Ghostie
In the Evil Capital on an unassuming day, Evil was practicing Flame Breathing under the tutelage of Kyojuro Rengoku, while all the other Hashira and Leviathan watched. They practiced in the middle of a large training room somewhere in the castle, similar to a certain training room owned by a well known Hero Academy.
"Impressive," Rengoku told Evil as they stopped for the time being. "In the short span I've trained you, you've grasped most of the fundamentals of Flame Breathing."
"Well, not to brag, but I have been fighting enemies since I was born," Evil said with a smirk. "I have been mastering techniques since I stepped foot on the battlefield." Looking at his own Nichirin Blade, Evil said, "I must confess though… These Breathing techniques are unlike anything I've seen before. The mental aspect of imagining what you're doing is different from simply conjuring it."
"And not only are you visualizing the techniques in your head, but you're also conjuring them while you spar," Rengoku added, who crossed his arms and nodded. "You're taking your training to heart unlike those studies I heard Lord Leviathan and Lord Ainz are putting you through."
Evil winced a bit at the mention of standardized homework. "Don't remind me of that… ugh, my brain hurts just thinking about math."
Rengoku gave a cheerful laugh. "Even a Demon God has problems it seems," Rengoku said.
Evil rolled his eyes. "Yes yes, it's true." Evil sheathed his sword and let out a hum. "For now, I shall dismiss you and your fellows while I prepare for my other rulerly duties."
The Flame Hashira raised an eyebrow. "I… don't think that is a word."
"Then I'll add it to the dictionary!" Evil replied, waving his hand off and not really caring about whether or not a word was real.
"Use the word 'kingly'," Rengoku said, correcting Evil. "After all, you are the Demon King now."
This made the Demon pause. "...hmm, got me there."
As Rengoku left to join the Hashiras, Leviathan walked over with an unamused expression. "I guess we're going to need to get you to go through a dictionary."
"Why?" Evil said as he crossed his arms.
"Because you clearly need to update your vocabulary," Leviathan stated. "And I mean that. You can't just make up random words and add them to the dictionary." With a scoff, Leviathan said, "Which means your next lessons will be literature based."
"Can't tell if that's going to be better than Math or worse," Evil muttered, dreading the simple school lessons he was forced to endure because Leviathan demanded it of him. As this conversation progressed, the two began walking through the castle, out of the open training room and into one of the diverse hallways.
"Remind me again, you're how old?" Leviathan questioned.
"A hundred thirty-something," Evil answered.
"Your creator failed you in many ways," Leviathan stated bluntly. "In many, many ways."
"I am a warrior-!"
"And that is not an excuse for being improperly educated," Leviathan said, silencing Evil. "Now, you can go do your stupid little ruling shtick of sitting on your throne and looking smug while I go inform Ainz of the change in schedule." Without missing a beat, Leviathan began walking away before Evil could continue.
Evil scoffed, but didn't argue with Leviathan. It was obvious how poorly educated he was, but he deemed it as something small. What was the problem with being born to solely fight and kill, of always going to war and continuing the battle of good and evil?
"I will convince him to drop it," Evil said to himself confidently. "And when I do, I-" Evil stopped mid sentence upon seeing a child roaming the halls of his castle.
The little girl looked pale, with rosy cheeks and pale icy blue eyes that lacked life in them, with upside down crossed white irises. She was also a brunette with long straight hair that went down to her knees. She wore a simple black dress with a white undershirt, the sleeves having black cuffs at her wrist. She also wore white leggings, and small platform shoes. Perhaps out of place was a choker that had short silver chains and a silver cross.
"...odd, I don't recognize this child as being a member of my army," Evil commented, surprised upon seeing the girl. Randomly, he turned and called out to whoever was nearby, "Oi, I said 'Bring Your Child to Work Day' was next week! Come on people, it's not that hard!" Evil let out a small huff. "People, I swear…" Turning back around to face the little girl, she was just… gone.
Evil blinked. "...we have a ghost among us."
"What's this you're going on about?" Leviathan said as he walked up to Evil, having finished updating the schedule with Ainz.
"I saw a little girl just now," Evil said. "I turned away for a moment and she just disappeared! I think there is a ghost haunting my castle."
Leviathan didn't really seem to believe that and scoffed. "Clearly you're just insane and in need of a nap. You clearly aren't getting enough sleep if you just see things that aren't there."
"That defeats the purpose of being able to see ghosts," Evil remarked. "Or spirits… or Yo-Kai."
Leviathan looked down at Evil, baffled he was still continuing this topic. "...okay, let's say I believe you that there is a ghost. What then?"
"Well we could either bring an exorcist to send her to Heaven, or we could just let her be," Evil answered. "Either way, I don't mind. She's just some little ghost."
"...why am I not surprised by that response?" Leviathan asked himself as he pinched the bridge of his nose, tired of Evil's simplicity and not-giving-a-shit attitude.
Later that day, after Evil was done with his boring classes, he was groaning and banging his head against a desk in the makeshift classroom used by Ainz and Leviathan for his lessons. He was alone in it, but was struggling with his homework, AKA basic math.
"Damn it…!" Evil said. "How in the world am I meant to divide this?! It's so much easier just to kill a person off, keep all the apples, and just add a body on top of it!" Evil finished banging his head on the desk, before standing up and grumbling. "I hate homework…"
As Evil looked up, he saw sitting at the window was the pale little girl from before, who stared at him with the same empty expression from earlier. She was studying him, and Evil was surprised she just reappeared before him. Nevertheless, he wasn't scared of no ghost.
"So the ghost returns," Evil said as he looked at her. "I dare say, it is flattering that you would choose to haunt my castle, but I must also confess that I am surprised there even is a deceased child's spirit in my home." The girl merely tilted her head. It was hard for Evil to know what she was thinking based on her expression. "...well, regardless, would you like to go to Heaven? It's quite lovely this time of year from what I remember before I became a villain and therefore banned from Heaven."
The ghost girl merely shook her head. Before she could speak, Evil said, "I'm surprised you would want to stay on this planet. Perhaps you have some matter of business still waiting to be solved… You little ones can be quite relentless." Evil paused as he thought about something. "Come to think about it, did anyone ever find out what was in the box? And what ever happened to Afton after Ultimate Custom Night?" Evil stopped for a second to think about it, before looking at the ghost and saying, "I must look into these things."
Evil stood up now, before saying to the ghost, "I'm sure you're aware of this considering I named my Capital after myself, and I am ruler of the world, but my name is Evil, little one." Seeing the ghost tilt her head, Evil also paused for a moment. As the ghost had yet to say anything, Evil followed up and said, "And I… mean that literally. My name is Evil."
Still not receiving a response, Evil hummed and scratched the back of his head. "Judging from your lack of response, you must be mute… unable to speak despite being a member of the dead. Is that how it works in this world, where even though one is dead, the spirit is still unable to form words?"
Evil began to pace around the room, deep in thought. "In that scenario, then the only ways for you to communicate with me would be via sign language which I know nothing about, telepathy which you haven't used, or writing," Evil said, making relatively accurate assumptions. "And considering you're dressed much unlike anyone around these parts… you're either a really old child spirit, or you use cursive, my second-to-worst enemy when it comes to writing."
Evil sat down at his desk, moving the chair so he could face the ghost still watching him at the window. "Well then, for the time being, I shall refer to you as Ghostie, and I humbly accept your presence in my castle." Evil smiled. "Does that sound alright?"
The ghost girl now simply called 'Ghostie' shrugged. Evil smiled. "Very well. You shall receive a room in due time." Evil smile left his face as he picked up his pencil and looked back at his homework, groaning and sounding tired. "...right after I finish this torture."
The insistence of there being a ghost haunting a castle, one that Evil even permitted to stay, slowly began to make Evil's council question his sanity. This was further amplified when Ainz and Leviathan found Evil painting one of the many bedrooms in the castle a hot pink, while still keeping the plethora of black spikes that adorned the walls and pillars.
"Evil, what in the world are you doing?" Leviathan questioned, baffled by this sudden behavior.
"Ghostie requires a room," Evil said. "And considering Ghostie is a little girl… Well, I'm grasping at straws." Evil stepped back from the wall he was painting and gestured to it. "Is this the right color pink little girls would be interested in?"
"Really? You're late for your classes and this is what you're doing?" Leviathan questioned. "Painting a room for some spirit that nobody has even seen? Hell, one that I haven't even seen?"
"You can see ghosts?" Evil asked curiously.
"Besides the point," Leviathan said as he crossed his arms and looked down at Evil like a scolding parent. "Put the paint bucket down, and get to class!"
Evil merely looked at Leviathan for a moment, before looking at the paint bucket. "Counter argument, Time Skip," Evil said, confusing Leviathan and Ainz, before the rest of the walls were suddenly painted a hot pink.
"Did… did you just force your way into the future?" Leviathan questioned as he looked at Evil.
"Oh great, he's learned under Hit," Ainz commented.
"You did not just say someone was named Hit," Leviathan stated, his unamused expression intensifying.
"Hit is a legendary hitman in Universe 6-" Evil began explaining, before Leviathan silenced him with a glare.
"Class. Now."
Evil put the paint bucket down and then walked out of the room, groaning about the inevitable. As Evil walked out of the room, Ainz looked at Leviathan and asked, "So can you see ghosts?"
"Yes, and I haven't seen the one he's talking about at all," Leviathan answered. "...this kid has finally lost it." Unbeknownst to Leviathan and Ainz, Ghostie was in the room at the window sill yet again, merely staring at the two non-believers.
Oh how wrong they were.
A couple days later, Evil was back in the room he was dedicating to 'Ghostie', setting up a couple of things for the ghost girl that only he could see.
"I know Xehanort said that all of this is stereotypical of what a girl likes, but I think this is perfect," Evil said proudly and smugly as he finished setting up a doll house. Evil took a step back and observed the room that could only be described as girly. Plenty of dolls, plushies, lots and lots of pink everywhere…
After a moment of thinking about it, Evil paused and frowned. "...maybe I should go for a more muted color since she might be an old spirit. Would Ghostie even like all this pink?" Evil was brought out of his thoughts by the clattering of dolls, before Evil turned to see Ghostie playing with the dolls he had gotten for her. "I stand corrected!" Evil's smile returned as he looked at her, before asking, "So, is this room satisfactory?"
Ghostie merely nodded once as she continued to silently play with the dolls. Evil laughed a bit. "Perfect! It seems stereotypes were the way to go!" Evil paused. "...perhaps I shouldn't say that ever again." Evil shrugged as he sat down next to the ghost girl. As if on impulse, Evil conjured a portal and stuck his hand through it, pulling out a fruit basket. "Behold, fruit!" Evil placed it down on the small table in front of him and Ghostie, crossing his arms in satisfaction. "At last I have completed this room!"
Evil sat still for a moment, before pausing. "...wait, ghosts don't require food." As if to prove him wrong, Ghostie reached into the basket and grabbed hold of a kiwifruit before taking a bite out of it. "Once again, you have proven me wrong, which I am glad for," Evil said as he saw her eat the kiwi. Watching her search the basket for another kiwi, Evil raised an eyebrow. "...do you prefer kiwis?" Upon receiving a nod, Evil was confused. "Well, to each their own." Evil grabbed an apple, took a bite out of it, before standing up and saying, "I shall return with more kiwis!"
As Evil left the room, Ghostie ended up following him for whatever purposes. As they made their trek through Evil's Castle, they encountered Leviathan, Ainz and his Floor Guardians, and Young Xehanort.
"Yo, we need to talk," Ainz said as he regarded Evil, who was still eating the apple.
"What for?" Evil asked.
"Clearly you are lacking sleep with how you continue to talk about this, 'Ghostie' of yours," Leviathan stated bluntly. "This random spirit you decide to dedicate an entire room to for no reason other than 'she haunts the castle'."
"You dare to insult the honor of Ghostie?" Evil questioned as he gestured to the little girl beside him, that no one could see besides him.
"We literally can't see her," Xehanort said with a deadpan expression.
"...oh right," Evil said. "Hold on one second…" Evil then took a step back, looked at Ghostie, before conjuring a canvas. To everyone's confusion, Evil then rapidly began to paint a portrait of what the ghost girl should look like, before showing off the portrait. "Behold!"
"JESUS CHRIST ALMIGHTY!" Ainz shouted.
"WHAT THE HELL?!" Xehanort exclaimed.
"Woah," Leviathan commented, surprised by what was on the canvas.
"What, have none of you seen a little girl before?" Evil asked, before looking at the canvas and dropping it out of shock and backing away at the horrific image that was suddenly on the canvas. "I DID NOT PAINT THAT! I DID NOT PAINT THAT!" Evil then conjured another canvas and repeated the process, before looking intensely at the canvas, then at Ghostie, and then at the canvas that now had a black mass with plenty of eyes, sharp teeth, and lots of tongues coating the humanoid figure in the painting.
"AAAAH!" Evil yelped as he dropped the canvas again and backed up against a wall. Evil then looked at Ghostie and then at the paintings, before pointing at Ghostie and asking, "Why?!"
Ghostie was going to speak, but Leviathan unknowingly interrupted and said, "Evil, blaming things on some nonexistent ghost girl is not an excuse. You can't just divert the blame onto something that doesn't exist."
"BUT SHE'S RIGHT HERE!" Evil said as he stood behind Ghostie. "She's this tall," Evil held his hand up to the top of her head, "wearing black clothes," Evil then conjured a short black dress, "has these lifeless eyes," he pointed at her eyes, "and is as pale as a vampire!"
"You're not even going to bother conjuring eyes?" Leviathan asked, still not buying Evil's antics.
"I don't really think it matters," Evil said. "Eyes are eyes. Doesn't matter if they're lifeless or not."
Leviathan stared at Evil, unamused. The King of Hell shook his head before looking at the disturbed Ainz. "Do any of your cronies happen to be a counselor or therapist, or am I going to have to do that myself?"
"I can double check, but Evil's gone," Ainz said, before Leviathan turned around and saw Evil had disappeared.
"This kid…" Leviathan grumbled with a shake of his head.
Meanwhile, Evil and Ghostie were now in a market within the Evil Capital, searching for kiwis.
"Now, I am sorry for Leviathan's behavior and treatment of you," Evil said to Ghostie, making the ghost girl look at him. "However, I must ask you to forgive him. He, as my advisor, merely wants the best for me as his liege." Ghostie blinked once as she looked at him, before Evil said, "What? I know some words. Or did you not care that Leviathan insulted your presence because he can't see you and therefore verify if you are real and not a figment of my imagination and a byproduct of my powers going haywire?" The two stared at each other, and Evil asked, "You are real, right?"
Ghostie nodded once, and Evil said, "Thank god. So my powers weren't just destroying kiwis and singling out the random fruit." Evil took a moment to readjust himself and slap his cheeks. "Keep it together Evil, Lego isn't dead yet…"
Ghostie didn't seem to care about whatever it was Evil was doing. But she did tug on his shirt to grab Evil's attention. Once Evil looked at her, she nodded her head into an alleyway, prompting Evil to see dumped in a trash can the lifeless body of Overhaul, missing his head as rats feasted upon his corpse that kept regenerating, even after his death.
Evil's eyes widened and his jaw dropped. "...we have a security breach." Evil then pulled out a radio, before saying, "Lock down the city! We have a major security breach! I REPEAT, WE HAVE A SECURITY BREACH!"
And that ladies and gentlemen, is how Evil met a 'ghost', and was consistently just me writing him yap. I got legit nothing else to add, but I hope everyone enjoyed.
Unrelated to the chapter, today is my birthday hence the double upload with the previous chapter and this one! I figured I might as well get something out now that I'm closer to death.
Alright, take care people!
Crossover Credits:
Leviathan, "Ghostie" (Euphory.a_, Instagram)