Standard Disclaimer: I own nothing in regards to Danny Phantom or Justice League. All properties therein are those of their creators. I am only a writer working on my skills with worlds and characters that I love.

Note: Very good response to the first two chapters, here's hoping we can keep that going.

Note: Every DC character has so many fricking backstories that it is often impossible to know which one to depict. In this case I'll be doing those specific to the Justice League Animated Series for most of them. Yes, that means Hawkgirl is a former law keeper from the planet Thanagar, not a reincarnated soul bond to be hunted by Vandal Savage.

Note: There are several iterations of Lex Luthor across the various properties of DC. First off, the Jesse Eisenberg iteration is shit on a stick and should never be mentioned under any circumstances. Second, in the various media I've read and seen one thing becomes clear. Lex is calm, intelligent, infinitely charismatic, and practical above all else. He has a goal, a reason for that goal, and he does what it takes to get there. The man was elected president for crying out loud. They show this really well in Smallville and Justice League Unlimited. I'm going to mix a few things there as this story progresses. He won't be evil for the sake of being evil. In a lot of ways he got shafted in modern media almost as bad as Doctor Doom in Marvel.

Chapter Three - The Beginning of the League

What Was

"Hey, uh, mom?" Danny asked nervously, staring at the hazmat suit wearing woman as she bustled behind her group of monitors.

"Yes, dear?"

"Why are we doing this again exactly? Wouldn't my time be better spent out on patrol?"

His reason for anxiety was clear to see as he was currently lying on an improvised medical bed with a series of electrodes taped to his chest.

"As I already explained, we are doing this because we still don't know how exactly your powers function or work, Danny. Going on patrol will serve you a lot better once we have that information and can properly train you in their usage."

"Right, and how are we doing that here?"

Maddie Fenton sighed and shook her head fondly. She loved her son, she really did, but she often found herself wishing he'd inherited her love of the scientific method. "You said that when you fought Vortex you managed to absorb some of his power and project it back in the form of an ectoplasmic shield. That makes me wonder if you can absorb other forms of ectoplasmic energy, or if you've been doing it unconsciously all along."

"So how do we test that to find out for sure?"

Maddie smiled and turned a final dial on her instruments. "Simple, Sweety. Just do your 'going ghost' thing and the electrodes will record what happens. I'll translate the results from there."

Danny nodded, and after getting the thumbs up to proceed he closed his eyes and tapped into the latent power that was always simmering beneath his skin these days. Immediately twin rings of light popped into being over his center before expanding to cover his entire body. When they cleared away he was in his crime fighting suit, his hair was white, and his blue eyes had turned green.

Not even five seconds later he heard his mother mutter, "Now this is fascinating."

"What's that?"

"I was right. You seem to unconsciously absorb all the latent ectoplasmic energy in the vicinity when you transform, and use it to alter your genetic structure in a mere moment. You're tapping into the energy of the ghost world to force a cellular change. Could you change back for a moment?"

"Uh, sure?" Danny did so and was very surprised when his mom rounded her desk, slapped a strange object on his chest, and then ran back to her screens.

"Change again please."

The teenage crime fighter did so, and was shocked to find the object present on the chest of his outfit now too. It looked like… a D with a reverse F on the spine that imitated his ghost tail in flight?

"Eureka! It worked!" Maddie cheered with a full on fist pump into the air.

"What did, mom?"

"Well your ghost suit was absorbed into you when the portal accident occurred and we just proved other things can as well during your change. You, Danny, can absorb energy and physical objects if necessary. Just think, maybe you could absorb weapons too!"

"Okay, yeah, that is cool. But what's with the symbol?"

Maddie giggled lightly and answered, "Haven't you been watching the news? Batman, Superman, there are other heroes out there now besides you." She crossed the distance and put a comforting hand on his shoulder, "And they all have symbols of their hero identity on their chests. I thought you'd like something similar so you'd know that you're in good company."

What Is

It had taken two months of intensive physical therapy for Barbara Gordon to regain enough use of her legs to actually walk, but she'd been tireless in her efforts and now, finally, she was going out on a date with Danny. The man who had changed her life for the better. Sure they'd spent hours talking and learning about each other in the batcave, but there was just something about going out on an actual date that served to represent the start of an actual relationship in her mind.

And here, sitting across from Danny and staring into his glowing green eyes, she knew that a relationship was exactly what she wanted. She didn't know the particulars of his past, but he'd shared many tales of his travels. Places he'd been, people he'd met, countless ghosts he'd laid to their final rest. But behind all of that was a hidden and very deep pain. It was clear in the way he'd shy away from speaking about his family. She knew he'd had parents and a sister, but he seemed to go all out of his way to avoid speaking about them in depth. Instead he always changed the subject to get her talking about her relationship with her dad.

Barbara had decided early on in these talks that she wanted, deeply, to help this man with his pain, the same way he'd helped her with her own. And the way his eyes lit up whenever she walked into his presence told her that her man was very much interested in the same thing.

Today he'd taken her to his promised ramen joint, and wonder of wonders, the habitual rain of Gotham wasn't falling on the shingles of its roof. What surprised her even more was how, after they'd been seated in a private booth by the owner himself, Danny had ordered for the both of them in what sounded like fluent Japanese.

Seeing her look of mixed awe and confusion he explained, "I helped his sister pass on last month. She'd been killed in a burglary gone wrong and her attacker was never caught. When I found him he was drowning in both the bottle and guilt. It didn't even take overshadowing to convince him to turn himself in; only the promise that doing so would grant his victim her rest."

"And the Japanese?"

"I spent about two years in Japan. There are a lot of ghosts in Hiroshima. For them…. They just needed somebody to talk to for a while. Someone to listen to their stories one last time. I count the good I did there as some of the best of my life."

"More so than fighting off supervillains and violent specters?"

"Infinitely so."

Barbara reached across the table and wrapped her hand around his own. "It's nice to know you haven't been on a rampage for years like Damien suspects."

Danny chuckled lightly at that and turned his palm to rub his thumb over the back of her hand. "I promise Barbs, I won't ever lie to you. So yes, I was on a bit of a rampage for a while after…. After I lost my family. But in the end, when all my targets were gone, and damned to live without rest, all I had left was the promise I made my mother to live. So I decided to use that life to help others pass on into the afterlife I wasn't yet ready to enter. I am a very violent man, but my violence has purpose, and a time and a place."

"That's an admirable goal." The redhead smiled at the openness being shown here. "So you got your taste for ramen in Japan?"

"Amongst other things. Japanese curry is to die for. I honestly fell head over heels for the culture there. The food, the fashion, and the people. It was all just so new and incredible. I mean, the view from the top of Mount Fuji was life changing, and you haven't lived until you've seen the cosplayers walking around in Akihabara."

"Wow. I've always wanted to go there myself." She giggled a bit, "It might be fun to go and 'cosplay' as Batgirl."

A devilish glint entered the half-ghost's eyes as he replied, "Then perhaps I need to take you there sometime, my dear."

Barbara blushed at the implication and was luckily saved from saying anything embarrassing in response by the arrival of two deep bowls of broth filled ramen. The aroma rising off the meal had her mouth watering instantly.

With a knowing glint in his eyes Danny handed her a pair of chopsticks before pulling his own free. He'd been dreaming about this meal for days now. Horiyuki-San was a master of the kitchen. Ten minutes of taste-bud heaven later and the two placed their chopsticks lengthwise across the rims of their bowls and pushed them to the side of the table to be retrieved by the staff.

"So, you have your legs back, and you clearly have gotten used to moving around again. Do you think you'll get back in the full vigilante game or stay in the support role of Oracle?"

The redhead sighed and leaned back in her chair. "I don't know, probably a bit of both. I was really good as Batgril, but I was even better as Oracle. But I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss being out on the streets myself, knocking heads and saving lives personally. I was thinking that I would go back to doing that, but I'd still offer my support services if a threat is big enough to need them. For the regular day-to-day crimes Alfred is more than capable of handling logistics and information."

"That sounds like a good plan." Danny nodded. "I honestly can't wait to see you out and about in your suit of tight leather and body armor. I bet you look fantastic."

Barbara smirked wickedly and purred, "Damn right, my ass is absolutely glorious in it."

The half-ghost shuddered with glee, earning a fresh laugh from his date. "All jokes aside though, perhaps our next date can be a shared patrol? I can show you my stomping grounds… you can show me yours…"

"... we can make out on the rooftops as the police pick up your collars on the street below…" Danny finished.

"Doesn't that sound lovely?" Barbara leaned forward over the table, slowly, giving the man across from her plenty of time to back away.

He in turn nodded and started to move on his own as well. "It sounds great." He closed the rest of the distance himself and pressed his lips to hers. It was deep, sweet, and he just loved the mixed taste of her strawberry lipstick and ramen breath. A feeling that was shared even more extensively by his partner, who loved how easily his mouth moved against hers, and the manly aroma that wafted off of his skin.

Slowly they pulled away, and Barbara found herself capable of only forming one word, "Wow."

"Wow, indeed." Danny noted before standing up and offering his hand. "Would you like to continue this date on a walk of the neighborhood, Barbara?"

The woman happily stood to take his offered palm in her own. "I thought you'd never ask."

A Few Weeks Later

Danny, who now happily lived in his own wing of the manor (he wasn't a freeloader. The ghosts of the city constantly directed him to their treasure in gratitude for his efforts so he paid rent, thank you very much), phased down to the Batcave to find Bruce, and for once he was not actually in front of his computer. Instead, he was bandaging his chest on the medical platform, his armored suit lying crumpled on the ground where he'd dropped it.

"Damn, Bruce, what brick wall did you swing into?"

The billionaire vigilante groaned at the mocking tone of the man that had, begrudgingly, become a friend. Kind of hard not to when the number of people who knew both sides of his life was so limited. "It was actually a bookcase, and I didn't swing into it, I was thrown."

"You get the guy?"

"Sadly no. I've been investigating strange interruptions with the world's deep space detection systems, and that led me to a satellite monitoring facility. I followed some of the staff who were acting… strange, and, well, they threw me into a bookcase."

"Strange how?"

"Freakishly strong, doing things clearly beyond the directive of their jobs, and speaking a language unlike anything I've ever heard."

Danny's brows rose. "Really? But you're fluent in at least a dozen, and I'm sure you've at least heard the rest enough times to classify them."

"I have."

"So what are you thinking then?" the halfa asked as he made his way to the Dark Knight's side, taking the gauze from his hands and wrapping it around him himself. "Demons?"

"No." Bruce shook his head in the negative. "None of the city wards have tripped for demonic activity. Thanks for those by the way."

"No problem. Spending an entire weekend with Zatanna carving them out was quite the pleasure."

"I'm sure." You could have cut the sarcasm in Bruce's voice with a knife. "Regardless, demons would have no need to care about what's above, only what's present on the planet. No, I think they might be aliens."

An excited gleam started to grow in Danny's eyes at the statement. "Aliens? Really? As in from outer space?"

"It seems likely. I just haven't been able to discover enough about their motives to say from where exactly. Or what their end goal is. I would have gotten something off of their computers but Superman showed up to 'save me' and absolutely destroyed any possible evidence in the process when he crashed through the wall."

"It sounds like all you can do is wait now."

"Sadly Ye-OW!" Bruce yelped (or squealed if you asked Danny) as his younger friend finished binding his gauze with a final twitch to remove any slack. He gingerly ran a hand over his battered ribs before finishing, "Sadly, you're right. All I can do is keep watching and hope another opportunity presents itself."

The computer lit up behind them then and a broadcast of the UN began to play. "What's up with that?"

"Oh, I have it set to alert me anytime certain criteria are met." Bruce walked over to his monitor and tapped a couple of keys. "Hm… Looks like in this case it's a few things. An unexpected item on the UN docket being brought to the floor, Superman, the world's nuclear stockpile, and… disarmament?"

"Okay that cannot be good." Danny crossed his arms as he watched the event play out with his host until the end. Then he palmed his face with exasperation. "Superman getting rid of all the nukes and serving as the world's primary line of defense? How can anyone actually think that is a good idea?"

Bruce raised a brow at that. "Please don't take this as a disagreement to your opinion, because believe me I have a lot of issues with this, but I thought you of all people would be on board with the disarmament of weapons of mass destruction."

Danny slowly pulled his head up and glared at his friend. "Just how many bugs did you have in the restaurant during our first date exactly, Bruce?"

"None." The Dark Knight answered honestly, enjoying the confusion on his 'tenant's' face for a while before finally relenting. "Alfred volunteered to help the chef that morning and listened in. I actually own that building, you know, and give the current owners excellent monthly rates."

"Of course you do." the half-ghost chuckled merrily.

"You're not mad about that?"

"Why should I be? I had nothing to hide from you guys, and it's a bit touching that you all care enough about Barbara to make sure I wasn't a sleazebag on our date. That being said, you might not want to let her know you did that. She's a lot less forgiving than I am."

"Indeed. Now moving away from that volatile subject, why would you have a problem with this plan? I'm curious about your reasoning."

Before speaking, Danny walked over to the utility bench, grabbed a stool, and dragged it back over before plopping onto it. "Where do I even start? I mean… In Hiroshima I saw the devastation those weapons can cause, not just on the targets but the nearby civilians as well. I think they are horrible creations, and our kind has already developed better weapon alternatives to them, weapons that don't carry the risk of nuclear fallout, so we should be replacing them. But that is just it, we need to replace them, not just take them away. Geopolitically those things are the only true factor keeping World War III from breaking out, and everyone knows it. Mutually assured destruction was created for a reason, it forces everyone to stop and think of their own survival and self interest before attempting anything massive. That isn't even taking into account that they're our best defense at the moment, from sheer numbers of warheads we can launch alone, against planetary invaders. They are distasteful in the extreme, but they serve a purpose."

He took a steadying breath before continuing. "Then there is Superman himself."

"What about him?"

"He's accepting too much responsibility here. Look, Supes is powerful, no doubt, but in the end he's only one man and he's not infallible. We both know he's incredibly vulnerable to magic, has an entire cadre of supervillains that want him dead, and he's been brainwashed at least twelve times over the last ten years if the reports are accurate. Honestly those instances make me glad Lex Luthor is around."

"You can't be serious." Batman glared at his compatriot. "Lex Luthor is a criminal."

"He's never been formally charged."

"He's tried to kill Superman at least ten times."

"Has he though? Let's look back at the coverage of those events and let's see for sure." Danny moved over to the computer and pulled up the relevant videos before playing them for the Bat, who ended up groaning and leaning back further into his chair.

"Wow, this must be what scoring a basket on Michael Jordan feels like. I literally found a piece of relevant information that Batman himself missed."

"You've made your point."

"Have I though? Really?" When Bruce just waved his hand, signaling him to get on with it, the specter grinned cheekily and continued. "Every time he's tried to kill Superman has been on one of the occasions where he's either been mind controlled and causing untold damage to Metropolis or immediately after he recovered, when he was still weak and vulnerable. Lex doesn't hate Superman, Bruce. He is terrified of what Superman is capable of. The horror and carnage he could, and on several occasions already has, bring upon this world and its people. Supes is a bulletproof bastion of power and might, and he answers to no formal authority. Of course someone like Luthor would seek a way to deal with him should he turn against humanity once and for all. Which I'll remind you again he's already shown himself capable of doing… several times."

Batman steepled his hands beneath his chin and turned back to his monitor. You may have a point, Danny. Thank you… for giving me something to think about. I might need to update my psychological profile for Luthor after this chat." So saying, the Bat's fingers began to glide over his massive keyboard, clearly sending the message that his daily allowance of patience to deal with his tenant was at an end.

"Alright then, I'll just go take Barbara for a run. Damn but that girl finds every activity romantic."

As the halfa left his cave through the ceiling, Bruce let a warm smile cross his features. Danny had changed much since he'd come to Gotham. The rain, while still prevalent, seemed to lighten in misted showers more than a straight downpour everyday. Barbara had found new life, happiness, and purpose. Alfred had someone he could talk to about his experiences in the war, and he had a friend with a crusade of his own, who could commiserate with the toll such a quest takes on the quester. Finally…. There was Jason. Bruce only knew the two were in contact because he'd overheard Danny on the phone with him, and at the time the two were talking about…. Their opinions on books? There had been something about how Oathbringer wasn't as good plot-wise as Words of Radiance? Well he wasn't sure what any of that meant, but it warmed his heart to hear that his adopted son finally had someone he could talk to, even about simple things, after everything he had endured. Even if that person wasn't him.

After all of that it still irked the Dark Knight that he'd not found a way to adequately repay his friend for everything he'd done yet. His initial plan had been to let the specter stay in his home indefinitely, free of charge, effectively making him a part of the Batfamily. But that annoying man was stubbornly proud and insisted on paying rent of all things! Hm… perhaps if he and Barbara got really serious he could pay for the wedding…. But wait! What if Jim insisted as the father of the bride? Questions and possibilities….

Note: If y'all watched the Justice League animated series then you know what the Superman clip means. The crossover with the show has officially begun! Mwahahahahahahahaha!