Night Wind

By: Wilona Riva

Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom or Castlevania.

Author's Note: I was watching the first season of Castlevania the other day, and well... Enjoy!

Memories, Part Two

(Tower Garden - Ghost Zone - Night Wind Territory)

"So what did she say?" Dusk asked anxiously, hopping off the rock she'd been sitting on.

"The Night Queen will permit the Night Lord to remain Above to retrieve the Sixth and Seventh, however, if the Night Lord has been harmed in any way by the hunters, mortals, Ryu or Daywind, Bell and Twilight are on standby to bring him home at once."

"But the agony he might be enduring-"

"He will live," was Moon's pronouncement. "I, well, remember when he came for me."

Her eyes got that far away look at her memories replayed her first meeting with Phantom.

(Northern England, 1560s)

Phantom looked around, and closed his eyes. Allowing his senses to range out, he listened for the call of the Third of his kind.

"Found him yet?"

Phantom's eyes snapped open. Letting out an exasperated sigh, he shook his head. He wasn't sure what Youngblood was, but the ryu had a bad habit of popping up at the oddest of times. Phantom had given up trying to get rid of him. He started walking in the direction of the pull he'd felt. Twilight had stayed behind to learn the customs of the Night Wind from the Queen of the Night Stars.

"Hey, this is a great location. Let's play Robin Hood. You can be Little John, and the bag of bones here can be Friar Tuck," Youngblood greeted him, wearing a forest green tunic and leggings, with a bow and quiver of arrows on his back. He wore a small cap with a red feather. Basically, he looked like a miniature Peter Pan-ghost version, of course.

Phantom shook his head. Portals, he had learned, could lead to anywhere and anywhen so he knew he'd gone back in time. Tales of Robin Hood were new to him, as he'd seen an original copy of it in the library. Lunaris kept it under lock and key, and would not allow any of the phantomic ghosts to read it.

He looked up, and noticed there was no moon hanging in the sky. His faint glow lit the path, as he wandered deeper in to the woods. He could see a well-worn forest path, and froze. He could see a faint orange glow ahead, and many male voices.

Grabbing Youngblood, he shook his head, miming silence. Quiet. There are mortal voices in the woods.

"I think he's telling you to be quiet. He hears something," the Parrot translated. Phantom taught them enough of the signs so they could understand him.

"I don't hear anything," Youngblood argued.

"You talk too much. Be quiet and listen. It's a wonder you can hear yourself thing at times," came the caustic reply.

Phantom shot them a dirty look, then turned invisible. Youngblood and the Parrot copied him, and followed his ecto-signature through the tree tops.

Phantom crouched low on a tree branch, within earshot, as he watched a rotund man in cleric's robes order two burly men in chain mail to break down the door. A collection of heavily armed men from the nearby castle held torches, and wore grim expressions on their faces. A farmer,with a shifty eye, smirked as an old woman opened it slowly.

"You can knock like civilized people, Father Kent. There be no reason to break down me door. Me poor daughter is sick with the winter chills."

"Eliza, I am sorry about this. You were seen by Farmers Johns and Murray dancing on the tor last full moon with a spirit," the cleric said, turning a bit red. "Might we come in and look around?"

"No, spirit within these halls, Father," the mortal woman said, shuffling to one side.

"Search the house!" One of the two men in chain mail shouted. "Rouse the witch's daughter from her bed. You know the evidence to search for."

"Father Kent, I am not a witch. I've been to every Sunday Mass since I was baptized as a wee babe by Father Augustus himself. My daughter is very sick, my dear sirs. Please leave."

Phantom, Youngblood and the Parrot watched in horror as the old woman was struck in the head, and fell like a stone to the earthen floor of her hut, blood on her temple.

Why are humans like this?

"Not all humans are like this," the Parrot answered. "Just...certain ones."

Mattresses and pillows were torn open by the evil humans' metal blades, the careful organized herbs, potions and salves were collected and dumped unceremoniously into one pile.

A pale-faced girl with long, braided starry white hair and luminous malachite-hued eyes was roused from her bed. She was trembling with fear, eyes darting back and forth between her mother, the men, the priest, and the forest.

"Here's the witch's familiar," the leader of the two men said, throwing the girl at the priest's feet. "Her sick daughter, indeed."

"Is this the girl you saw dancing in hell light last full moon on the tor with the witch, Murray?" the priest asked the farmer. "So help me if you and Johns have wrongfully accused an honest widow..."

"Yes," said the slimy voice of the human in rough spun. "This is the spirit we saw."

Phantom reached out and tightened his grip on the younger ghost's wrist. "No," he whispered his first spoken word. Youngblood and the Parrot about fell off their perch.

"I knew it," Youngblood whispered, a bit too loudly. The humans turned, eyes flashing in the light of the torches.

"Who is there?" the priest called. "We are about the Lord's business. Show yourselves."

Phantom shook his head. No, he'll hurt her. She is the Third of my race.

Muttering something about evil spirits, the priest crossed himself. Raising his voice, "Take the witch and her 'daughter' to the church. Burn the house and its contents to ash. Sufficient evidence has been found, and the condemned with burn at the stake one hour after dawn."

"Phantom, we have to help them. They're going to die," Youngblood hissed. "We can't let them do this."

We do not interfere with what has already come to pass. So the Night Queen has passed down the laws of the Time Master. We cannot save the old woman.

The evil men bound the women and set fire to the small house in the woods. Soon, the wooden structure collapsed in on itself, and Phantom ground his teeth as the men laughed in delight at their fine 'holy' deed.

Youngblood and the Parrot watched the women forcibly carried back to town by the evil men, and locked in cells underneath the church. Close to dawn, the women were denounced as witches without a trial, dressed clothes soaked in a flammable liquid, and crowned with paper miters proclaiming their crime to all.

The ghosts, invisibly, hid in the deepest shadows watching the events.

"Why are you hiding from the sun?" Youngblood asked. "Daylight isn't going to kill you."

I am Night Wind, Phantom signed. The sun's rays are death to me.

Youngblood responded by shoving Phantom into the light of the sun. Phantom screamed in terror, which was heard by one of the peasants.

"Are you alright, boy? Where did you come from?"

Youngblood watched Phantom back up in terror away from the human, and dive into the nearest shadows.

"Holy, moly! Did you see that?" he whispered to his companion.

"A very unique defense mechanism," the Parrot observed.

Phantom was scared. He looked down at himself, checking to make sure no parts of him were smoking. Why hadn't he died when he was rudely shoved into the light? For a moment, he had looked-human. Fright turned to anger, and carefully taking aim, he zapped an mini ecto-ray at the Ryu.

I COULD HAVE DIED!

"You're welcome," Youngblood replied cheerfully.

"Damnable Ryu!" Phantom cursed under his breath.

"You are talking again."

"Go away!"

"See you can do it."

Phantom ignored him, took a deep breath, and plunged into the sunlight again. Maneuvering through the crowds, he dodged one of the soldiers guarding the pyre, and stole his sword.

"Give me that back! No brat off the street gonna steal my sword," the soldier growled, lunging after him. Phantom dodged, and turned to face the women on the pyre.

He promptly threw up and fainted.

(Tower Garden - Ghost Zone - Night Wind Territory)

"So what happened after that?" Dusk asked.

"I don't know," Moon replied. "When I awoke, Phantom was floating over me, extending his hand. He brought me here, and I met our Queen. Phantom named me Moon because of the color of my hair."

"And Youngblood and his Parrot? I thought no one was supposed to know the signs?"

Moon shook her head. "Lunaris gave us all Lethe pears, and gave us a whole new set of signs to learn. Phantom became rebellious after that, and you know how he is."

Dusk nodded.

(Earth - Amity Park)

Twilight and Bell watched the hunters' dwelling. Through an upper window, they could see the silent form of the Night Lord glowing softly, hands bound together by glowing blue cords. A ghost shield surrounded the house, blocking any access to its occupants.

He comes home, first chance we get him away from the hunters. Why did you just poke me, Twilight?

It wasn't me.

Stop it.

I didn't touch you, Bell!

Phantom looked over at the alarm clock. 5 o'clock.