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I have not thought anything about this so may be slow-going at first but will wrap by halloween. [fingers crossed]

"MUUUUUUUUUUUUMMMMMM"

"uh hmm" Amanda muttered vaguely in the direction of the whinge.

"MUUUUUUUMMMMMMM. Peter is taking my toys again."

"uh hmm," Amanda said again in an attempt to simultaneously placate Rosie and continuing writing up the report that she had to email to ten people an hour ago.

Blissful silence for a bit. That usually meant Rosie was up to trouble but Amanda figured she had five minutes before she had to go investigate. She buried her face back into her notes and was typing away when she felt a tug on her sleeve and jumped out of her seat.

"Omg Rosie. You scared the life out of me," she said to her eight year old daughter Rosalie.

"Mum. Peter won't leave me alone." Rosie said looking up at Amanda with trembling lip and eyes starting to fill.

"Peter? Who's Peter?" Amanda asked.

ooh

Ooooooohhh! I'm spooked already!

<waits patiently>

I want to do a poo at Peter's house.

LOL! that's Pauls house, not Peter, wrong little dicky-bird!!

Yes I know but Paul isn't in the story yet.

I have something else in mind for Paul when he makes an appearance.

"He's my friend mum," Rosie said. Her lip was still quivering and it was clear that she was upset but trying not to be a baby.

Amanda closed the laptop for a moment with a sigh. There was no way she was going to get this done and they had already begrudgingly let her work at home three days a week. On a "trial" basis.

She didn't remember Rosie having any friends over. Did she? No. No today. And it certainly wasn't one of Matt's friends as they were still all in nappies and she would have remembered opening the door to one of them.

"You don't mean Matt do you darling?" Amanda asked Rosie.

Rosie looked at her with the "do you really think I'm stupid expression?" that reminded Amanda so much of Susan. It was quite charming on an eight year old and Amanda couldn't help but smile.

"No mum. I don't," Rosie replied. "And it's not funny."

"I know it isn't Rosie but I still don't know who Peter is. Is he one of the boys in your class at school?"

"No. He doesn't go to my school," Rosie said still with the same expression, "he lives in the shed."

"Rosie, no one lives in the shed," Amanda said as she pulled her daughter up on her knee. Rosie was just absolutely gorgeous with a mass of red curls but she wasn't a girlie girl. She was quite the tomboy and was afraid of very little in life. She didn't appear to be afraid now either. Just cross.

"Well yes someone does mum," Rosie insisted as if her mum was a bit dim. "He's always lived there. He says grownups can't see him though."

Ah. An imaginary friend, Amanda thought to herself. Nothing to worry about. Still....

"Well if he takes them again Rose, then you tell him you won't play with him."

"Then he'll pinch me mum," Rosie said and now she did look a little afraid.

<<cosies under blankie>>

Thanks KM, you;re a star, keep em coming

Next bit, next bit please.

lol. you know i wasn't prepared in the slightest for this as I kind of decided not to do it this year. So apologize for bad grammar, etc. Am just winging this (again).

"Right, well I'll just set your father on him then. okay?" Amanda smiled.

Rosie nodded but did not look mollified in the slightest and just at that moment Matt decided to wake up roaring from his nap.

Amanda looked at the laptop and it's flashing green power button and sighed. Bickies and tea for everyone and took Rosie by the hand to collect Matt from his cot and bring them into the kitchen. Nothing some nice bickies couldn't fix.

"I don't know Philip," Amanda whispered into her phone in the sitting room while watching Rosie show Matt how to build a block tower in the library. "She says his name is Peter and he lives in the shed but only kids can see him."

"Oh hell Manda, it sounds like an imaginary friend to me," Philip shouted over the noise of the floor sander going in the background. Philip had built quite a lucrative business over the past 10 years fixing up old homes.

"I know, that's what I thought but I promised her you would go have a word with this Peter character. And I most certainly am not going out into that shed!" Amanda laughed but she meant it.

"Of course I will," Philip said. "Let me talk to her for a minute."

Amanda gave the phone to Rosie. Rosie nodded and nodded while she listened to Philip. She adored and trusted her dad and after a few minutes was all smiles again and handed the phone back to Amanda.

"Don't worry," Philip told her laughing "I'll check the shed when I get home."

Ooh this is great Kerry

Marking my place so I don't lose you all

Me too, am gripped..give us a clue will someone get it?

Yay..so glad you're doing this.

Can't wait for next installment!!

Woooo, who or what is in the shed???

Will we get an installment tonight?

marking my place too, can't believe it's a year since your last one!!

sorry lads was in a hotel all day until now and their internet was mostly down. will do more tomorrow.

<waits>

Philip brushed cobwebs from the doorway of the shed. Where on earth had they come from? He'd only just cleared them away a day or so ago because Rosie was complaining they were scaring her.

The cobwebs were enormous and almost as thick as cottonwool. There were some very big and rather nasty looking spiders running around lately. Very little frightened Amanda but one night she had seen one running from the kitchen to the pantry and screamed for Philip. He laughed at her until he had seen it himself. He had been half afraid when he stepped on it the fat thing with its long legs it would run off with him.

Philip switched on the light and stepped into the shed. To be fair, it was more a bungalow than a shed and a bit dilapitated but serviceable. He'd patched up the hole in the roof this past summer and cleared half of it out for a play area for Rosie but it needed a good clear out and there were some gaps between some of the boards that needed filling.

Rosie's play area was to the left of the door and to the right were piles of assorted boxes and junk of Louisa's. He wished that Amanda would let him just toss it all out but she was insistent that she wanted to go through it all first.

Ooooohhhh!!!!