"Miaaaaa?"
Mia sighed heavily, turning from polishing her katana. "What."
Blackie looked just as annoyed. "Morro needs your help. He's stuck in the pipes."
"Tell Emma to help him, then."
"She's also stuck."
"...Morro's a ghost."
"So?"
"So how is he stuck?"
Blackie shifted uncomfortably, ears flicking. "That's what I was hoping you could explain."
Mia dragged her palm down her face, groaning. "Okay, let me get this straight. Morro. A literal ghost. Incorporeal. Walks through walls for fun. He is stuck... in the pipes."
"Yes."
"And Emma, who could probably slip out of anything with enough yelling and sheer stubbornness, is also stuck in the pipes."
Blackie nodded gravely.
Mia pinched the bridge of her nose. "Why am I the only sane one left in this house?"
From inside the walls, muffled voices could be heard:
"STOP PUSHING!"
"IT'S NOT ME, IT'S THE PIPE BEND!"
"EMMA YOU'RE LITERALLY SITTING ON MY HEAD!"
Mia stared at the wall like it had just insulted her. "You've gotta be kidding me."
She picked up her katana, shoved it into its sheath, and stomped toward the kitchen. "Fine. But I swear, if I have to tear down half the plumbing system just to get Morro the Almighty Ghost of Doom out of a copper pipe, I'm charging rent."
"Charging rent?" Blackie asked, scampering after her.
"Yes. If I have to keep rescuing ghosts and sisters out of household utilities, somebody's paying me back."
By the time she got to the kitchen sink, Morro's faint echo was still groaning through the pipes.
"...hello? Mia? I can hear you breathing. HELP ME."
Mia crouched, tapped on the metal, and said flatly, "You're a disgrace to ghosts everywhere."
From deeper in the pipes Emma screeched, "HEY! Don't just insult him! Get us OUT!"
Mia rubbed her temples. "Unbelievable. My life has become a cartoon."
She stood up, looked at the ceiling, and yelled, "JAY! KAI! We've got plumbing problems! Again!"
Jay's panicked voice carried from upstairs. "WHAT DID YOU DO NOW?!"
Mia folded her arms and muttered, "Nothing. For once. It's them."
From the pipes came another groan. "Don't just stand there, Miaaaa!"
She smirked. "I dunno. The more I think about it, the funnier it gets..."
