- So your Grace tell me who you are, Fredrika asked.
- I'm complicated, he replied and smiled puckishly.
- Oh, so there's some mystery involved.
- Yea, you can say so.
- Is there anything you can tell me?
- Well, maybe its better that you find it out by yourself at first so you'll have an objective point of view instead of mine.
- Why's that?
- Its better that you'll know the whole story and your own conclusions without of my influence.
And besides it would be no fun if I would reveal all my secrets to you at once, we have just met.
Suddenly Fredrika heard noise from the front door, her mother was about to come home.
Raw panic pierced her, what she should say to her mother when she would find out that there was a ghost in their living room.
- Quickly you must hide yourself. My mother is about to come home!
- Don't you worry about that she will not see me, Richard said calmly and Fredrika heard a soft tone of frustration in his voice.
Being a ghost must have been hard since most of the people didn't see or hear the astral world around them.
- Hello my darling I'm home, said Fredrika's mother when she entered through the doorway.
Fredrika ran at her mother and embraced her.
- What's now sweetie?
- Mum, I have anew friend!
- That's super who is she?
- His name is Richard.
- Oh, you should invite him to dinner so I can also meet him.
Fredrika wasn't sure if Richard was able to eat anything, did ghosts eat at all?
She tried to recall all possible ghost stories which she had heard and none of them told about a ghost who would have ate anything.
She decided to pass that matter for time being, there was now more important things to be done, like homework.
After dinner Fredrika rehearsed the vocabulary of her English lesson.
Tomorrow would be a test she was sure about it.
She heard how mum turned on the TV to watch the evening news and she wondered if Richard was still in the living room.
Fredrika decided to take a small peek behind of her room's door.
Mum was sitting on the couch and right next to her was Richard.
She didn't seem to be aware that right beside of her sat a man in armor that was all in blood.
The sight was awfully funny and Fredrika made a small giggle.
Her mum heard her soft laughter and she turned her head right at her.
- Have you already finished your reading?
Fredrika closed the door and returned back to her books.
After finishing her late English lesson she joined with her mum to watch the TV.
- I must say that there's awfully cold in here, her mum complained and fetched herself a woolly.
- Not in my opinion, Fredrika replied.
Then she looked at Richard.
- Why are you looking at me? I can't help it if she feels cold when I'm near by.
Fredrika thought if now would be a good moment to tell about Richard to mum since at some level she seemed to have noticed his presence.
On the other hand she might be scared of him but if not now then when?
She knew that mum might also become angry if she would postpone telling the truth about of her new friend. They had promised that they would not have any secrets between them so she needed to tell the truth…
- Mum?
- Yes dear?
- I need to tell you something.
- What it is dear, mum asked and she seemed to be worried.
- About my new friend Richard.
- Is there something which you haven't told to me?
- Quite plenty in fact.
- Yes?
- Mum, he's a ghost and he is sitting right next to you.
Fredrika's mum turned her face right at Richard but she saw nothing.
Then she started to laugh.
- What vivid imagination you have, she said after finishing her laughter.
This made Fredrika to upset.
- I'm not joking mum, he's right there!
Her mum just shook her head.
At this point Richard decided to act and he touched Fredrika's mum's arm lightly.
The amused expression died out from her face when she felt the touch of his invisible hand.
She turned again her head towards the direction where she believed the soft touch had come from but she saw no one.
Now Richard squeezed her shoulder and this made her to scream.
Mum jumped away from the couch and dragged Fredrika away from the living room.
- Mum, he's not here to harm us he wants to be my friend, Fredrika explained but her mum didn't seem to have heard.
- GO AWAY! LEAVE US ALONE, she shouted at him.
- Mum, please.
Richard looked very sad and he asked Fredrika to tell that he didn't mean to scare her mother.
- Mum, he says he's sorry.
- GO BACK TO HELL!
-Mum, you are hurting his feelings.
- LEAVE MY BABY ALONE!
Her shouting made Fredrika to cry and she pulled herself away from her mum's tight grip.
- Mum, I have no friends at all and I'm scared to go to school since everyday I get bullied.
So please let me to have even this one friend although he's not like us.
- But I'm afraid that he might hurt you.
- You should be more afraid of my classmates hurting me and besides if he had wanted to hurt me he would have done it already.
Her mum embraced her tightly and she seemed to relax a bit.
- Very well then, you can keep him, I just don't want him to live with us in this same house.
- Okay.
There was an empty house at downtown close to Fredrika's school and she told Richard to move there for now. He agreed and tomorrow he would go to school with her.