hours," he snapped defensively. "I was grateful for the stretching space."

"Alright," Cyborg said. "I hope you're rested up enough for your first test. Get to the training course. The rest of us are here waiting."

"But I don't-," Danny was cut off when the screen suddenly went black.

Danny had no idea where the training course was. He figured it would have to be outside, so he phased through the giant windows and circled the island until he saw the course behind the Tower. His glowing eyes widened as he noticed what was there. It seemed that all the Titans were there, main and honorary, forming a colorful crowd of chattering teens. Danny smiled. If all went well, these would be his new teammates. He floated down to where Cyborg stood with the rest of the main Titans.

"What's going on?" Danny asked him.

"Well, all the Titans came over to discuss whether we'll draft you or not," Beast Boy explained.

"But I didn't notice them yesterday," Danny said, wondering how he'd managed to overlook such a large crowd.

"We told them to stay out of sight. Figured it'd be too much for you to handle in one day." Raven rasped.

Danny hadn't noticed her until that moment. It was as though she was deliberately blending in. She didn't look so good, her features were strained and her eyes were tinged red, not from tears, but fatigue. Raven caught him staring and scowled at him and straightened up, pulling her hood over her head and turning to talk to a red haired Titan with bright blue eyes in a bright yellow and red costume, who started chatting back animatedly with a broad smile on his face. Danny couldn't help that small twinge of jealousy that tugged in his chest and frowned. Why would he feel that way? He didn't even like her; that girl was crazy.

"So, it's my turn today," Beast Boy announced with a wide grin.

Danny turned his attention to him. "Okay. What do I have to do?"

"Well, you have to wear this," Cyborg reached behind him and picked up what looked like-

"No," Danny said firmly. "No way."

Cyborg grinned. "Yes way. Its standard procedure that you wear this ballerina costume from your first test to your last."

"What?!"

"C'mon, you'll like it. It's pink and sparkly and soft," Beast Boy said biting back a laugh.

Robin sighed and turned to Raven. "Could you give us a hand here?" he asked her.

Raven turned from her conversation, took one look at the situation and waved her hands. Instantly, Danny's black and silver jumpsuit was replaced by the hideous pink ballerina costume, complete with the tutu and strappy ballet flats. All the Titans stopped their conversations and stared at him for a moment before bursting out in howling laughs. Danny reddened and managed to sneak a glance at Raven, scowling when he saw the corners of her mouth twitching upwards.

"Stop that!" he yelled.

"Okay. Okay." Robin said between laughs. He cleared his throat. "Just get onto the course. Initiation takes five days, where each of us will test you on a particular skill. If you do make the cut, there's a huge party on the sixth day." he said, inciting cheers from the crowd of Titans.

Danny glanced at Raven as he floated down onto the course. She was still talking to the red and yellow clad Titan, her back to him. He was angry with her for kidnapping him on such short notice; blissfully ignorant of his own uncooperativeness during the weeks she spent in Amity. She of all people should have noticed how badly Amity Park needed Phantom. At least, that's all he hoped she noticed.

"Brace yourself dude!" Beast Boy shouted. "You're about to experience the thrill of your life - er – afterlife!"

"This costume isn't very aerodynamic! The tutu will get in the way!" Danny protested.

"It'll bend back in the wind, man," Cyborg shouted. "You'll be fine!"

"Indeed, prospective friend Phantom!" Starfire added. "If any harm befalls you, Raven shall heal you!"

Danny looked up at Raven, who had finally turned to look at him.

"Don't." she said simply.

"Are you ready, dude?!" Beast Boy exclaimed. "I have the biggest game of The-Floor-Is-Lava planned for you!"

"Are you all set, Danny?" Robin asked.

"Umm…no! I'm wearing a tutu!" he shouted.

"You're lucky we pulled the unicycle out of the ensemble." Cyborg said with a snigger.

Robin pushed a button on the control panel and a loud blaring filled the air. "Good luck!" he shouted.

"I know you shall do well, my friend!" Starfire said.

"Yeah dude! You've got this in the bag!" Beast Boy shouted.

Raven said nothing. She simply looked him in the eye, nodded, and turned away. Danny opened his mouth to say something to her, he wasn't sure what, but snapped his mouth shut when the ground beneath him began to rumble. The earth began to break apart into little islands, surrounded by lava. Danny soon found himself standing at the very edge and scrambled backwards to get away from the lava. His back brushed against something cool and hard. He turned around and saw a yellow flag with a black T emblazoned on it, mounted on a metal pole.

"Your goal is to get the flag to the other side of the course." Beast Boy said with an impish grin. "No biggie."

Danny clicked his tongue. Something was off; the challenge couldn't possibly be that simple. Cautiously, he stepped close to the edge of the little island he stood on and peered closely into the lava. He was surprised to see what looked like little red leaves in the lava, but they didn't seem to burn.

"What's in the lava?" he asked cautiously, although he was pretty sure he knew what it was.

"Blood blossoms." This time, Raven's signature monotone answered him. Danny turned to face her, but couldn't see her eyes from under her hood at this angle. "So you're not tempted to…fly away." Danny scowled at her, briefly wondering how she knew about them when even his parents didn't.

"Are you ready?!" Beast Boy shouted.

"As I'll ever be!" Danny replied.

A loud blare signaled the start of the trial. Thinking fast, Danny realized his powers would be drained as soon as he was over the infested lava, so he ripped the pole out of the ground and focused all his super strength into his legs, jumping with tremendous force. As soon as he was over the lava, the pain he had subconsciously anticipated became a reality. It wasn't too much, since the blood blossoms were in small quantities, but it still stung like a thousand needles piercing his flesh.

Danny landed on another island on slightly shaky legs, relishing in the loss of pain. He barely had time to recover fully when the island started to rapidly sink and a bit of blood blossom laced lava burned through his shoe. With a yelp, Danny channeled his power and leapt. His jump was much weaker now, as the blood blossoms were closer to him than before and he barely managed to make it to the next island.

In the brief moments before the island he was currently on started sinking, Danny saw the end of the course, marked by a yellow line on the ground. His heart dropped when he saw the end was more than fifty feet away and the islands were farther apart. He cast a quick glance at the Titans; they were all watching him anxiously, wondering what he would do next. The only person whose expression was different was Raven. Her hood was down and she was looking at him…expectantly. Like she expected him to do something simple to complete the course.

Danny could feel the island sinking by now, but he couldn't tear his eyes away from Raven's face. He tightened his grip on the flag as his eyes narrowed in concentration. What did she expect him to do to get out of this? There was no way he could jump the rest of the way to the end. And those awful blood blossoms prevented him from fly -.

Wait a minute.

The blood blossoms prevented him from flying over the lava. They didn't do anything to the rest of his powers. At least, he hoped so.

Danny channeled his energy and ignored the sting of the blood blossoms getting closer to him, coaxing as much power as he could out of his ice core. He found that there was much more energy there than he expected. When he opened his eyes, the icy feeling behind them told him they were a pupil-less blue. Arctic energy prickled beneath his skin, buzzing like electricity as the billowing flag stiffened under a layer of frost. Raising his free hand, Danny released his pent-up energy into the lava. It hissed and groaned in protest, but was eventually overcome by the icy blast, and solidified into coal-colored rock.

Danny smirked, and kept the beam flowing, creating a path of volcanic rock. The pain from the blood blossoms diminished as the bulk of their aura became trapped within the rock. He quickly began running toward the finish line, carefully skirting the remaining petals that were embedded on top of the rock. The lava at the edges began to heat up again. Danny figured it was as a direct result of the tech the course used. The lava heated enough to form a five foot long chasm between him and the finish line. Danny groaned, realizing he didn't have enough energy to make more ice and that he couldn't make the jump.

He glanced down at the flag in his hand, and smirked as a solution came to him. As he neared the edge of the solid rock, Danny planted the end of the flagpole into the dark rock and used the momentum to pole-vault across the chasm of lava. It cracked beneath him, but held his weight as he soared toward the finish line. He tucked into a roll as he landed on solid ground. Running purely on adrenaline, Danny triumphantly stood and drove the end of the pole into the ground, allowing the tattered yellow flag to once again billow in the wind.

The Titans all swarmed forward with cheers and jovial congratulations. As his adrenaline waned, the faces all began to blur into patches of color and snatches of conversation. His legs felt like jelly, and his head swam as the pain from the blood blossoms resurfaced. He vaguely registered that Cyborg approached to his left. A quick congratulatory clap on the back was all it took to bring Danny crashing to the ground, and he passed out as soon as his head hit the dirt.

/

Danny was coaxed out of unconsciousness by the feeling of soft fingers skimming chastely over his torso. He opened a bleary eye and saw Raven sitting in front of him, poking and prodding at his arms and chest. He wasn't sure whether the tingling sensation flowing through him was the aftereffect of the blood blossoms or a result of Raven's touch. He sat up suddenly and lurched away from her hands, pressing himself to the back of his hospital cot and beating down the blush that threatened to engulf his face. At least he was still Phantom.

"Wha-what are you doing?" he asked.

Raven rolled her deep violet eyes. "Calm down. I'm just healing you. The blood blossoms really did a number on you. The course was designed to test your agility and pain tolerance. It wasn't supposed to hurt you that much." She said with a frown.

Danny could have sworn he saw a flicker of concerned guilt in her eyes. Then again, you could never tell with Raven. "Yeah, well, if you had done your research, you would know blood blossoms hurt." He said with more bitterness than he intended.

Raven said nothing and reached for a jar on a nearby table. Danny flinched and pressed himself deeper into his cot when he saw the jar was full of blood blossom petals. "What are you doing with those?" Danny asked cautiously.

Raven calmly unscrewed the jar and stuck a hand in, grabbing a fistful of the petals. Danny's breath hitched as he wondered how much of a grudge Raven could hold. To his relief, she emptied her fist of the petals and re-screwed the jar, placing back where she took it from. She showed her palm, which was horribly burned a bright angry red, marring her pale skin. Danny's eyes widened in shock.

"I know they hurt." She stated simply.

"How can they hurt you?" Danny asked, staring at her open palm with confused astonishment. "You're not a ghost." If she were, his ghost sense would be going off the charts by now.

"Let's just say I'm more in touch with my spiritual side than others," she murmured vaguely. "I had no idea they would affect you so much. I'm sorry."

Danny tore his eyes away from her palm and looked Raven in the eye. "What?"

Raven sighed and rolled her eyes. "Don't make me repeat myself. I just think it'd be a bad idea for us to be at each other's throats when you're made a Titan, if you're made a Titan, so I think it'd be best for us to form a truce." She explained. "Besides, if you single-handedly protect your town, you can't be that bad."

It could have just been a trick of the light, but Danny was sure he saw the edges of Raven's lips curl up into a small smile, maybe a smirk. "Uh, sure. Yeah. That'd be a good idea." He said lamely.

Raven nodded and raised her previously burned hand, which was now clear of any effect of the blood blossoms. She expected a handshake. Danny gripped her bare hand with his gloved one and shook firmly.

"So, does that means we're friends?" he asked.

Raven retracted her arm and pulled up her hood, preparing to leave. "Don't push your luck. We can be friends after you've proven yourself."

/

Much of the week passed like that, all the Titans gathering at the training course watching Danny go through the initiation tests in that ridiculous tutu. Raven would be watching stoically from a distance, occasionally meeting his eye and nodding to urge him on, especially during Robin's grueling test of skill. She was the one who teleported him straight to the infirmary to get his stomach pumped after Starfire's test of endurance. Raven calmly handed him an aspirin and a glass of water after Cyborg's test of intelligence.

In between all of that, they would meet for little conversations throughout the tower. Sometimes they'd drift into the corner of the common room while the others were fighting over the TV, they would meet in the kitchen early in the morning before all the other Titans woke up. Danny wasn't able to sleep properly because he was still on Amity time and the guilt her felt for abandoning the town kept him up. Raven just woke up early to have a few quiet moments.

It was during those times that they got to actually talk. Sure, Danny would do the bulk of it, talking about the ghosts in Amity Park and some of the more difficult captures he'd made. Raven wouldn't say much, but she'd occasionally tell him about some of Jump's villains and some of the recruitment missions she'd been sent on. She never failed to remind him that he was the most difficult one yet.

Danny didn't mind; he was actually quite proud of that.

Eventually, Friday rolled by and when Danny woke up, he felt an awful sense of foreboding in his chest. A part of him did not want to leave Titan's Tower, but he knew he had to. Amity had gone without Phantom for far too long. Sighing he got up, still in Phantom form, and made his way to the bathroom. He opened the tap and washed his face, letting the cool water fully wake him up.

He knew his way around the tower well enough that he was able to phase through the floor of his room and into the common room, where only the main Titans were. He sent a silent nod to Raven, which she responded to slowly. Danny worried about her. She constantly had this strained look on her face and light bags under her eyes, but it got worse as the week progressed. Her posture slowly hunched during his stay and she started drinking more tea than what Beast Boy told him was normal. Danny thought of bringing it up, but didn't want to risk their weird friendship by prying.

"Where is everyone?" He asked.

"All the other Titans have left, friend Phantom." Starfire answered.

"Where did they go?" Danny asked, confused.

Beast Boy smiled broadly, showing his lower fang. "Dude! They went to get stuff for your party tomorrow!"

Danny stood stock still for a moment, then the implication sunk in. "Wait, does that mean-"

Starfire flew into him, enveloping him in a lung-crushing hug that cut him off mid-sentence. "Congratulations friend Danny! You are now a Titan!"

Danny phased out of her hug before she broke any of his bones. "Really?!" he asked excitedly.

"Yeah man." Cyborg said slapping him on the back and giving his shoulder a shake.

"Welcome to the team." Robin said giving him his yellow communicator with a small, pleased smile.

Danny handled the device cautiously and grinned widely. "Thank you guys so much!"

"You earned it." Raven rasped from behind the counter. Their eyes locked for a moment and Raven gave him a slight nod of approval. Danny returned the gesture and his grin widened even further. The whole team started when the room was flooded with red light and a loud blaring sounds.

"C'mon dude!" Beast Boy said. "Let' go stop your first baddie as a Titan!"

"Everyone huddle together." Raven said moving to stand in the center of the common room. The Titans crowded around her and Danny found himself against her side. Raven raised her arms and her black energy engulfed them. Danny couldn't see anything, but he felt a chill crawl up his spine. It lasted only a moment and the group found themselves in the center of Jump City; or what was left of it.

The city was completely destroyed. Buildings were reduced to nothing more than piles of rubble, the road as completely overturned as though an earthquake had ripped through it. There were flaming cars everywhere. People were panicking, screaming and running away from a figure that stood in the center of all that chaos.

A white jumpsuit and cape, flaming hair, glowing red eyes and vampiric teeth. Danny shuddered and took a step back. "No." he said under his breath.

"You know this guy?" Robin asked, turning to look at him with a new, suspicious gaze. The creature in front of them was obviously a ghost. Robin knew there was a theory that ghosts only haunted Amity Park because of Phantom. Judging by the emblem on the ghost's chest that matched Phantom's that theory was probably a fact.

"We've met before." Danny said, gritting his teeth in frustration. "It wasn't pleasant."

The ghost laughed and hovered in the air, but didn't approach them. "Come now, Danny. Is that all you have to say to them?" He said, grinning evilly. "You see, I'm what happens when Danny forsakes his humanity and merges with an evil ghost."

"Humanity?" Beast Boy asked, turning to face Phantom. "Dude, you're dead. Right?"

"That doesn't matter now!" Danny yelled. "He just leveled downtown!"

"He's right." Robin said, tightening his grip on his metal bo-staff and forming a battle stance. "Titans-"

"Wait." Raven said in a wavering voice. "He's powerful. Very powerful. We have to be careful."

"She's right." Cyborg agreed. "From what we've seen from Danny solid objects can't do much to him, and there's no time to get the blood blossoms either."

"I can get them!" Danny offered. "I can just phase through the tower and get them from the infirmary."

Robin thought for a moment, and then nodded with a grim look on his face. "Go ahead Danny. We can hold him off, but be quick."

Danny nodded and went intangible. He flew as fast as he could to the tower, not bothering to dodge the buildings he passed. All the buildings were empty, even the residential ones; the entire city had evacuated. He reached the tower in record time, never slowing down even as he got closer to the walls, to his surprise, Danny slammed right into the Plexiglas window of the infirmary. The hit disoriented him, and he dropped several feet before he got a hold of himself.

"What?" Danny asked as he hovered in front of the window. It didn't look any different than normal, and he didn't have any trouble with the walls or windows of the tower during his stay. Suddenly, there was the sound of a large explosion coming from behind him. Danny turned to see a giant mushroom cloud over downtown, cackling with green electricity.

"There's no time for this!" he exclaimed. Danny blasted an ecto-ray straight through the window. The window melted into a rough circular shape and Danny immediately flew through it, phasing through all the doors and walls that led to the infirmary. When he got there, it only took him a second to locate the jar on one of the shelves. It was half-empty, since the Titans had been using bits for his trials, but it should be enough to subdue Dan enough to beat him.

Danny hesitated before grasping the jar. To his relief he felt no pain; Raven must have charmed the jar. Tucking the jar securely under his arm, Danny flew at break-neck speed back to the city. He was much faster this time around, since he knew the right paths to take. He had the Titans and Dan in his sight soon enough. What he saw made him falter slightly in his flight. Robin, Cyborg, Beast Boy and Starfire were down. He couldn't see enough detail from his height, but he could plainly see that Cyborg was missing an arm and that Beast Boy's uniform was torn in several places. Enraged, Danny quickly descended and faced his evil counterpart.

Dan stood exactly where he had been when Danny left; it seemed like he had not moved at all. Dan was relaxed, almost bored looking, as if he had not just murdered Danny's friends. Dan perked up when he noticed Danny though. "Took you long enough to get here." He said to Danny. Dan's red eyes drifted down to the jar of blood blossoms Danny held. "Are those for me? You shouldn't have."

"How did you even get past Clockwork?" Danny asked. He knew he should be working on defeating Dan, but he hoped that Clockwork was alright. He must be, Danny always figured that the time stream would be damaged if anything happened to him.

Dan waved a passive hand at him. "Don't worry. He's not-er-dead if that's what you mean." He paused. "At least, he wasn't when I left him."

Danny gritted his teeth, which amused Dan. "I have to say, the Titans weren't much of a challenge." Dan said, goading Danny. "Although, the girl in the cloak certainly came close."

Danny felt his stomach drop. "Raven? What did you do with her?!"

Dan sent him a knowing look that was laced with malice. "Honestly, what is it with you and goth girls? I mean, she's nice to look at, but a little variety- "

"What have you done with Raven?!" Danny shouted. His fury was evident in his in his glowing green eyes.

Dan wore a vicious smirk. "Oh, you haven't seen her yet? She put up quite a fight, I'll give her that."

"Where. Is. She?" Danny demanded menacingly.

"Look behind you."

A small trickle of dread crept up Danny's spine, much like his ghost sense did. He did not want to turn his back to Dan, but his concern for Raven overrode his fear. At first, Danny didn't see anything other than the four beaten, unconscious Titans, but a scrap of blue fabric under a portion of a fallen building that formed some kind of tent caught his attention. Wordlessly, Danny drifted over and what he saw nearly made him drop the jar of blood blossoms.

Raven lay there in a broken, bloodied heap, looking far worse than any of the others. Her cloak was in tatters, and her leotard was torn and singed in various places, dampened by what Danny figured was blood. At first glance, Danny could tell she had several broken bones. Her eyes were wide open, but they were blank and unseeing. She looked dead. In a daze, Danny knelt down and checked for a pulse.

"She's dead." Danny said dully.

"Yes, obviously." Dan said in a bored tone. He started to chuckle. "Honestly, I was so thorough I'd be surprised if she even had a ghost left.

All of a sudden, Danny whirled to his feet and shot Dan square in the chest with an ectoray. Dan stumbled back, more surprised than fazed from the shot. "She was a good person, my friend." Danny said menacingly. His eyes were glowing a bright green.

"Come now, Daniel." Dan said smugly. "She was just another goth girl you had a crush on."

Danny clenched his fists and sucked in a huge breath. Dan raised his eyebrows and took a step back. The sound Danny unleashed was the most powerful ghostly wail he could muster. It tore threw the battered remains of downtown Jump city, turning the half-standing buildings into absolutely nothing. If there were anyone in Jump left alive the wail would have torn threw their eardrums, maybe even their entire bodies. The wail flung Dan yards away from Danny and disoriented him. Danny took advantages and flew after him at break-neck speed after the wail ended.

Danny slammed into Dan with as much force as he could. Danny was furious, he saw red. He started throwing several ectoplasm enhanced punches to Dan's face and throat. There was no pattern to the assault, Danny just wanted to let Dan feel the pain the Titans felt, to feel the fear they felt. Throughout the attack, Dan was laughing. It was a satisfied laugh, a laugh that told Danny that even if Danny beat him out of existence, Dan had still one. The laughter enraged Danny even more, and his punches got heavier and more brutal. All he could see were the Titans' battered bodies.

Cyborg laying in pieces.

Danny…..

Robin's limbs bent in all sorts of unnatural positions.

Danny…

Starfire so badly bruised she was purple instead of orange.

Danny…

Beast Boy with his clothes in tatters and stuck morphing between animal and human.

Danny…

And Raven…

DANNY!

/

Danny sat straight up with a startled gasp, fists clenched and ready to start punching again. To his surprise Dan wasn't there. The stark white walls told him that he was in the Tower infirmary. Danny kept looking around at his surroundings, his confusion growing to a fever pitch. A soft hand on his shoulder got his attention, and his head jerked to see who touched him.

"Raven?" he asked, bewildered.

A small smile passed over Raven's tired face. "Congrats, you passed." she said.

Danny gaped at her. "What?"

Raven slowly eased herself into a seat on the Danny's cot, and he instinctively pushed over and made room for her. "We have a final, secret test that we do. My test." She started. She seemed unsure, hesitant, like she was at a loss for words. She reached to put a hand on his shoulder, and Danny did not shy away from her.

"I place you under a spell, where you have to live out your worst nightmare." She explained. "I don't see what you go through, no one does, it's completely private."

"What's the point of that test?" Danny asked. "To make people lose their minds?"

"It's more like looking to see if they would lose their minds under insane stress." Raven answered. "I know you've seen some insane stuff in Amity Park, I've read your file."

"I have a file?"

Raven ignored his question. "We see some pretty terrible things here, and we need to know that you can take that pressure without cracking."

Danny paused for a moment, digesting what she had told him. "So, you willingly put me under a spell for me to live my worst nightmare?"

Raven winced at his words and withdrew her hand. Danny missed the soft pressure of it, but said nothing. "I'm sorry, Danny. I don't think it's a humane thing to do, but it was Robin's decision and there was nothing I could do."

Danny sighed and ran a hand through his thankfully still white hair. "You died." He said. "All of you did, the entire city was decimated. Everyone was dead."

"I'm sorry." Raven said, visibly downcast. On instinct she reached for her hood to pull it up and shield her face. Danny stopped her, using both hands to pull the hood down and sup her face, looking deep into her violet eyes.

He swallowed, suddenly at a loss for words. Raven looked at her expectantly, but she wasn't sure what she expected. "Um, I know what you did was necessary, even though it sucked a lot." Danny said, suddenly very nervous. "But there's nothing to be sorry about, I know it's a necessary test. Back when I was starting out, I didn't do so well under pressure, I know how dangerous it can be."

Raven's mouth twitched upwards in a tentative smile, and Danny saw a vague happiness in her eyes and found himself smiling too. Raven turned her head and pulled back, and Danny awkwardly put his hands to his sides.

"Well, uh, congratulations." Raven stuttered.

"What for?" Danny asked.

"Well, you passed the last test." Raven said, reaching into her cloak and pulling out a yellow communicator. "You're officially a Titan."

Danny stared at the yellow communicator in Raven's hand with wide, green eyes. His mouth opened and closed several times, but he was at a loss for words. Raven rolled her eyes at him, and placed the communicator in his hands.

"Thank you." Danny managed to say.

Raven nodded. "The boys are going to throw you an initiation party this weekend. Seeing how today's Thursday, you better get back to Amity Park and make sure Danny Fenton still has a life to go back to."

Danny faltered and nearly dropped the communicator. "What are you-"

Raven held up a hand to stop him. "The Titans do very thorough background checks before we admit a new member. Don't worry, only the Main Titans know and we'll keep your secret." She told him. "I have been using an astral projection to keep your Fenton persona alive, but I think your friends and family are getting suspicious. As for the ghosts, the Red Huntress has been doing a good job of keeping that under control."

Danny was once again at a loss for words, but at least he finally had a reason why she always looked so tired. "Thank you." He said sincerely.

"You're welcome." Raven replied. She stood up from the cot and stood in front of Danny. "Can you stand? The procedure can be quite taxing."

Danny swung his legs over the side of the cot and gingerly stood. He shook himself a bit and was pleased to see that he was only slightly faint. "Um, Raven? How am I going to get to Amity?"

"Transportation spell." Raven said. She floated into the air and assumed the lotus position. "You'll be in Amity instantaneously, but you'll probably pass out."

"What?" Danny asked, bewildered. "You're telling me that was an option instead of a ridiculously long flight in that cramped soup thermos?!"

Raven shrugged. "You annoyed me, plus I wanted to take the scenic route." She said. "Now, I need you to hold still. If not, you could be ripped into several pieces and deposited into at least three different dimensions."

Danny paled, but held still nonetheless. "When you're ready to come for the party just page me on the communicator and I'll transport you back."

"Maybe I should take the bus?" Danny asked meekly.

Raven smirked and her eyes glowed white. Before Danny could say anything else, he was covered in Raven's signature black energy, feeling both excitement and an overwhelming need to vomit.

/

Dear readers,

I'm back with part three out of hopefully four. I finally got the hang of med school, so I'll be up with part four soon enough. Reviews are always welcome, and the next chapter will cover the wild initiation party, teenage antics and awkward situations between Raven and Danny. It's just a thought though, so if you have an idea feel free to tell me, it might spark some inspiration.

Psyche.