Really I don't know how I started to write this. Childhood streak just came over me along with the AU 'What-if' storyline.

Disclaimer: Not owner of Danny Phantom and also the subtle cameo of a certain anime (take a guess which one).

NOTE: Thinking since the portal was made by them before (even if it was a prototype), what-if they made one sooner in Danny's life? That was my thinking process of making this anyway. I don't really remember much of the storyline anyway.

May or may not continue this story. It is open for debate and I have no cold hard feelings if it is used by others. Just make sure to give me credit for the idea.

Ah, would love to read some of them to, so PM me.

…

The Tragic Beginning

…

Maddie, Jack and Jasmine Fenton silently went through the day, emotions of sadness ever present on their faces. Maddie looked around at the table, first to her husband then to her daughter and then…

Tears ushered out the moment she saw the empty chair besides her who used to hold her precious son. His black mess of hair and bright blue eyes, absent from where she stared. Quickly she excused herself, but not before placing her untouched food aside, and hastily out of the kitchen.

She paused at a metallic door that led to their lab, which just yesterday, she and Jack had placed everything that had something do with the supernatural in and sealing it; hoping to never touch on the subject ever again. That place that caused the gapping hole to appear in her…their heart. The horrors she had found beyond them after hearing the unmistakable scream of…

Maddie shook her head furiously at the memory that seemed to have engraved in her mind, rushing up the stairs until she was atop panting out as if she had run a marathon. With shaky breaths she shuffled down the hallway until again a door of ever-calm blue with a wooden name-plate hanging innocently on the door.

It felt like it was mocking her. The tag that held her blue eyed child's name. Telling her of what they had done to cause it, though indirectly. She didn't want to enter this room ever again as everything inside would only increase her guilt even more.

Even so, she had to see. Had to see if, by opening this door, she would wake up to find that the nightmare she is having was untrue. Hand on handle, she turned and pushed the door opened, expecting to hear the sound of protest from behind.

It didn't happen, and her heart ached at the break of her hopes as she slowly entered the room.

The room was every typical 10 year old boy's room; a baby blue in color and soft green carpeting, toys laying about in one corner or another, or posters of favorite characters from cartoons and space.

The only difference that she would say, would be the books that no other boy would have read at the age. She wanted to laugh as a memory surfaced on how her boy told her he wanted to be an astronaut instead of a Ghost Hunter; that in order to go to NASA he had to gather knowledge now. But the throbbing ache came instead.

Maddie lowered herself onto the twin sized bed set flushed to the floor and laid there remembering telling tales of her Ghost Hunting adventures she did for the child who once resided, before breaking into cries.

She could never tell them to her baby boy anymore.

…

Jasmine is smart.

She knew a lot of things that many children her age wouldn't even thing about knowing until adulthood. Math, science, law, physics; A down right genius, as many of her teachers would say.

But praised being one meant she didn't fit in with others her age.

No one bothered to come near her during classes. No one listened to her theories and curiosity. It was always sneers or pushes or silent whispers behind her back. They all avoided her since she didn't make any sense to them. In her family she didn't have to be afraid of that. Because there was always someone there to listen; even if that person was two years younger.

Yeah, at first, she didn't like the fact that she was going to have a sibling. But as time went she enjoyed the company of another child in a house full of scientists. The extra presence made her realize she is the one that needs to protect him as being the eldest. She was happy.

Then, that incident happened…and she felt alone again.

And she felt that she had failed in protecting her only precious brother.

…

Jack Fenton sadly looked up upon hearing the cries he could hear from upstairs. He looked down to his daughter who looked hollow in both emotion and drive.

Jasmine, feeling his gaze looked up. Jack wasn't surprised to see the tears at the edges and he sighed. He too, pushed the untouched food aside to get up and pick up the 12 year old. The usual protest that usually followed, automatically wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him, not bothering to register the wetness.

Slowly, he walked out the kitchen, giving the metallic door a regretful glance, and upstairs. He stopped at the room to glance in. Maddie had stopped crying but still sniffling on the bed of their lost child.

A twang of guilt and regret filled him as he continued on and entered the strawberry milk door of his daughter's bedroom. Gently, he placed asleep Jasmine under the covers, wiping the tears that still was on her face before stepping out.

Instead of going into the bedroom, he went back downstairs to clear the table of food; putting them in tuple-ware and into the fridge. Then, like something sapped everything out of him, he took a chair and slumped into it; head atop his hands on the table staring into nothing.

No, not exactly, he was staring at the seat across from him. The empty seat that held his child just three days ago.

Oh how he wished he could change things. If he had only realized he had placed the switch inside when he designed the gate, or locked the door of the lab then none of this would have happened.

He wished he could hold his son again.

…

The child was scared of the dark when he opened his eyes. He knew that he wasn't supposed to be here in the depths of darkness but he is and he was frightened. However, being a child from two scientist and a sister who seemed to memorize and mimics a psychologist, he took deep breaths to calm himself.

But it was a mistake apparently, because once he did collect himself, he screamed in agony to realize…

He is most likely dead.

…

Clockwork always thought his work is his joy and curse.

He had to continue to watch those infinite hourglasses pour from the top to the bottom until it empties for many millenniums; turning those empty around to restart a new life only to repeat it after the sand's tinkle to its last grain. He knew what it meant, and he felt as if he was casting as deaths right hand, even though he controls only time.

But he knew, because of time, people…humans whither with it. It bored him a bit. Scared him slightly. Probably, hate the fact.

But he continued on the grueling observing of hourglasses as routine.

As he passed the multitudes of shelves he abruptly stopped at one in particular. One that put dread in his gears feeling something wrong with one of the special hourglasses that held there. This was a place of predestined individuals, who would hold the world up one way or another. There were a multitudes of the same name on particular shelves for different alternates.

Inspecting them all carefully, he scanned all the names until he found the problem. One hourglass, supposedly only 1/10th down had a crack. Picking up the small object he scowled, feeling the malevolent energy of the defected appearance he walked to his mirror to see the current happenings.

The darkness with a child crying in the center; Clockwork scowled again and looked down at the name on the hourglass. He inwardly wanted to curse, because this is one particular child he always held favor in, regardless of timelines (well, except for that particular one). A crack was a worrisome sign, but he knew one item that could fix it.

Walking again to another section of his workshop, he carefully placed the timepiece down, carefully inspecting the crack.

Taking the thought of item, he applied it to the area and watched pleasingly as he saw the crack begin to mend. Back to the mirror he watched as fixed alternate continued from where it was stopped.

And in the back of his head, reminding himself to thank the Wish Granter for the unexpected item a few weeks before. He just hopped that this child would be able to make do with his price.

…

After a few hours from the breakdown, Maddie blinked to awakening, somewhat confused in where she was. She recalled being in Danny's room before crying her eyes out, how had she managed to get to her room?

The answer was the uneasy snore behind her. She turned over her side and smiled slightly at her husband's form, with Jasmine somehow sneaking in between them on the king size bed. Though her heart hurt to see only them, she smiled a little more and brushed Jasmine's hair a bit out of her face before attempting to sleep again.

"…"

She blinked the half sleep away upon hearing…something. Whatever it was that awakened her, it woke up everyone else. Jack's snores stopped and Maddie could see his eyes were open in the dim darkness with moonlight coming in.

Jasmine was sitting up staring at the doorway.

"…."

Again she heard it and this time, Jack sat up quietly. Picking up Jasmine, holder he close, Maddie waited as Jack pulled out one of the Fenton guns (something he couldn't put away in thought of their safety), opening and going out the door.

"…d…"

Jack was cautious as he listened. It was faint, but he could clearly hear…something. And it was coming from downstairs. He wondered if a burglar had entered their home, but pushed it aside. There was no way that anyone could, including burglar, enter a home that is most likely loaded with some sort of hazardous materials about.

Especially since the Fenton's are well known to go over and beyond on break-ins, given they are…were famous scientists with priceless works on ghost material. Not to mention another famous incident which one careless burglar entered and was netted and near-shot at from ecto-guns; no one would try their house again.

"…ho-…"

He frowned as he entered the first floor, finding nothing out of place in the living room or kitchen; Nothing in the hallway to the entrance or backyard.

"…-om…."

He turned and aimed at the place he was sure the sound was coming from only to freeze.

Because in front of him was the door to the lab only.

The seals were not disturbed but still…

"…help…"

Jack's eyes widened hearing that. It sounded like a child's voice, but somewhat echoed. "Maddie, you better come down."

It didn't take long, the female ghost hunter to come down the stairs, Jasmine staying mid-way on the stairway.

"What is it?" she said as she moved towards her husband, who placed his finger on his lips to silence her and listen for sounds coming from the sealed lab.

"…scared…"

Maddie's eyes widened, upon hearing the child voice within as she met her glance with Jacks. Jasmine, being curious went nearby as Jack pulled the seals off and worked the code to open the door. It gave the familiar sound of opening, this time hearing the definite sound of…crying.

Both adults went down into the dark room somehow glowing in eerie familiar green glow when they specifically remembered turning/unplugging everything connected to that off. What was also worrying, is that the lights usually turned on automatically once there's a heat signature. If it wasn't turning on, than the source was clearly short-circuiting the system.

Maddie made sure to shield Jasmine as she followed them.

"I'm scared…mom…dad…sis…its dark…"

They all froze at that. The voice was very familiar and the ache in their heart squeezed painfully with sorrow and little bit of hope. Quickly they went down into the room. The lights were off and Jasmine tucked closer to her mother's leg in order to not knock any of the boxes they had moved into there, as they neared the place where that incident occurred.

"I don't like the dark…Mommy…Daddy…Sis…I don't want to be d-dead…"

Their steps faltered a bit at those words but soldierly moved to the source. Near the Ghost Portal.

What they saw nearly gave them a heart attack. The Ghost Portal, thought to be off, was on. The greenish glow was the source of the eerie light, but what all of them found in front of the gate made them cautious.

It was a boy was knelt on the ground crying while wiping his face from tears; his most striking of features being the white hair.

Unexpectedly, Jasmine jolted a box causing it to tumble to the ground the boy looked up at the sound, shaking uncontrollably. The gasped. They took back the statement of the hair being striking, seeing the glowing wide green eyes.

"W-who's there!?" he said looking back and forth as if seeing nothing. Even though they were out of the open. Maddie had to guess that the boy is probably blind, as he said, 'dark' and not green from the portal itself behind him.

Suddenly, she realized she was lacking the small hands on her pants, and she started upon seeing Jasmine going towards the boy despite Jacks moving protest. Her little girl knelt down in front of the boy.

"W-who's…there?" he said, this time slightly tense as if expecting some kind of monster to jump at him. "M-mom, d-dad, s-sis?"

"Danny?" was all Jasmine curiously said before the boy started tearing up even more.

"Jazzy, is…is that you? W-where are you?" the boy reached out and Jasmine caught it. She could feel how cold it was but she didn't care as she pulled at the hand and into a heart-wrenching hug, crying along with the young boy.

It was all that was needed, as he started bawling and holding her tighter. Jack and Maddie though, stood stock still in shock.

The green portal then flicked out of life and lights activated itself on.

…