Asking The Ghost

[You have chosen - Ask the ghost to set aside a portion for another]

E-Eh? You selected this one? Um... I don't know about this choice, reader. Er, well I guess it wouldn't be good to make an enemy of the ghost...

[Sayori casually walked up to the ghost that was in the middle of what appeared to be cooking]

Sayori: Hey! Can I have some of what you're making too?

[The ghost suddenly froze up, like it was frightened. Then, it timidly turned towards her, revealing how it looked.]

W-What?... I-Is that really a ghost?

[The ghost was very clearly a woman. It had long purple hair that cascaded all the way to her hips. The eyes were similarly purple, yet they didn't appear dark, instead, they were somehow lustrous. As for the rest of her body, it was all tightly wrapped up in thick layers of bandages. Though, it was still possible to discern her figure.]

...This isn't a ghost! She's a hot woman!

Sayori: W-Wah! So beautiful...

Female Ghost: E-Eh? Who are you? I don't remember meeting you...

[The female ghost looked a little baffled to see a new face. Sayori cleared her throat and waved with a small smile on her face.]

Sayori: That's because it's my first day here! The kind people of this town let me have this place!

Mm... this ghost must be the nicest out of all of them!

[Despite trying her best, it seemed that her introduction had a bad impression on the female ghost. There was a strange look that the ghost was giving her.]

Female Ghost: ...So you're a normal human?

E-Eh? Why is she saying it like that? Er, quick, pretend to be a ghost!

[Sayori became slightly stunned]

Sayori: U-Um, I think so? Is that a problem?

[The female ghost looked quite bored after hearing that]

Female Ghost: ...Why are you even talking to me? Just hurry up and leave already then.

Sayori: Ehhhh? That's really cold! My feelings hurt!

...For some reason, mine do as well!

Female Ghost: You're probably just here to hurt our feelings, aren't you? Humans are all the same, screaming so loudly, and messing up the whole place.

What? I would never do that!... maybe...

[As the ghost said that, she lost her grip on the frying pan she was holding, causing it to slam against the top of the counter and cause some of the contents to spill out. Sayori looked on with a sad expression.]

Sayori: E-Eh? If you don't want to give me some, then you can just tell me...

U-Ugh, a moody ghost.

Female Ghost: ...

[Sayori pouted and turned away. She intended to leave the kitchen despite feeling quite hungry. Though she wasn't really sure how she was going to get something, she decided to figure that out later.]

Female Ghost: W-Wait.

Eh?

[Before Sayori left, the female ghost called out to her. This prompted Sayori to turn around with a confused expression.]

Sayori: Is something wrong?

Female Ghost: I-I'm sorry.

Er, I don't think you really did anything that bad though. It's pretty tame compared to the monsters that were trying to scare her earlier.

[The female ghost gently brushed her hair back with her bandaged arm]

Female Ghost: I... I shouldn't have said that.

[Despite being covered in bandages, it was still fairly easy to see the bitter smile that formed on her face]

Female Ghost: I'm becoming just like the people I hated so much.

Huh? You hated people that were a bit disrespectful? I don't get it.

[Sayori tilted her head to the side with confusion]

Sayori: A-Ah, there's no need to apologize. It was rude of me to ask for something you were making in the first place. Erm, I should've appreciated the effort you were putting into that.

Female Ghost: No... I kinda felt glad when you showed interest in it.

Sayori: Really? Then why did you slam the pot thingy like that!

[The female ghost averted her gaze in embarrassment]

Female Ghost: My control over my muscles... are pretty bad. It was fine when I was still a human, but now that I've become a ghost, it feels like I can't develop any new muscle memories.

Oh, I guess that makes sense.

[Sayori turned to look at the frying pan]

Sayori: Ah, so that's why you are so rough with these? I was just thinking you didn't care about how expensive they were...

Female Ghost: I do care! I really do care! But... I'm just so clumsy.

[Sayori giggled]

Sayori: I'm also really clumsy too! I think it's just a normal thing.

Female Ghost: No, but... there's someone that can cook normally even though she is a ghost.

[Sayori's eyes widened slightly in curiosity]

Sayori: Woah! That ghost must be a super big pro!

[The female ghost covered her mouth with the tips of her fingers and let out a small chuckle.]

Female Ghost: Yes, she really is! Before... she became a ghost, she really was an expert in this.

Hm... then why are you the one here cooking, and not her?

[Sayori clasped her fingers together excitedly]

Sayori: Do you think I could try her cooking too? I, um... like food a little. Hehe.

Female Ghost: A-Ah...

Er... do ghosts even eat the same things as normal humans? What if it's just like some ectoplasm?

[The female ghost had an awkward smile on its face. Sayori scratched her cheek sheepishly.]

Sayori: S-Sorry, was that something I shouldn't have mentioned?

Female Ghost: No, no! It's not like that, er... it will take a little bit to explain.

Sayori: Don't worry, I have a lot of time to listen!

[The female ghost scratched the back of her head awkwardly]

Female Ghost: My friend, when she was still alive, would frequently make many tasty things for me to eat, even though she didn't have all that much money to spare.

Sayori: Wah! That's so sweet!

...Definitely not jealous.

[The ghost grabbed onto a small clump of her hair nervously]

Female Ghost: It was because whenever I went to school, I never brought a cooked lunch, and she had noticed that. My parents were always working, so they didn't have the time to really make anything. And I never really took the time to learn how to cook, so that just led me to buying cold meals from the supermarket.

Sayori: Aw...

[The ghost interlocked her fingers and smiled brightly]

Female Ghost: Out of nowhere, she came to me and began chastising me for eating things like that. At first, I was really scared, and didn't really understand why she was yelling at me like that.

[The ghost took a deep breath]

Female Ghost: But then she just gave me her own lunch, which really stunned me. From then on, she just... kept cooking something for me every day.

Sayori: Wahhhh! I wish I had a friend like that! She sounds like a dream come true!

Wow, so there are people like that...

Wait. This is a story with fictional characters. How did I forget that?

Female Ghost: I didn't really have any friends, so it was a bit of an overwhelming experience for me. But it was really nice... I'm so lucky to have met her.

[Sayori nodded vigorously]

Sayori: She sounds super cool!

Female Ghost: One day... I wanted to repay her and make something for her instead. So I got her to agree to teach me how to cook, then I would make something for her.

[Her originally cheery disposition gradually became somewhat gloomy]

Female Ghost: But on the first day when I got to her house... it was burning down.

Oh god...

Sayori: Oh no!

Female Ghost: I-I saw a glimpse of her from the outside, and I couldn't help but rush in myself. A-Apparently what I saw was actually a ghost version of her, and she was yelling at me to run away.

[The ghost smiled bitterly as she awkwardly pressed the tips of her fingers together]

Female Ghost: U-Um, but I didn't really notice that. After rushing in, parts of the roof collapsed, leaving me trapped in there...

T-That sounds horrifying.

Sayori: No!

[The ghost let out a soft sigh]

Female Ghost: T-Then... I burned to death.

[Sayori jumped forth to hug the ghost, embracing her tightly. Although the ghost's body was cold, she wasn't afraid to hold onto her tightly.]

...Wait a minute. How is this at all related to what they were talking about earlier? What were they even talking about? I kinda forgot.

Female Ghost: A-Ah. That's unnecessary, I'm ok.

Sayori: ...Really?

Female Ghost: Yes, it's not really a sad ending.

Sayori: Eh?

[Sayori stepped back, and let the ghost continue on]

Female Ghost: Um, anyway, after I died there, I also somehow became a ghost. I met with the ghost version of my friend and she yelled at me for a really long time. But... it didn't feel that bad.

Sayori: Ah, right! You both became ghosts!

[The ghost nodded]

Female Ghost: Yeah! I still don't really get how it happened, but we then naturally gravitated to this place. Then, she spent quite a long time teaching me how to cook, but... I'm not really able to handle it all properly.

[She laughed awkwardly]

Female Ghost: Once my friend already taught me all of the theory, I just needed to work on the actual cooking itself. I decided that I would keep practicing until I could make something... edible.

Sayori: Haha, I'm sure it can't be that bad!

Hmm... I don't really understand, but cooking doesn't seem that hard, right?

[The female ghost looked quite nervous]

Female Ghost: W-Well... I can't really control it properly. Whenever my friend is with me, she would always end up taking over. I decided that if my friend was with me, I would never be able to make it on my own.

Sayori: Wow! That sounds amazing, how much progress have you made?

Female Ghost: U-Uh...

Sayori: ...Well, I'm sure with time, things will get better!

Female Ghost: ...Hehe, yeah!

Well, that's only natural.

Sayori: I'm sure you've just started to practice, so the results don't look too good, but try and try again!

Female Ghost: Y-Yeah! Just a couple more decades and I will be able to make something edible!

Sayori: Yeah!... Wait, did you say decades?

Wait what.

Female Ghost: U-Um... well it's been I think about thirty years I've been practicing.

...

Sayori: ...

[She is underexaggerating it, by the way]

W-What? Wait a second, you were the one that created this character! Why would you make her so... so...

[You wrote the story]

I didn't write this story at all!

[I was just filling in many of the illogical gaps, and this was one of the outcomes]

...Ah, whatever.

Sayori: W-Well, you must've made quite a bit of progress in these years! How about I try some and tell you what I think?

...That is possibly a terrible idea.

Female Ghost: E-Eh? I'm... not so sure about that. Um, it will be... very difficult to eat.

See? Even she is warning you! Take her word for it!

Sayori: Oh come on, it can't be that bad.

...Wait, can this girl even hear me? Oh god.

Female Ghost: I-If you say so... but you really don't have to eat it all!

[The ghost brought out a bowl of what looked like green sludge and timidly set it down on the table]