07:13 PDT

November 8th

Titans Tower, California

...

Dick groaned and shifted in his bed as he slowly began to wake up, his head pounding in a sharply increasing migraine. Memories from the night before swirled in and out of focus, feeling more like a bad dream than anything else. He was ready to dismiss it as such until his stormy blue eyes landed on the single white feather he had left on his nightstand. Everything crashed in his mind with sudden, piercing clarity.

He had only a few days before he would leave his young team for an unknown length of time. They had only gotten back from Paris a month or so ago and were still trying to get back in the swing of things. And here he was about to abandon them. His eyes roamed over to the plain black and white mask that had hidden his identity from the world...from them.

Once this situation blows over, I'll ask Bruce if it's time, he resolved.

The fifteen year old hero motioned to stand before his legs buckled unsteadily. The room was a tornado of shapes and colors before his vision, causing him to sit back down on the bed. Everything felt wrong. Dick rubbed a hand over his face and through his messy ebony locks out of nervous habit. He felt sick, and it couldn't have been a coincidence since last night's bizarre happenings. The timing was too perfect for it to be anything else.

I wasn't gassed, he thought, And I wasn't injected with anything. So what's going on?

Whatever had caused this sudden bout of sickness, the boy wonder was determined not to let any sign of weakness show. He was team leader; he had to make sure everything and everyone was good before he could think to worry for himself.

With that thought set firmly in his mind, he pushed himself back up and staggered into his personal bathroom. He gripped the sides of sink in an effort to steady himself and catch his breath, willing the round of dizziness to pass. One glance in the mirror told him that his skin was paler, but he hoped his natural Romanian tan would disguise that fact. His normally vibrant blue eyes were cloudy and out of focus, but that could be easily hidden with his signature mask. It was sad how quickly his mind came up with ways to hide his pain rather than deal with it.

Dick mechanically gelled his hair up and changed into his costume, becoming the stoic leader of the Teen Titans once again. Robin could handle a little cold. He could handle anything thrown at him.

But a nagging little voice in the back of his mind reminded him that the Owl on the roof hadn't challenged the legendary Teen Wonder. He had issued a threat to the boy hidden inside the costume, the little circus kid named Dick Grayson. Never once had the man, if he was even human, called him by his hero alias, and that was something that unnerved him to no end. Who else knew? What were their plans? How long did they have before everyone's secrets began to unravel? Were Bruce and Alfred safe?

That last thought made him snort, Of course they're safe. Bruce is THE Batman, and Alfred can handle himself against anybody. They're fine.

Checking himself one more time to ensure he looked presentable, Robin left his dorm and made his way towards the main room. The normal clamor of Meat vs. Tofu grated harshly in his ears, the noise a lot stronger than usual.

Cy and BB must really be going at it, he thought with a slight grimace, Wish they could turn it down though.

Robin winced as the door leading to the kitchen automatically slid open, and the volume of the two teens reached full volume. But it was the cacophony of other sounds that disoriented the boy wonder. Starfire's normally gentle humming buzzed in his ears, and the beeping of Raven's tea warmer pierced his senses. But the worst of all was definitely Cyborg and Beast Boy's debate over breakfast. It was safe to say that the headache forming behind of his eyes was the least of his concerns.

"EVERYBODY, QUIET!" he yelled, and a startled hush fell over the Titans. Robin pinched the skin between his eyes in an effort to calm down. Everything had been so loud, he couldn't even concentrate. This was bad news. If he couldn't handle something as simple as breakfast, how would he be able to stand in the heat of battle?

"Friend Robin?" Starfire asked as she floated up to him,'"Are you feeling well?"

"I'm fine, Star. Sorry," he grumbled out, more angry at himself than anyone else.

"You know, why don't I just make everybody a plate of waffles?" Cyborg suggested, diffusing the tension that had been steadily building up. Beast Boy nodded sheepishly.

"Yeah, waffles sounds good."

"None for me," Robin waved off and opened the fridge, pausing for a moment until he found a bottle of water. He sighed as he closed the door.

"Look, sorry for my outburst," he began, knowing all eyes were on him, "If you need me, I'll be in the gym."

He barely made it two steps before his vision swam, forcing him to grip the counter to steady himself. The Titans were beside him in an instant.

"Dude! You okay?"

"What's wrong, man? Talk to us."

"Robin, if you said you were 'fine', then why do you appear unwell?"

Their leader swatted at them in a vain signal to leave him be, "Guys, I'm okay! Just turned to around too fast. That's all."

Raven, the only one not to almost dog tackle the only human on the team, looked up from her book and cocked an eyebrow at him. After their minds had linked, it was next to impossible for one to hide anything from the other. He was in pain, but from what she didn't know. With an annoyed sigh, she closed her novel and activated her dark powers, snatching the others away from Robin and giving him a chance to breathe.

With a clear view of the teen, she was able to tell he was the exact opposite of fine. He looked like he shouldn't have even tried to get out of bed this morning. Robin was gripping the counter like a lifeline, skin pale, and breathing ragged. Beads of sweat made his face shine in the Tower's light, and not in a good way.

"Robin, you look terrible," she stated bluntly, "Go back to bed."

"No way," he slurred slightly, "I'm fine."

"Yeah, and I'm the Easter Bunny," she replied sarcastically, "You need rest, and from the looks of it, maybe some painkillers too."

He had forgotten how easily Raven could read him. While he could block her from knowing everything about him should she choose to try, his current mental and physical health would always be out in the open for her to see. He couldn't hide how sick he was if he tried.

"Yeah, man! We can look after things for you!" Cyborg perked up and gently patted him on the shoulder, "You're allowed to be sick every once in a while y'know."

"Whatever," he grunted and pushed himself off the counter, "Just come get me if the alarm goes off."

"We'll be fine, Robin," Raven drawled, "With over half of Jump's villains on ice, I doubt there will be much trouble."

"And if you wanna play video games later, we can!" Beast Boy chimed in, feeling the need add his own two cents, "Any game you pick!"

"And I shall prepare the Tamaranean pudding of health!" Starfire declared and zoomed back into the kitchen. Robin tried not to let her kind gesture make him queasy.

Instead, a small smile graced his features, "Thanks, guys. I guess I'll go back to bed then. Come get me if you need me."

The others nodded, though it was clear none of them would dare disturb him unless the world was ending. Or if Batman came, which was close to the same thing in their minds.

Robin kept face until he was in the hallway alone. He couldn't understand why he was feeling this way. He had never been this sick before, and he couldn't think of anything that caused it. He pressed a hand against the cool metal wall to steady himself for possibly the third or fourth time that day.

This is pathetic, he snapped mentally, Why am I so weak all of the sudden?

It took longer than it should have to get back to his room. Not bothering to dress out of uniform, or even pull back the blankets, he flopped on to his bed and fell into an uneasy sleep.

...

Meanwhile, the Titans busied themselves anyway they could, yet their minds continued to wander towards their absent leader.

"I didn't even know Robin could get sick," Beast Boy piped up.

"Neither did I," Starfire added sadly. She could never stand it if one of her friends wasn't well.

Cyborg brushed past them dismissively, "I'm sure he'll be fine in a few days. Ya gotta remember he's the only one of us that's still a full-blooded human. He was bound to get sick sooner or later."

"But that didn't look like a case of the sniffles," BB argued, "He looked really sick. Come on, Rae Rae! You saw him! And you got that freaky mind meld with him. What do you think?"

Raven glared up at the shapeshifter from her normal reading spot on the floor, "Whatever's wrong with him, I'm sure he wouldn't appreciate us talking about him behind his back."

"But we just wanna know how bad it is," he groaned, "Can't ya tell us that much?"

"Yes, Friend Raven," Starfire pleaded shyly, "If you know what is wrong with Robin, will you please tell us? We are concerned for him."

The resident sorceress grumbled under her breath, knowing they would never stop pestering her, "Look, I don't know what caused it, but we just need to make sure he takes it easy for the next few days. Give him space and don't go into a panic ever time he turns around."

The other three sweat-dropped at her accusation. Cyborg, being the second in command, felt the need to speak up, "Sure thing, Rae. Sorry about that."

"It's not me you have to apologize to," she replied sharply and dove back into her reading, signaling that her participation in the conversation was over.

Then…the alarm sounded.

…..

A/N: Thank you for reading! Next chapter coming soon! As always, reviews and constructive criticism are greatly appreciated!!! If you have any ideas let me know! I'm open to suggestions since this is my first multi-chap Teen Titans story.