Disclaimer: I don't own anything from Danny Phantom, I'm a big fan and was feeling nostalgic.

~Chapter 34~

Time's Lament

A small twitch from one of Owen's hands and the steady rise and fall of his chest were the only indications Tucker and Luna had that he was still alive. The rose vines had receded far enough back now to expose his arms, legs, and torso but for the most part Owen was completely covered with them from head to toe. The unusual gathering of all the local ravens and crows in the area solved one of their problems getting the ritual ready too, however, the final ingredient they needed was literally a bit of Owen's strange blue fire. Which they wouldn't be able to get unless they could somehow wake him up.

"Can't you do something Luna? You're a witch, right? There's gotta be some voodoo you can use to help him snap out of it," Tucker asked nervously, his hands a bit sore from tearing off Blood Blossoms and getting them pecked at by those darn black birds as he gathered some of their loose feathers to add to the circle.

Feeling unsure of herself now, Luna replied, "I don't know, maybe. But I've only heard about this spell. It's never been used because, well, besides Owen there aren't many necromancer's left or witches who were trusted with the knowledge of how to use it. It's worth a try though. Before that though, I'm starting to get really worried. We haven't seen those two in a while and its grown way too quiet ever since their battle advanced deeper into the forest. What if they're hurt, or worse? Shouldn't we check on them?"

As much as he hated to, Tucker shook his head, "I'm worried too but we can't leave Owen here alone like this. One of us has to stay behind. And I think we both know who that person needs to be. You'll have a better chance at finding them then I would anyway."

Biting her lower lip, Luna pulled out the Infimap and placed it firmly in Tucker's hands. "Alright, I'll go. But! If I don't come back, or if none of us do, use the map to save yourself and Owen and bring him to Clockwork. He'll keep Owen alive long enough for him to be brought to my Coven to have them perform the ritual in Vlad's stead. No matter what else or who else is sacrificed, Owen must survive. He's the only hope we have left of destroying the Mother of Demons, because trust me, she will find a way to escape the Unworld and bring with her legions of her kind and other unspeakable monstrosities. We won't have time to wait until Owen is reborn again. By then it will be too late for all of us."

"Hey, don't talk like that!" Tucker smiled, although secretly he was a bit scared too. "You don't know Danny like I do. He's faced tons of baddies and won every time! He'll survive. And as crazy as he his, Vlad's just as much if not more of a fighter. They'll show that Azrael creep who's boss and be back before you know it! You'll see." Blushing, Tucker dared to press his luck and asked, "On the off chance that I don't see you again, can I-"

Shaking her head knowingly, Luna leaned forward and pecked him on the cheek, where a lovely swirl of frost formed on his dark skin and made Tucker shiver. "Nice try buddy, but trust me, you don't want me to kiss you. Save that for a real warm-blooded girl your own age. You're very sweet Tucker Folley, but I suggest you value what you still have. Your life. And spend it wisely. I'm sure there's a girl out there for you but if you're lucky, you'll have your whole life ahead of you to find the right one. Unlike me."

Smiling sadly and giving Owen one last side-glance, Luna told Tucker she'd be back soon and insisted that if she wasn't to get Owen out of here. Things had already gotten way out of hand but if nothing else good came out of it, as long as Owen survived, it was worth it.

It took Danny longer than expected to change back to his ghost form once he caught his breath. The demon-wolf had nicked him in a few places and even with his accelerated healing most of the wounds were still bleeding. Still, it was a relief that Azrael had gotten rid of it for him and as far as Danny could tell was serious about trying to make amends. Either that or this was a VERY elaborate ruse. Even so, that wasn't enough to convince Danny to let Azrael out once he came too and kept trying to convince him to do so while he searched for Vlad.

The sound of falling trees nearby and a flash of Vlad's all-too-familiar electric pink energy signature finally pinpointed his location and Danny sped towards him as fast as he could. When he got there, things didn't look good. Vlad looked like a total mess, something Danny wasn't used to. His outfit was stained with splashes of green and black from a mixture of his blood and the demon's and Vlad's cape was nearly torn to shreds and hung limply across his shoulders.

Vlad also had several fresh and rather nasty looking claw marks down his face that were freely oozing with ectoplasmic blood. There was a lot of it too and it was probably pretty painful for him to speak right now. At least fro where Danny was floating. Vlad wasn't making any of his usual threats or snarky remarks either. Maybe he was just too focused on their battle to bother goading his opponent, which either meant Vlad was in serious trouble or winning this fight was too important to him to waste on such trivial drivel.

When Vlad noticed Danny flying towards him however, he fought past the pain to force the words out of his mouth that may very well save the other halfa's life and called out to him, "Stay back! It's only after me. Go back to Owen and get him out of here! Take Azrael's ghost as far away from here as possible too if you can, he might still be linked to his demon-half and I can't risk-!"

Unable to bear the pain anymore, which was saying a lot, Vlad covered his mouth and coughed, tasting the strangely-cold yet metallic taste of his own ectoplasmic blood on his lips. He was gasping for air and nearly changed back to his human form when something strange happened. While recovering from his coughing fit, Vlad looked up and noted that the small flecks of snow that had started to fall again had frozen in place. The demon below had halted its advance too, although for some reason it's smoky black aura was still shifting and floating around his body. Danny was frozen mid-flight too, carrying the thermos close to his chest.

What in the world? Vlad wondered, unable to fathom why he alone could still move freely in this frozen time until he noticed an unfamiliar weight around his neck and looked down.

A golden medallion shaped like the gear of a clock and inscribed with the initials CW overlapping one another was resting against his chest as if it'd always been there and he just never noticed it. Vlad was certain he'd seen these initials somewhere before in one of his many ghost lore books, but he couldn't quite place it. Thankfully, he didn't have to…

"Hello, Vladimir," came a voice from in front of him.

Jerking his head up sharply, wincing as the movement irritated the wounds on his face along with a few others scattered over his body, Vlad found himself face to face with none other than Clockwork himself. Not that Vlad knew who he was of course at the time. And it didn't help matters when Vlad spotted the Fenton Thermos in the ghost's free hand while the other grasped a staff with a stop-watch-like contraption at the top of it.

Scowling as much as he could despite his currently wounded lips, Vlad snapped, "Who are you? Another ally of Azrael's I suppose?"

Humoring the suspicious older halfa, Clockwork nodded. "Yes and no. It's true that I have a long history with Azrael but in recent years I have kept well away from him for good reason." Gesturing at the twisted reflection of Azrael below, Clockwork continued. "I've already broken the rules by coming here to speak with you directly but this is important. If I do not act now, Owen will not survive the night and the future is lost. That is why I believe it's only fair that in exchange for removing Azrael from this place and giving you the last thing you need to save his life once the battle is over, you will make me a promise. Here and now, and swear never to break it or he will have to be taken from you."

"You still haven't answered my question, who…" suddenly remembering Danny's story about a terrible future that an alternate version of himself rescued Danny from by removing an amulet from his body, it finally dawned on Vlad who this ghost was and under his breath Vlad muttered the ghost's name with unexpected reverence, "Clockwork."

Allowing one of his rare smiles to spread across his face for a split second, Clockwork nodded again. "I've already explained myself to Daniel but since I wished to speak to you privately I removed his medallion so that he wouldn't interject. It is vital that this part of it be kept strictly between us since the young ones won't understand the gravity of the implications I'm about to reveal to you. I wonder if you will either, Vladimir, since you have no memories of the choices you made in that timeline since it no longer exists. At any rate, let me be brief. In that world, in an attempt to spare Daniel from carrying the immense weight of the guilt and pain he could no longer bear alone. A pain born from the sudden, violent loss of everything and everyone he held dear in one moment of weakness. And in that world you created a certain device to free him from that pain. More specifically a pair of claws you so-named the 'Ghost Gauntlets' that were designed to rip out Daniel's humanity and take all his painful human emotions away along with it. Daniel has informed me that he already told you what happened after that. However, it was brought to my attention by my friend Azrael many years ago that you might be driven to recreate those claws to save Owen from his pain in the exact same manner. For in his heart Owen carries a deep pain of his own that no child should have to bear. And to those who knew about Owen's destiny and the predetermined choice his predecessor made to guide you and Owen together once the time was right in the future, the prospect of creating another future as dark and foreboding as Daniel's once was was enough to put all of them on edge. When it was decided that you were best suited to care for the boy, not everyone was pleased with this decision. Especially since it meant that regardless of our best intentions moving forward, we allowed the deaths of his parents to come to pass. His guilt from not being there for Owen when that fateful day finally arrived, as well as the primal fear he felt about the mere possibility of losing his blood-brother forever is what eventually gave birth to the demon you see before you now. You can imagine I'm sure, that given how demons are the absence of our humanity given form, born from the darkness lurking within each of us, his fear is justified. If those claws ever fell into the wrong hands, it could spell the doom of the Earth and Ghost Zone alike if the Mother of Demon's got her hands on them. That is why I ask you to swear to me that no matter what happens to Owen, no matter how much sorrow and hopelessness he feels, that you will NEVER create those claws. Vladimir, it's high time you learned WHY out of all the people in this world that you were chosen for this task and not Daniel and his family. It's because Owen's previous life fervently believes you can help him make it through the terrible trials Owen will have to face in the years to come. That person also wanted to give you a chance to save yourself from a future where YOU will be the one who loses everything through a single reckless and selfish choice. Much like the one that ruined Daniel's life in that alternate timeline. A choice that if not for Daniel's quick thinking, would have doomed both worlds as well."