Author Note: Gear is actually pansexual so she is can be attracted to anyone of any gender, sex, and because aliens exist in this universe (err in the YJ universe)- any species too.
~CWA

Chapter 17:

Third Person:

Danny kept pacing the floor, jumping at every single noise. He even almost shot an ectoblast at M'gann when she dropped her cookie sheet. He was acting weirder than usual and it was something that everyone noticed, which got them a bit concerned.

"What's his problem," Kid Flash asked, snacking yet again on some chips.

They all looked over to Poltergeist. He was muttering to himself in some other language (ghost speak) so while Superboy could hear him, he had no idea what was being said. M'gann looked at her friend sadly and then back to the fresh batch of cookies- the ones she didn't ruin or burn. Getting an idea, she smiled as she flew over to Poltergeist with a few cookies in her hands.

"Here! These might make you feel better!"

Poltergeist offered her a weak smile and muttered a thank you before he devoured the cookies. His eyes got wide before looking at M'gann.

"'ese 'r' 'lious," he tried to say with his mouth full of cookies.

"These are delicious," he repeated over the mental link, "Thanks."

"Mind telling us what's wrong then," M'gann asked.

"…It's… I don't know how to explain it. You know how I said some ghosts are bad? Well one of the worst- I think he's-"

At that moment, the alarm went off, causing Poltergeist to jump and light up an ectoblast. Robin typed away at the computer.

"Bats said there's another ghost attack. This time in broad daylight."

"Why doesn't the League take care of it," Artemis asked, "Not that's we're turning it down."

"Stuff," Robin answered vaguely, Bruce has a meeting to get ready for and the others are busy.

Danny looked around nervously, gulping slightly as if he could just swallow away his nerves. He knew in his gut who it was. It was going to be Vlad- he was sure of it. He would have to face the fruitloop with his team.

My team, Danny realized, yeah… my team… They're my friends now- almost best friends…

Poltergeist was the first to react when they reached the scene. However, instead of flying towards the villain, he seemed to retreat a bit in fear. His eyes were wide and his mouth felt a bit dry. The villain in question was the one he feared it was going to be. Vladimir Plasmius floated above the ground, towering over citizens with an arrogant look on his face. He shot at more civilians to scare them, make the run, and he was enjoying seeing them run.

"Polgergeist," Kaldur said over the link, "Do you know who it is?"

"…Yeah, his name is Vlad. Vlad Plasmius."

"You don't seem too pleased to see him," Kid Flash observed.

"No one is ever glad to see Vlad. He's evil… He's honestly the worst I've met. He wants to take over the world and honestly the only thing stopping him is the fact he wants me by his side first."

"Why," Robin questioned as the team started to get into position.

"I remind him of himself is his excuse. He also loved my mom and believes that I should have been his son so he's… Kind of obessed… Just guys, please be careful. I know you guys deal with a lot of dangerous guys, but none of those guys were ghosts."

Kaldur looked over to his new friend in concern. Poltergeist seemed a bit on edge, keeping a close eye on Vlad.

"How powerful is he," Kaldur asked.

"He has basic ghost abilities, but he's older than me so they're stronger than mine. Teleportation, duplication, he can do nearly everything I can- there's a few thing I can do that he can't do, but he's still stronger. Smarter."

"I have my doubts he's stronger," Robin encouraged, "Let's take him down."

"Team, go," Kaldur ordered.

The team wasted no time in going after the ghost. Vlad, however, seemed bored as he easily dodged and attacked each one of the team members. No, Poltergeist thought, He's going to kill them at this rate! When Poltergeist finally gathered his courage to step in, he shot an ectoblast,

"VLAD!"

"Ah, young badger," Vlad greeted calmly, "It's been a while and I see you've changed."

Vlad looked over Danny's new outfit, easily dismissing Danny's angered expression. Not at all concerned about the sidekicks, Vlad floated to the ground.

"Tell me, are you ready to finally join my side, young badger? I heard you were already a thief. The Poltergeist? Really, you are so childish. Couldn't think of anything more original?"

"Well I'm a hero now," Danny growled, ectoblasts charging in his hands, "And I will never join you."

He shot the ectoblasts repeatedly at Vlad, but he simply put up an ecto-shield to block each attack. He duplicated into three and sent the two duplicates to go after the team. Kaldur and Robin faced one of the duplicates, Superboy and M'gann handed the other duplicate, while Kid Flash and Artemis handled the civilians. Poltergeist, however, was left dealing with the original Vlad.

The team weren't doing so good without Danny's help. They were able to handle themselves, but they weren't necessarily winning. They dared to say that they were almost losing- almost. Danny's eyes widened as Vlad's duplicates disappeared. Vlad figured one large blast and aimed it at the team. Danny flew as fast as he could and landed in front of his friends, throwing up a large green ecto-shield to block the attack. He gritted his teeth at the attack rippled into the shield and caused him to scoot back a few inches.

"Oh pity, they're still alive," Vlad commented, "But I have some other business to attend to. I will return, little badger, and you will join me whether you like it or not."

With his signature smug smirk, Vlad disappeared, leaving an exhausted Danny. He looked around- there was some damage, but not as much as there could have been. His team mates, his friends, were safe and so were the civilians that was all that mattered.

"Hey guys," Poltergeist said, a bit out of breath, "Did I mention how much of a fruitloop he is?"