Writer's Block

Their mother looked down at them sternly. "Now kids, I'm going to let you explore for a little while so I can go and have a coffee. Robert, stay with your sister. Sophie, you keep an eye on your little brother this time".
"But mom!" they cried out in unison.
"It's no good complaining - you are to stay together. I don't want a repeat of what happened at Disneyworld. Now then, here's a few quid to get a couple of souvenirs with, and your ride tickets. DON'T lose them". She studied them intently a moment longer, then turned and walked into the nearby coffee shop.
Sophie faced her brother. "Come on, Aldy. Let's go try and win a stuffed toy or something". She grabbed his hand and dragged him through the crowds to where the games were. As he stood wide-eyed, looking at the strange stalls which surrounded them, Sophie identified her target.
"There it is. See the big man with the beard? Most of his prizes are cheap-looking toys, but his top prize claims to be a gold bracelet. I want that bracelet, Aldy, and you are going to get it for me".
Aldy looked up at her suspiciously. "But...how, Sophie? I'm too little to play the game".
"True, but I'm not. And you are just about little enough to fit through the gap behind the stall while I distract the owner. So here's how it works. I am going to have a go at this game ad try to win the prize for real. If I don't, I am going to loudly accuse him of running a rigged game. When he starts arguing with me, you sneak through the gap, grab the bracelet while his attention's on me, and sneak back out. Then head to the arcade machines near the entrance. I'll meet you there after I storm off in a huff".
As he snuck off behind the stall, Sophie approached the owner and paid for a go. She picked up the airgun, took careful aim and fired.
"DING!". A duck fell. Ok, next shot.
"DING!". Another duck gone.
"DING! DING!". Two more ducks fell. She had one shot to go, and one more duck would win the prize.
She lined it up carefully and began to squeeze the trigger. Just as she released it, she felt the gentlest tug to the left and her shot flew past the duck and buried itself in the wood at the back.
"What the-?"
The stall owner spoke up. "So sorry, but you don't win the big prize. Good shooting though - here". He handed her a rather pathetic-looking stuffed panda.
"But...the gun moved! You moved it somehow!"
He pulled the gun away as she reached for it to examine it further. "Rubbish. You simply moved at the wrong moment. Completely normal."
"Look, I felt the damn thing move as if it was pulled...towards you, as a matter of fact". In the corner of her eye she could see her brother quietly pocketing the bracelet. She fought the urge for her eyes to flicker in that direction.
"That is an outrageous slur!". A small crowd was gathering. Fortunately her brother had disappeared from view.
"Look, I know what I felt. Let these other mugs waste their money on your rigged game - I'm taking my money elsewhere!". She stalked off, feeling everyone's eyes on her. She could hear the owner continuing his protestations of innocence to the gathered potential punters. It wasn't going to help his business much, but he had tried to rip her off.
A few minutes later she was at the arcade playing on the pinball machines, the bracelet hidden in a back pocket. Her brother was playing some WWII shoot-'em-up with lots of exploding planes and stuffing his face with candy floss. Suddenly there was a voice behind them.
"There you are! I might have known you'd end up here". It was their mum.
"Hi mom!" they chorused.
She looked at them suspiciously. "Everything...normal? No fairground mascots sent to therapy this time? No stuffed toys stuck in rollercoasters?"
Sophie spoke. "Mom, we just played a couple of the games. And I won a panda - see?" She presented the panda for inspection.
Their mother visibly relaxed. "That's nice, dear. Anyay, the fairground's closing soon and we want to beat the rush. Time to go, kids".
On the way out they passed two policemen in a heated argument with the stall owner, who seemed reluctant to accept their friendly offer of handcuffs and a ride and was attempting to forcefully get across his point of view...


I don't know what I think about this one...