A.N. I love history. That's why this story is also interesting to me. Everything not concerning DP characters is actual truth. Or partial truth.

A few weeks passed after Danny got his hands on what Skulker had left behind. It was surprising that the hunter was absent for so long, but Phantom was not complaining. He needed time.

The remnants of Skulker's weird weapon were in surprisingly good condition. For something blown from inside. Danny and Tucker spent all their time in their safe spot in the forest, fiddling with that thing. It was something beyond their understanding, with a lot of strange and thin copper rods wrapped in the colorful material. Everything it did was glow with the same green color as always. A few times it sparkled with green lighting and painfully stung them. Phantom showed it to the only other known ghost, but Boxy was as dumb as the objects of his desire, despite all the bragging.

Baxters flipped once they found out that their precious object was stolen. Not that they would have told this to anyone, Danny just happened to be flying nearby. 

But there was something Box Ghost was useful in. The guy knew the most basic ghostly things, so he could teach them. The stuff like becoming intangible, invisible without any accidents. There were also ectoblasts - beams of energy expulsing from the ghosts' hands and which could cause certain damage. Boxy wasn't able to leave a scratch on the tree. Phantom tried to follow the instructions, and did the same thing, but he actually left a smoking hole in the tree's center. He could see through it, and that was actually a good result for the first time.

All in all, those were acceptable results. But Danny payed more attention to one thing - flying. It was the most amazing thing he had ever experienced. Phantom never could explain exactly how wonderful it felt, but to put it in one word - he felt free. Being up in the blue sky, from where his homeland looked like a patched blanket, with dark green forests, bright green grasslands, shining yellow fields of grain. Too sad he could do it only mostly at night, fearing that someone could spot him. There were also disappointments, Danny thought that the clouds were solid. But no, he just fell through one when he tried.

Jack just couldn't be more happy, too naive to understand how abrupt the change in his son was. But it was fine to him, Danny was improving, and that's all that mattered. But he was worried, worried about that demons who were coming out of nowhere. Baron Baxter had sent a letter to the guy, who knows the guy, who can pass the message to Rome. If the Pope himself learns about it, there would be a hope. But it was unlikely, who would believe such a ridiculous story? The son of the Devil in some forgotten place, bruh. If he wanted to do something, he would have appeared in the center of Christianity. Danny, after coming up with such a line of deduction at the dinner, he was ready to sigh in relief.

Phantom was sitting on the edge of the church roof, his legs hanging over the empty air. That part was turned to the valley and later the forest, so he wasn't worried about being seen. He was in the ghost form, in case he fell, in order to fly when needed. But Danny wasn't against it, he didn't feel any discomfort because of it. However, in the calm moments like this he was always thinking, sometimes it went within the borders of philosophy.

Who knew that the dead could be the great thinkers? When a person crosses the line everyone fears - death, all usual axioms seem not so solid. Of course, it didn't mean that Danny was going to break the moral boundaries he had been taught. No, it's just that the basic laws of life were mistaken, or at least misunderstood. Phantom wondered about such things, after all, he was half dead already.

Deciding that there was enough philosophy for one night, Danny rose on his legs, before walking up to the top. He carefully peaked out in case someone was looking, before remembering that he could become invisible. So, in that condition the half ghost flew above the town. It seemed so small from above, and besides the inn which seemed to work all day and night long, the light in the houses was absent. He decided to wander around for a while.

Suddenly his neon eyes caught the movement. Curious about what could a man possibly do in a dark alleyway at night, Danny approached the place, standing on the roof above.

"Look, Will, I've already paid you the money, why are you still following me?" The female voice sounded.

"'Cause that's not all, Julia, you know that."

Danny rolled his eyes. Was he really looking at the most unthreatening assault? Oh, wait, he took a knife. The things were escalating quickly.

"Back off!" Julia exclaimed, before being shushed.

"Shh, quiet, dear, we don't want anyone to hear us, right?" William whispered.

"I think you've failed here."

The assaultant spun around, knife at the ready, but saw nothing behind. He blinked, wondering if he misheard it. But once he turned back, he saw Danny, who was giving an innocent grin. All he lacked was the golden halo. Another feature was that he was hanging upside down in the air. The man jumped in fright, gripping his weapon tightly so his palms were getting sweaty. He knew who was floating near him.

"Begone!" He yelped, swinging his weapon.

"Oh, no, it's a knife, please remove it, my weakness is small knives!" Danny cried dramatically. He then used telekinesis to swipe it away, the knife flew into the barrel and pierced it. "Oh, wait, I lied," Phantom deadpanned, landing on the ground soundlessly.

"Wh-What do you want, demon?" William asked in fear.

Danny tilted his head. His calm expression was unnerving. "Well, I just happened to pass nearby and overhear your little chat."

"And..."

"And you better get lost and don't tell anything about what happened here," Phantom's hand flickered with flames - cold and green. "Otherwise it can get nasty. But we don't want this, right?"

"Y-yes, I-I mean no..."

"You still here?"

At these words the man ran off faster than a horse. Then Danny turned around and looked at the woman. She was shaking, cowering deeper into the corner. The half ghost sighed, hunching his shoulders overdramatically.

"I don't know what has happened between you two, neither do I care. So...keep your skirt down, I won't save you twice."

With this Danny became invisible, flying off to the roof. As he landed, the half ghost dropped his cover, thinking. It actually felt nice. And somewhat ironic. So, he had just used the devious power to save the weak, quite the opposite of what he was expected to do. It just felt like the right thing. After all, he was gifted with power beyond anyone's imagination. He had to put it to use, otherwise it would end in two ways. Either he was going to be burned down, or the owner of that power was going to do something much worse. He couldn't just sit idly and do nothing. Maybe, just maybe, he was going to prove that he wasn't what the people thought him to be. Quite unlikely, but it was worth trying.

His face brightened. Then he flew up in the air. It was going to be a long night.

Phantom found several crimes. Never he thought that there were so many in their town. But Danny was there to save the ungrateful victims, to 'advice' the thieves to put the stolen goods back. They always complied. However, one time there was one especially stubborn mugger.

"C'mon, old man, give the money. Now!" The gruff looking man threatened the shaking one.

"You aren't very original with the demands."

He looked back and Danny was leaning against the wall, yawning. "Let's just go through the standard procedure and be off. I really could use some sleep right now."

"You are that demon brat," the mugger said in realization. "Healing quite fast, are we?"

"Yep. So...maybe you are going to be a good boy and drop the dagger?"

"Why should I be afraid of the lad who was used as a broom?"

He then lunged forward and swiped the dagger. The man found himself behind the half ghost. Danny turned around, grinning from ear to ear, showing his sharp teeth.

"I was weakened at the time," Phantom lied smoothly. "But even so, I'm more powerful than any of you, mortals."

Damn, he loved such acting.

The bandit swung the blade again. Danny wasn't much of a fighter, but his reaction compensated for it. He twisted the hand and smirked, before blasting him in the chest. The man screamed in pain and staggered backwards as his chest smoked, revealing his burned chest from the formed hole.

"I don't understand myself why I'm giving chances to the likes of you," Danny mumbled. "I'm supposed to be the last one to talk about forgiveness."

"Spare me your talk!"

"Alrighty then. How are you, old man?"

He was shaking just as much, but since he was asked a question, he nodded.

"Y-yes, I-I'm fine, thank you..."

"Well, then my job here is done. And for the note, my name is Phantom, remember it properly."

Danny woke up with bags under his eyes. Of course he would have them, he slept for about what? Three hours? Phantom got into sitting position, the hay bed rustling beneath him. He rubbed his face, praying to god that all of this wasn't pointless. Danny got up from the bed, walking out of the room after putting on his robes. Phantom immediately heard his father's talk.

"Can you believe it, Mads?" Jack asked loudly, hitting the table with his hand. "That brat is still running around. Pretending that he is a good person. A DEMON!"

"Jack, calm down, the oatmeal doesn't come from nowhere," Maddie said, seeing as the plate was about to crash on the ground.

"Sorry, honey, I'm just pissed off at this ridiculous play!"

Danny yawned maybe too loudly, causing the adults to look at him.

"Oh, good morning, sweetie," Maddie smiled. "Has Jack woken you up?"

"Uhm, no, Mom," Danny rubbed the back of his neck. "Just slept roughly for some reason."

"Don't worry, son, you won't have to work today."

Phantom perked up. "Really?"

"Yes, we are almost finished, so I will manage it myself. Since you worked so hard, I think you deserve some reward."

Danny beamed. "Thanks, Dad."

After eating breakfast, the teen immediately went into the town. He was really curious if the rumors started spreading already. And he wasn't disappointed. Phantom was actually the major topic of many conversations, be it a good thing or a bad one. Mostly people were just confused at his action. Father Johnson, however, was louder than anybody, saying that all of that was just a ruse to lower their guard and eat their souls. Danny couldn't help but snort, he really could use something but porridge. Although he wasn't sure if he could actually do that.

"Danny! There you are!" Tucker's voice sounded from the side.

Phantom turned away from the crowd and looked at his panting friend.

"Hey, Tuck."

"What the heck, man?!" He whisper yelled. "What have you done?"

Danny gestured for his friend to go aside so as not let anyone hear them. Finally, as they squelched through the muddy street under a sticking roof, Phantom continued.

"I just helped out some people," he shrugged, before chuckling. "You should have seen their faces."

"Man, I thought we wanted to stay put and not to show up!"

"Remark. YOU wanted. Look, Tucker, I need some practice in case some other ghost comes and tries to kill me. They didn't put much of a fight, though."

Tucker rubbed his face. "You are unbearable, Danny. Why am I friends with you, again?"

"Because I can sneak you inside the girls' bath?"

"Yeah, that too."

Suddenly they heard a trumpet. That usually meant that the herald had an announcement. That man, stepping on the wooden platform near the gallows, was not the local, people would recognize their own herald easily judging by the clothes. He was wearing green and black robes, with additional golden parts, unlike white and red of Baxters the locals had come to get used to. The young adult coughed loudly.

"I come to announce to the people of Amity Park on behalf of His Lordship, Earl of Shrewsbury, Shire of Chester, etcetera, etcetera - Jeremy Wulfric Manson. My Lord wishes to stay here for several days before moving to his Welsh holdings. Treat the newcomers as they deserve by their noble status. Feel honored for housing such guests."

The herald proceeded with some other details, but Danny thought about something else. Tucker looked at his friend's thoughtful trance in confusion.

"What are you thinking about?" He asked.

"Oh, it's nothing, pal. I just met him before, when he bought a sword made by Dad."

"What would he want to do here?" Tucker rubbed his chin.

"Dunno. Although I heard rumors about that Welsh Prince...what's his name...Dafydd?"

"Wow, even my homeland's names aren't that complicated."

Danny looked at him with a deadpan expression. "His last name is ap Gruffudd."

"How do you know?"

"First, we are near Wales, if you haven't noticed. Two, I can listen to the conversations among the merchants. Dafydd raided some of the King's cities, Deheubarth and North Powys, as I remember. Dinefwrs obey our King Edward. Mansons are his relatives, see the connection?"

"You know, for a blacksmith's kid, you understand a lot," Tucker said dryly.

"Oh, Tuck, I'm now half demon, intrigues are my specialty," Danny smirked.

The dark skinned teen didn't like the joke, nor the smirk, nor the sharper teeth seen through it.

In a few following days the carriage of the named Earl arrived to the town. It was an evening. Unlike his last visit, there wasn't a single hint of being discreet. He wasn't alone this time, with him was a group of heavily armored knights in the perfectly clean shining armor. Each wore a different one, according to their families' wealth. Weapons were also different, some had simple longswords and shields, some had halberds. Danny noticed a guy, probably a scotsman, with a huge claymore tied to his back. But despite the differences, they were obviously noble enough.

Earl didn't pay any attention to the crowd, riding his steed in front of procession. They got to the castle, and Phantom decided that it was time for him to act. His curiousity needed to be satisfied. Standing in an alleyway, Danny turned into his ghost form. A little espionage wasn't going to harm anyone, he was doing it only for himself.

Phantom flew through the air, seeing that the soldiers were replacing Baxter's guards. Obviously the noble didn't trust that of the lesser rank and ancestry. Inside he saw a group of five people. Two of them were adult Baxters, and the man, who was the exact copy of his son, was speaking to the blond Earl. Behind them went two women. One was a mid aged woman with red hair, tightly combed, and blue eyes, wearing vivid red dress. Near her was a person familiar to the half ghost. It was Sam, of course, and she had a look of utter disdain, she obviously wasn't happy being there. Danny heard a conversation between two females.

"Sammy-kins, why the long face?" The redhead asked quietly.

"Mother, I asked not to call me like that," Said Sam gloomily. "I hate all these ceremonies."

"Hush, child, you will have to get used to this. Once you marry, such things will be quite often."

It didn't brighten the raven haired girl's mood. Once again, for a moment Danny found her lilac eyes enticing. But he managed to snap out of it, eavesdropping on the men, floating right above their heads.

"Once again, Lord Manson, I am honored by your visit," Baxter said, putting a hand on his chest.

"Don't try to sweet talk me, William," Interrupted Jeremy. Danny kept himself from whistling. Damn, that guy was straightforward. "I'm already paying you for housing. This fact alone proves your words to be a pointless flattery."

Phantom grinned. He liked that man, he would have liked the Devil himself if he bashed that bastards. The expression on William's face was priceless.

"Oh..." he mouthed.

"And what about that 'demon' talks?" Asked Jeremy.

"Nothing at all, sire, just peasants' superstitions. You shouldn't worry about it."

"I certainly hope so," the Earl narrowed his cold eyes. "I'm here on behalf of His Majesty, I expect assistance."

"Whatever you wish," William bowed his head.

The group then split into two parts. Sam and her mother went one way, while Jeremy had something to talk through with Baxter. Danny listened to the second group, their wish for privacy and locking of the door caught his interest. The Earl wasn't wearing an armor, so he calmly sat at the posh chair near the fireplace one of the servants had ignited a few minutes ago. William sat nearby.

"Are there any news from the border provinces?"

"Why do you ask?"

Jeremy's hard look made the lower noble understand that he wasn't going to receive an answer straightforwardly.

"Nothing, sire. After the attacks on our cities the Welsh are idle. For a while at least."

"Dafydd gets out of hand. His brother doesn't do anything with this rogue. Which means that the Prince actually supports this bandit. I talked with Edward about it."

It made two other present people stare at him in awe. The man should have been really influential to casually call His Majesty by name.

"And what did he say?" William asked.

"His conquest from five years ago will be proven pointless shall the Welsh unite again and win. This is something we both understand. His Majesty doesn't hold any trust for his newest vassals in this God forgotten province. They will flock to the enemy the second Llywelin, and I'm sure that our lovely Prince of Wales will come, bangs at their gates."

"What do you intend to do?"

"Some fellow Shires and Earls are going to visit this place soon. From here, we will be moving to...God damn these Welsh and their language, what's their capital name? Abergarthcelyn, that's it."

"And His Majesty?"

"He will be joining us soon enough. But it doesn't concern you, leave me."

William bowed and left. Danny could hear him muttering curses at the Earl.

Danny, with his head full of the new information, flew through the wall, thinking. He was worried, Amity Park was just on the border. Shall the enemies of the English Crown attack, it was a potential candidate for razing. He prayed that it wasn't going to happen. Manson had just put a pointing sign, saying 'Burn this town to the ground'. Of course he didn't care, it wasn't his holding.

In his thoughts and looking at the ground, Phantom didn't notice anything in front of him. He bumped into one of the guards. Manson's. Danny dropped the invisibility by accident, rubbing his head. Two soldiers turned around and saw him. They hadn't heard anything about the half ghost, neither they saw him flick into visibility, so they didn't initially react to his unusual appearance. All they saw was a kid.

"Who the hell are you?" One of them asked.

Danny, for some reason, decided to be playful. He tilted his head, trying to look calm in front of two armed, obviously trained, soldiers.

"You mean you don't know?"

"In case you haven't noticed, lad, we are dressed too good for this pig hole."

"I am dressed nicely too," Danny deadpanned, holding the edge of his black and white robes.

"You are dressed like an idiot."

"Hey, this is the peak of fashion in Gehenna, so to say."

One of the guards looked at the other, whistling and making circles around his temple, while holding a halberd in his other hand. A very sharp halberd.

"Alright, weirdo, you got yourself a trip to the dungeons."

"Why? I am just having a decent conversation. How often do you see those of my kin doing that?"

The guards seemed not amused. One of them tried to grab him, but Danny jumped away.

"Alright, now I just..."

He didn't turn invisible. Well, crap.

The guards started chasing him, and Danny resorted to his old way of solving problems with stronger enemies. He was running faster than before. He tried to turn invisible again, but couldn't.

'What a perfect moment!' He yelled inside his head.

Phantom came up with an idea of hiding somewhere, because, damn, his pursuers were fast, which actually should have been impossible in their armor. Danny tried to phase through the nearest door, thank goodness he was able to do that. Soon he heard rapid footsteps pass the door. Phantom sighed in relief, putting hands on his knees. He took a look at his surroundings, seeing that he wasn't actually alone.

Staring into Sam's purple eyes.