Content Warning: death, angst, and a decent amount of blood. This is not a happy story.
August 15, 12:28 PM
Valerie Gray sat on a swing in Amity Park's famous park, staring up at the sky. It was cloudless, and the sun painted everything bright and gold. Just a little too hot to be comfortable.
"You know, I kind of hate summer," Valerie said. Danny Fenton sat beside her; he'd wandered to the park from FentonWorks a few minutes ago.
Danny looked over at Valerie, mouth open. "Why?!" he said, trying to read her expression. For Danny, summer was king. No school. No Dash harassing him in the halls of Casper High. Even the ghost activity in the summer died down, as if the heat made them sleepy along with everyone else.
Valerie didn't want to say the real reason: summer gave her more time to think. School was a constant presence, one that ate up most of her time; a job at the Nasty Burger and patrolling Amity Park for ghosts took the rest of it. But in summer... she had free time, time to herself. You could only patrol so much.
Valerie had time to think, and the thoughts that came to her weren't beautiful.
"Well—" Val said, trying to think of something innocuous. Before she could, her bracelet shivered, tightening invisibly on her wrist. At the same time, Danny coughed a thin wisp of icy breath, vanishing in the heated air.
A ghost was nearby.
"Hang on a sec!" both said in unison, ducking for cover in opposite directions. Valerie ran until she was behind a bush, then triggered the devices she always wore, ever since she'd started hunting ghosts. After a moment, she felt her red jumpsuit hide her identity, her hoverboard appear under her feet. Valerie— The Red Huntress— zoomed into the sky, ready to find whatever was trespassing on the town she protected: Amity Park.
It didn't take long.
Today's specter was large. It didn't look particularly unique: vaguely menacing, with few distinguishing features. The extras of the afterlife. Valerie silently flew behind it, readying one of her small ectoguns. If it didn't notice her, she could—
"Hey, ugly!"
Valerie and the ghost turned, and Val thrilled. Phantom was here! The black-and-white-suited 'protector of Amity Park' showed up to a lot of paranormal activity around the city, just like Val. Now she had two ghostly targets, though it was usually best to save Phantom for last.
As the ghost was distracted by Phantom, Valerie fired, the shot locking onto the ghost... and bouncing off. The ghost counterattacked, firing a blast of energy back. Val leaned; her hoverboard slewed to the side. Meanwhile, Phantom dived towards the ghost, readying a fistful of energy—
Then the blast hit him. Phantom went flying to smack against a building, groaning in pain. Val told her board to ready missiles; the specter haunting this corner of Amity looked to be a powerful one.
Two homing missiles zoomed from slots on the board's underside, targeting the ghost. It turned, seeing them coming, laughed, and blinked away, reappearing next to Phantom. Its arm merged into a sword, sharpened, drew back.
The missiles hit their target half a second after the ghost had stabbed Phantom through the chest.
Val veered closer to see if her attack had had an effect. The hostile ghost was disintegrating; the twin blasts had shredded its form, and now the breeze left with shards of its former self.
And Phantom...
The black-and-white 'protector' lay on the ground; a hole in his chest leaked green ectoplasm, and his body was covered with little cuts from the explosion. Val dove, not wanting to come too close in case it was a trick. Had she finally beat him?
As Val watched, a pair of light rings appeared around the body. They came together, and Phantom changed, monochrome jumpsuit becoming a red-and-white T-shirt and jeans, green ectoplasm fading into brilliant, red blood. The scent hit Valerie, and it was all she could do not to fall.
It wasn't possible. It couldn't be possible. She recognized the boy on the ground now, the terrible hole still drilling through his chest and leaking bloody pulp, the face still locked in a determined expression. Phantom was...?! No. No. It was not possible, but...
Danny Fenton lay on the ground anyway, in front of her... dead.
Valerie felt like the world had unmoored beneath her. She couldn't look at... him. She had to look somewhere else, anywhere else. Fenton was Phantom? Fenton was dead? Was this what she'd wanted, every time she'd gone out on the hunt?
She couldn't stare at the body any longer; unmoving, Valerie glanced at the clock in her suit's display. 12:36 PM. Still just afternoon, on this brilliant, perfect, terrible, shattered summer day.
The world kept spinning around her, fading into an indistinguishable haze of blue sky and gold sun; slowly, Valerie blacked out.
August 15, 11:04 AM
Valerie Gray woke, gasping in shock. What time was it?! She fumbled for her phone.
From the table beside her bed, her phone displayed:
~Saturday, August 15, 11:04 AM~
Valerie slowly breathed out, willing herself to relax. It was just a dream. Phantom wasn't Danny Fenton, and Fenton wasn't dead.
Time to face the day.
Arriving at the park, Valerie found Danny already sitting there, staring at the sky. He looked somehow breathless in the too-hot summer air.
This is a lot like your dream, Val's mind noted. She ignored it. She wasn't going to say anything about 'hating summer' today.
"Hey, Danny!" she said, waiting, ever so slightly on edge. What time was it?
Danny waved back. His gaze was focused slightly past her, staring into the golden distance.
It occurred to Valerie that she might not be the only one who had things to think about over the summer.
"Hi Val," Danny replied. He kept looking past her. The heat made it hard for Valerie to think of replies; the two waited, silently.
Soon, it happened. Valerie's bracelet buzzed; a wisp of mist crept from Danny's mouth. Both ran to find somewhere to hide.
He's running too? Val thought to herself. Could it be...? No. No way.
Readying her suit and hoverboard, Val rose into the warm sky, looking for her newest target.
It was just like in the dream; the specter was large, green, generic, with a fierce look. This time, though, Val was prepared. She'd flatten that ghost before anything strange could—
"Hey, ugly!"
Valerie didn't turn. It was Phantom's voice, but she couldn't let herself get distracted now. The dream had been eerily prophetic, but it ended here.
Pulling out the ecto-cannon, she began tracking the ghost, charging power for the shot. At the last second, it dodged to the left; she compensated, aimed, fired.
The cannon spit its brilliance, shimmering in the sunlight. The beam ran straight towards the ghost, splitting apart the air in its path, slicing through everything to disintegrate the hostile specter.
Everything, including Phantom.
Phantom fell to the ground, a massive hole tearing through his chest once again. This time, the change began in midair, two bright rings reverting him to a 14-year-old boy Val knew well. Ectoplasm became blood and organs, white hair turned to red-spattered black. Danny's body spiraled as it fell, colliding with the concrete sidewalk with a thud.
Someone was screaming, but Danny's lungs were paste. His body was broken.
Valerie realized it was herself, reliving this impossible, scalding, echoed summer day.
Before Val blacked out, she noticed something odd. Danny's face was distorted, from pain and surprise... but for a moment, it almost looked like he was smiling.
August 15, 12:28 PM
Val ran to the park, stopping when she saw Danny making his way towards the swings. She took a second to catch her breath.
"Why didn't you tell me?!" she shouted when Danny got close. He drew back, face somewhere between worry and fear.
"You were Phantom!" she accused. "At Axion Labs, and then around the city— why didn't you tell me it was you?!"
"Y- you've got the wrong person!" Danny said frantically. "I'm not a ghost!"
"Don't lie to me!" Val yelled. What time was it?! "This has happened already! There was a ghost that appeared! We both went running so we could get ready! I saw you fighting it!"
Val took a breath. "...I saw you die..." she said, almost to herself.
Almost to herself. Danny's eyes widened, and he began to run, heedless of direction.
"Wait!" said Val, running after him, but Danny was faster than he looked. Not caring about his surroundings, he dodged trees, left the park, and turned the corner around a building, leaving heat-shimmering dust behind him.
There was a squealing noise, then a dull thump, as if someone had hit a side of meat with a baseball bat.
Val sprinted towards the sound, grabbing for her phone as she went. Sure enough, it was 12:36 PM.
Rounding the corner, Val saw Danny.
He was still standing, tottering unevenly, face and body covered with blood where the truck had hit him. As Val watched, Danny saw her, limply lifted one arm to wave, and collapsed, blood and pulped muscle staining the asphalt red.
She didn't need to get closer to know Danny was dying, as his life spilled away with every crimson bit. Valerie barely saw the driver stop, leave his truck, his face turn white like he'd seen a ghost. All she could see was Danny Fenton. The boy she thought she'd known... dead. Again, on this incandescent, unbearable summer day.
And for a second time, because of her.
Valerie dashed for the body. She had to say something. Something. Goodbye? I didn't know? I'm sorry?
...Next time, you'll live?
The brilliance of summer overtook Valerie before she could do anything, and she blacked out as she ran.
August 15, 12:33 PM
It wasn't in Val's nature to do nothing, but— all those crazy dreams, and Danny being Phantom, and dying again and again and again... if it meant Danny lived, Valerie could skip today's trip to the park.
She'd wait until after 12:36, anyway.
At first, Valerie had also resolved to stay indoors, but the warm sun was too good to resist. A walk, away from Amity Park's green spaces, would calm her after whatever it was that had happened.
It was quiet on Amity's streets today. The weekend, and the heat, were keeping most people either indoors or somewhere verdant. Sunlight boiled down onto the blank asphalt, heating up this part of the city, drowning the noise of cars in the far reaches of town. The skyscrapers seemed like giant mirrors, projecting dazzling curtains of light.
It was stuffy and overwhelming... but at the same time, the heat felt like a shield around her, the silence like a friend.
Then Valerie's bracelet tightened around her wrist.
Val looked left and right, trying to spot the ghost that was creeping up on her. Nothing appeared. The streets were still. The only direction she hadn't looked... was up.
A feeling of dread pushed its way into Valerie's gut, chilling her despite the heat. She checked the time on her phone before she turned towards the sky. 12:36 PM.
As she looked up, Phantom's corpse fell on top of her, knocking her to the asphalt, staining her shirt and shoes with green-to-red blood. A passing car swerved. Val saw his face, so different from Fenton— and then the same, as the light rings played around him to revert Danny to his mortal self. His body was torn almost in two, his chest broken.
Danny saw Valerie, smiled faintly, then closed his eyes.
The ghost above laughed, reforming its arm from the sword it had used to slice Danny apart. Eyes clouding with fury, Val grabbed her ectogun, fired... and missed. Before Val could line up another shot, the heat turned stifling, then infernal. The sunlight dazzled her, turning her vision blue, white, and gold.
No... was Valerie's last thought before she blacked out.
August 15, 12:31 PM
Danny slowly made his way out to the park, slouching over a convenient swing. His posture was relaxed; he wore summer boredom like a shirt. It was an ordinary, quiet da—
~WHOOM~
"Get on, quick!"
The Red Huntress zoomed to a stop in front of Danny, one foot on her hoverboard. She gestured insistently to Danny. "Come on! We don't have much time!"
"W-what? I can't just—" What was this about? Was this some sort of trap or something?
Val didn't have to try to sound panicked. "Do you want to die? Get on! Grab my hand!"
"I'm already dead—" said Danny, flustered. Why'd he said that?! He opened his mouth to correct his mistake, and the Huntress grabbed his hand, pulling him up as the hoverboard rose into the sky.
"I meaaaa-aaaaaaAAAAAAAH! What's going on?!"
Valerie didn't answer; she concentrated on flying. It was time to get herself and Danny away from whatever was happening here, this hour, this day. Once they'd left Amity, that would hopefully be enough.
Buildings flashed by; the streets narrowed to two lanes, apartments gave way to houses. Val looked back, checking on her passenger.
Danny looked like he was enjoying the ride, even as his face stayed tense. He wouldn't risk transforming to ghost form while Valerie was holding his arm, so she didn't have to worry Danny would fly away and get killed. She just had to get out of Amity before it was time.
Slowly, Valerie relaxed as the clock ticked down. The ghost from previous days hadn't shown up again; the summer sun gilded the air, sending its silence throughout the city. She and Danny would leave Amity Park in a few minutes. Valerie could land, and Danny could stretch his legs (or run from her, if that was what he needed).
The important part would be done: everyone would live.
As the hoverboard flew over the outskirts of Amity Park, Val felt Danny lose his grip. The weight on the hoverboard shifted, and Val corrected without thinking.
Danny fell.
Valerie turned in a dive, shooting a glance at her the clock on her helmet's display: 12:36 PM. Screaming, Danny started to transform, light rings twirling around his body as he invoked his ghost powers to save himself. Both were too late.
The noise when Danny landed was just like when he'd been hit by the truck. Valerie stopped, just above rooftop level, looking up at Danny's body, impaled on a post from one of Amity's famous billboards.
"AMITY PARK: A SAFE PLACE TO LIVE!" said the sign, as if no one was on top of it, as if no one was dead, as if this day had never happened. The blood from Danny's body was already starting to run, washing the words away.
Val's visor filtered the smell this time, but her breath caught anyway; she'd failed again. Danny was dead, sacrificed to prevent something that— wouldn't have changed anything, wouldn't have ended this echoing summer day.
But Valerie could try again. There had to be a way to keep him safe.
August 15, 12:36 PM
[72 Hours of Looped Time]
Danny collapsed as the poison worked its way through his body, converting ectoplasm to a curdled mess. When the rings of light hit him, it was all Valerie could do not to throw up; curdled ectoplasm transformed back into decayed, rotten flesh. Val looked down at the bottle in her hand, eyes widening—
August 15, 12:36 PM
Danny dissolved; the Guys in White's ambush had worked too well. A single wisp of charred ectoplasm floated —
August 15, 12:36 PM
[3 Weeks]
Danny died, blown to shards by the flaming debris he hadn't —
August 15, 12:36 PM
Danny died as Jack Fenton aimed the—
August 15, 12:36 PM
[7 Months]
Danny died—
August 15, 12:36 PM
Danny —
August 15, 12:36 PM
Danny —
August 15, 11:10 AM
[10 Years]
"DANNY!"
Valerie woke up, covered with sweat. The air was unseasonably warm, a heated breeze blowing in the window she'd left open. She didn't need to look at her phone to know what day it was, what time it was: just after eleven in the morning on August 15.
Always, August 15.
Val forced herself to breathe slowly. She remembered everything that had happened. 12:36 PM...12:36 PM... no matter what happened, Danny Fenton would die.
And... even though it would have been a relief to Valerie, before all this began... Danny Phantom would die with him.
She'd lost count of the cycles after the first hundred. She'd lost count of the ways there were to leave this world. Crushed. Burned. Stabbed. Blown in two by her own weaponry. Every time, she'd see the life leave Danny's body. Half the time, he'd be wearing that funny little smile.
What had happened, to condemn her and Danny to relive this intense summer day? Valerie suspected she'd never know.
It was time for someone to die today. Val grimaced, then slowly got out of bed, repeating those words to herself.
Time for someone to die.
Then Valerie realized: there was one thing she hadn't tried. She shivered, even as the breeze warmed her. Was that the solution? Was there something beyond this repeating summer day?
Val began getting dressed, making sure she had everything she'd need. She had to get to the park by 12:15, and it was a ways from her dad's apartment.
"You know, I kind of hate summer," Valerie said, sitting on a swing behind Danny Fenton. She had different reasons for saying it, now. Val closed her eyes for a moment, letting images flash in front of her: Danny, impaled upon the sign. Danny, his body pulped by a truck he'd never seen. Danny, dying over and over and over again, overflowing her memories with a ghost of his face.
"Why?!" Danny said, looking over at her. Did it sound slightly forced? Valerie wasn't sure. It could just be her own tension, but Danny seemed on edge as well.
Like they were both waiting.
It happened, on cue. Valerie's bracelet tightened. She'd watched Danny's mouth, and she saw it— the mist that signaled he'd detected a ghost.
Danny and Val both stood in the same moment, mumbling excuses and running in opposite directions. Just like the first time, Val found a hiding place in a bush, switching from Valerie Gray to Red Huntress in moments.
She knew which way the ghost was; Valerie rose into the sky, seeking it. It had its back turned, again. Val checked the clock in her visor; she was slightly ahead of schedule. She readied missiles and her small ectogun, waiting for what she knew was coming.
"Hey, ugly!"
On schedule, Danny Phantom dove towards the ghost. Valerie fired the ectogun; the shot bounced like the first time. The ghost laughed, blasting Danny as he dove, catapulting him into a building.
As the ghost turned its arm into a sword, ready for the coup de grace, Val fired two missiles and set her hoverboard into gear.
Valerie flew at Phantom, praying she was in time. The missiles weren't slow; they locked onto the ghost as it reappeared in front of Danny, who was struggling to recover. The ghost drew its arm back; its blade glowed with the bluish light of summer.
Knocking Danny away with her hoverboard, Valerie spread her arms wide as the ghost sliced forwards towards her body, as the missiles readied for their final impact.
She closed her eyes.
Danny righted himself, watched as the ghost stabbed Valerie through the chest. He couldn't see her face, but he heard her gasp, half a second before she and the ghost blew apart in a sphere of pink fire.
Valerie's hoverboard spun away from the explosion; the ghost's form dissipated. Everything was silent.
12:38 PM
Danny got up from where he'd landed, staring at the scene, the hoverboard now without an owner. Slowly, he transformed back into Danny Fenton, looking at the scene as if that would bring Valerie back.
"I failed again..." he said to himself.
This had happened— how many times? He didn't know any more. Only that no matter what he did, Valerie— the Huntress— always died. Always today, always somewhere in Amity Park.
Always at 12:36 PM.
There was no point in leaving the scene now. Things happened as they always did. Danny closed his eyes, ready to black out and wake up at the start of this breathless, ceaseless, endless summer day.
Darkness came quickly.
Author's Note: This story is a homage to Kagerou Days.