Goob was crouched behind the couch of the living room in hiding. He floated up to peek out from behind it but only high enough to be able to see half the aircon unit, as though even just the sight of it would make his spirit even more vulnerable.

Ever since he had begun to infiltrate the heating and cooling systems around Melbourne in order to prank the living, his ghostly body had begun to take physical shape. It started with his hand and had now travelled all the way to his shoulder. No human being could see him yet which was probably the most disappointing reveal. It would have been hilarious to see the humans screaming at the floating arm in their living room. 

His best friend, Strax the Eldritch Horror, was currently taking apart the unit and checking the wiring for any leftover magic. To their right, he could just make out the dark lump that was an unconscious Bob. 

Strax had been able to knock the human out with a sleeping spell only with Goob’s help. Bob had been about to book an air conditioning service from a Hawthorn electrician after one of his prolonged pranks, and the ghost had known that it would be the perfect time to carry out their investigation.

Strax leaned back on their hooves and rubbed their neck. Their smokey form had to bend to fit inside the small living room. Goob was impressed his friend was even able to inspect the machine given their gigantic claws. He would have to owe them big time after this. 

Maybe he owed Bob something too. Next time he organised a prank that involved air conditioning, Toorak would have to be his targeted suburb. That would give Bob a bit of a break from his usual A/C torment.

How nice of me, Goob thought with a smile. Maybe this whole ‘turning into a human thing’ was making him into a better person-ghost-thing. He turned his attention back to his friend and floated high enough that his mouth just barely peeked out from behind the couch. “Can you hurry up?”