Startled, Raven automatically stepped backwards, but Beast Boy yanked her toward him with surprising strength. She could feel his arms trembling as his hands fisted tighter in the heavy material of her cloak. "Please.. make it stop!"

Raven pushed at him harder as he refused to let go. "What are you talking about? Make what stop?"

"I can't.. they won't stop. They won't stop!" Beast Boy clutched at her cloak like he was drowning, pulling hard enough to make her stumble. His green eyes were glazed, his face shiny with sweat. "I can't make them. Please! Those others – get them -"

Raven struggled against him, starting to panic, feeling her control beginning to slip. This was so unlike Beast Boy that she felt almost trapped in a nightmare herself. "Let me go! I can't help you if -"

Then Robin was there, getting her away, and Cyborg was lifting Beast Boy, trying for a teasing note that struck a little false. "Hey, Grass Stain, what did I tell you about eating half a pizza before bed?"

Taken away from Raven, Beast Boy went berserk. Screaming, he tried to launch himself at her. Cyborg held him, grimacing as Beast Boy's flailing arms occasionally hit him in the face. Robin made sure that Raven was behind him, then asked over his shoulder, "Are you okay?"

Raven straightened her cloak, murmuring a mantra to herself and trying to calm her breathing. Her heart slammed in her chest and she felt like she was sweating adrenalin. "I think so. What's the matter with him?"

"I was hoping you could tell me."

Did everyone in the world think she had a line on Beast Boy's psyche? "I hate to disappoint you," she said, relieved that her voice was getting back to its usual dry sarcasm, "But I have no idea."

"Can you calm him down?"

"I don't think so."

Robin eyed Beast Boy, who had been screaming for so long that his voice was little more than a hoarse scrape. "I don't think I can either – damn. Star, please knock him out. Gently."

There was a brief flash of light and Beast Boy finally stilled.

A small voice came from the doorway. "I do not like hurting my friends."

Robin rubbed the back of his neck. Raven had recovered enough to be amused at his incongruous mask-and-pajamas combination, but his voice was all business as he continued, "I think we were getting to the point that it was him or us, Star. Cyborg, let's get him up to the ward. We need to figure this out."

Fifteen minutes later Beast Boy was on a gurney, everybody was in the infirmary, and Robin and Raven were arguing.

"I am not scanning him," Raven insisted. "What if he wakes up again? What if he attacks me again?"

"If he does, we'll just do what we did before," Robin said patiently. "I'll protect you and Cyborg will protect him."

"Until Starfire has to blast him again? How many times are we going to do that?"

"I do not like this plan," Starfire volunteered. "It was most difficult to shoot him the first time."

"Compromise," Cyborg said, stepping between Robin and Raven. "I don't like giving B drugs because his biochemistry's so weird, but I've got a sedative that should work all right. I'll give him a small dose. Raven scans him. If he wakes up, he'll still be punchy enough that nobody will have to blast anybody and maybe we can talk him down. Okay, Star?"

Starfire nodded. Cyborg turned to Robin and Raven. "Okay?"

Raven hesitated. Robin said, "We've got to find out what's wrong with him, Raven."

Everything was quiet for a minute, then Raven took a deep breath and nodded. "All right."

"Okay. Robin, you monitor the vitals board. Star, I want you watching Raven and B. Raven, flip your communicator."

As Cyborg administered the sedative, Raven pulled a chair close to Beast Boy's gurney and settled herself. She took off her communicator and tapped on the front and back, watching as its glow turned from red to blue. She refastened it to her cloak where it immediately began transmitting her vital signs to the infirmary's main screen.

She looked up at Cyborg, who was waiting by the gurney. "How long do I have?"

He lifted a shoulder. "Hour, maybe. No more. I'm being careful with the dose. If you run into trouble -" he grinned – "I've got a stinky pill just for you."

Raven made a face. Cyborg and Beast Boy had accidentally discovered (while pulling a prank) that an ammonia caplet popped under Raven's nose would immediately awaken her from any psychic activities, leaving her disoriented but unhurt. Except for a day's worth of smelling nothing but ammonia. "I'll keep it to thirty minutes."

She raised her hood and slumped down in the chair, closing her eyes. The beeping and rushing of air in the infirmary gradually faded away as she turned her attention inward, seeking one of the minds closest to her (closer than she cared to admit), trying to find his home...

Raven opened her eyes. She was standing in the common room of Titans Tower, every square inch of the window glass outside was covered with human figures, and they were all screaming.