Beast Boy came to himself lying flat on his back behind the couch. Cyborg and Raven were both standing over him, but looking away – Cyborg trying to see where the enemy was coming from, Raven with her hands ringed by black energy, ready to attack or defend. Beast Boy coughed weakly. "Dude .. 's only me."

Cyborg went to one knee and lifted Beast Boy gently on his feet. "What happened, man? I heard this noise, and the next thing I know you went up like a rocket -"

Raven came closer to him than she usually did and put one gloved hand to his cheek, looking into his eyes as if not sure what she'd see there. Beast Boy would have enjoyed this more except her face was not the unsmiling mask it usually was; she was chalky and anxious, worried about what had returned from his attempt to control the voices. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah, I'm fine – listen, you need to know -"

"I should have just let you sleep," Raven mumbled, "You're too tired, you're not going to be able to get control –" She turned to Cyborg. "I think he should sleep in the infirmary at least for a day or two, until things are more stable -"

"It worked – well, it worked for a few minutes, anyway, and –"

"- maybe the sedation was a better idea, at least until he's recovered physically –"

"- why didn't you tell me about the voices? It was like fifty of me in there, at least until -"

" - it may be that having someone from the Justice League looking into this isn't a bad idea -"

"Raven!" Beast Boy yelled. Both she and Cyborg jumped in surprise. Beast Boy pushed away from Cyborg and stood shakily up right, swaying a little but able to stand up, the sedative gone, the screaming back but underlaid with an ever-present growling that scared him more, much more. "I saw The Beast!"

Raven stared at him. The silence stretched out. Finally she swallowed hard and said, "I – I know."

"You know?"

"Did you think I wouldn't notice?" Raven's attempt at her usual waspish tone didn't work; her voice was too unsteady, her fear apparent. "Right before you – woke up – I felt his energy. I didn't know what was going to come back. You didn't change, but he could have overwhelmed you. I wasn't sure you'd recognize him. Did he do anything?"

"Yeah," Beast Boy said shortly. "He said, 'Let me out.'"

Now both Cyborg and Raven were staring at him. Finally Cyborg said, "Well. Um. Don't, okay?"

"Dude, how stupid -"

"We are taking you to the infirmary now –" said Raven loudly, forestalling any argument – "and you are going to sleep for at least twelve hours. And I am going to do the same. And then we are going to talk about this, but we are not doing anything until both of us get some rest."

Cyborg was looking at them both, bemused. "I don't know which one of you I need to carry. You both look out on your feet."

"Take him." And Raven disappeared in a flash of black light, knowing she had to make sure Beast Boy was safely asleep in the infirmary before she'd feel safe enough to get some sleep herself.

TtTtTtTt

It was half an hour later. Beast Boy had not wanted to abandon the topic of The Beast and had only agreed to leave it for the moment when it became apparent that Raven was just as tired as he was. She had sent him into another deep sleep, stood talking for a few moments with Cyborg, and then had used everything she had left to teleport back to her room, wash her face, brush her teeth, change into sleeping clothes, and crawl into bed.

Less than a minute after she had closed her eyes, she was asleep. Less than five minutes after that, she slid into a nightmare.

The Beast was chasing her through the halls of the Tower. The corridors were dark and empty, with just enough light coming through the windows to turn The Beast's shadow into a grotesque shape that flowed and flickered against the walls as he pounded behind her.

Raven didn't know where he had come from, or why she was so overwhelmingly afraid. She couldn't teleport, wasn't even sure she could attack. She could only run. And he pursued, silently. There was no sound except her own panicked breathing and the steady slamming of The Beast's steps.

The corridor seemed to go on for miles. She ran and ran. Nothing changed. She stayed barely ahead of The Beast, but the sounds of his pursuit never wavered, never flagged. And she was getting more and more exhausted...

Fight! cried Brave.

I can't! Raven called back.

Abruptly the endless corridor terminated into a wall, a sudden, pitch-black dead end. You have no choice, Brave shouted. Fight! Fight!

Raven skidded to a halt, almost falling in her attempt to avoid hitting the wall. Spinning around, she summoned a wave of black energy, not sure if she would have to attack or defend. Raising her hands, she said defiantly, "I won't let you take me, and I won't let you hurt me!"

The Beast stopped too, a few feet away. Raven, who was struggling for breath even as she stayed in an attack position, noticed he wasn't winded. He might not have been running at all. The two of them stood still, watching each other, for what seemed like an eternity to Raven. Finally The Beast spoke. With Beast Boy's voice it said, "Raven – I would never hurt you."