(Your POV)
As we left the rocky place we had found the harp at, I felt so content and confident, stronger than before. I've done something useful for once, and I was glad to have approval from the other guys too.
Maybe I had a chance to be good at this whole adventure thing.
Anyway, the ride back was very short to me- even though it was definitely a lot of hours- from the fun I was having with Tintin and Captain Haddock. It was the first time I had actually sat and sort of hung out with them instead of just talking about what we would do next to figure out my family mysteries.
After Captain Haddock laughed at Tintin and me slyly from spying, I hummed a familiar tune in my head as I leaned my head out of the car on my palm and watched the rocky valley passing us by.
I listened to the sound of my uncle up in the car ahead chatting about something excitedly- by the sound of it. Curiously, I stuck my head out more to watch him talk and gesticulate as I'm used to him doing. It was sorta funny to me, and something I liked about him.
Uncle's chat reminded me of the harp again, and I sat up straight in the car to play with it.
The Captain started talking about something. I think it was some of his and Tintin's accomplishments to the driver.
(Third Person's POV)
"... and the waves rose ahead, filling our minds with terror and complete anguish at our uncertain demise!" The Captain demonstrated with his hand curling in the air. "It was a matter of time before we plundered: our lives flashed before our very eyes!"
Oh wait, he is talking about our near-death experience arriving here, thought (Y/n), smiling a little bit and plucking at the harp strings again. She felt a presence beside her and then became alert of her surroundings when Tintin put a hand on her shoulder. He held out his hand for her to give him the harp, so (Y/n) did. Tintin afterward struck a couple of the harp strings gently, and they actually made a pleasant sound.
The girl raised her eyebrows as Tintin looked at her to make sure she understood, which she did, realizing she was plucking the harp strings way too roughly so that was why she couldn't get it to sound right.
(Y/n) took it back and then started gently playing with the strings to make her own melody; being the random song she'd been humming.
This made her satisfied.
Tintin didn't mind keeping an eye on her longer, just watching her play the harp entertained and smirking just a bit at it. He wouldn't deny that she stood out a bit to him whatever the reason being.
(Y/n) felt his glare on her back so she looked up at him with a confused smile, and a thought occurred.
"Hey-" she spoke; her eyes were suddenly filled with concern. "... I forgot about Ms. Finch and the professor friend of yours on the island!" she blurted out, furrowing her eyebrows a little at the mention of their names.
"Thomson and Thompson know about the island; if you remember, your uncle radioed them on the way to help us. I'm sure they're back to safety by now," assured Tintin.
(Y/n) blinked before dropping her mouth agape, recollecting everything and feeling relief.
"Oh yeah ... that's right... I was worried Ms. Finch might've been..." she gesticulated her hands to motion the obvious of what inevitable she thought might've been, but after which she changed the subject. "I'm glad they're alright... and I hope those jerks there all get arrested!"
"Well, there is no reason to worry about them anymore, Ms.-" replied the reporter, quieting before finishing. "(Y/n)."
The girl smiled, then looked away for a brief time to lean her head out the window. She started watching the rocks pass by and drifted into imagining scenarios of what she remembered Tintin saying his first adventure with Captain Haddock was: fighting pirates, trudging through deserts, finding treasure in a globe. Her face glowed as she visioned every scene to the best of her capacity.
Then, after what felt like a brief movie to her, she thought of a question.
"Have you ever made any mistakes on your adventures?"
Tintin raised a brow at her words and glanced at the girl. You could see the contemplation in his eyes.
He thought for only a second.
"I can remember a time when I accused someone of a crime they didn't commit," he said, looking forward in thought.
(Y/n) pursed her lips.
"Oh really? How did you realize it wasn't him?"
Tintin's head slanted back and forth before he answered, "she, actually. And as any mysteries I've taken on, the truth always unveils itself in the end."
(Y/n) bit her lip and looked back down at the harp.
'She.'
Great.
For some reason this made her not want to hear the story anymore.
"Hmm," she replied, petting Snowy affectionately with both hands as he had stood in her lap to look at the view.
Tintin happened to notice her silence and furrowed his eyebrows at her intuitively, clicking his teeth and deciding to be the lead in a very much wanted conversation.
He wasn't letting it end on this note.
"Why don't you tell me what your life is like back in (H/c)?"
(Y/n) perked to make eye contact with the journalist, a little surprised he was engaging.
"Uh, well, I work at a diner. The manager and assistant manager are kind of mean to me even though I'm their favorite. I don't like working there but it's the only thing I can do to afford living on my own, especially at half the original rent my apartment is supposed to be." The girl became at ease and twisted her body to face the boy. "Other than that I don't live a super thrilling life like you. And when I found out I had an uncle we began sending letters to each other all the time. I was never able to see him because my boss didn't like me taking off, but I guess now I have a good enough excuse..."
"Interesting... how did you and you're uncle first get in contact?" Tintin asked.
"He found me. I thought I had no family left until about a year or two ago when I got his first letter in the mail. He was so surprised to find out I was alive and told me he was my uncle. I didn't really believe him until he told me so much about myself and memories started coming back to me.
I always knew I was raised by somebody that wasn't my literal father growing up, and when I asked if he was that person, he confirmed it with a photo of the both of us." She paused to put a strand behind her ear. "I felt so excited when I saw that picture, I thought I was all alone-"
The Captain whipped his head around from the passenger's seat.
"Miss (Y/n)! I couldn't help but see that every time we've got ourselves in a pickle... you seem to be able to bring out this vicious, fightin' spirit that has those savages bending at the knee!" he recalled, balling a fist and grinding it into his palm. "It takes a rather good kicking for a man to be knocked out ice cold by a wee lass like yourself. Tell us, what gives you that strength?"
Tintin became curious himself.
"You're right, Captain! So, what is it that makes you able to fight so professionally??" he asked, keen on what she would say.
(Y/n) was taken back by their questions... seeing she didn't think about it much until they asked. Her eyes wandered to take turns making eye contact with each of her friends, waiting anxiously for an answer.
But, she didn't have one. The girl never actually had a full grasp of the situations when they came up. She felt like another person took over her every time she'd get so angry at the person for hurting her friends. It was all by instinct.
And, no, (Y/n) didn't know where she got that strength from. She doesn't remember ever training for such skills while living back at home, so maybe it was just talent from watching too many movies?
Yet last time she gained a memory from it, albeit it was vague...
"Um... I don't know," the girl mumbled with a fake smile. "It just sorta... 'happens'." Not wanting to explain more of what she didn't understand, she thought of another topic she'd wanted to talk about. "Say! What happened during your first adventure? The one with the pirates and treasure hunting- please, tell me the story!"
That's when the two men went on to extensively tell the tale of the secret of The Unicorn for the rest of the trip back to the hotel. (Y/n) was fascinated by the entirety of it and was on the edge of her seat most of the time. She could visually see every event happening in her mind with the way Haddock described his side of everything, and Tintin's point of view was so intellectual that she felt like her mind was turning just to figure out what was the answer to the puzzles Tintin described.
Once at the hotel, everyone went inside to spend one last night at the Erlesen Garden before they headed out for a new country in the morning.
"Relax yourselves, lady and gentlemen. For tomorrow we venture onward towards Britain, England for another piece of relic!" Isaac stated, wandering off giddily to prepare for the next day. "Goodnight and goodbye-"
Kadron sort of vanished as well, leaving the Captain, Snowy, and Tintin with Miss (Y/n).
"So, we just hang around here until tomorrow then?" (Y/n) asked.
"Exactly," replied the Captain.
The girl pursed her lips and tapped them with her fingers. She gave the hotel a good scan before deciding if her idea was a good one or not.
She really wanted an excuse to hang out with Tintin and the Captain.
"Hmm... you know... we should try something I always do at my job," (Y/n) said, biting her lip to tone down her bigger smile.
"And what is that-" Tintin tried to ask before suddenly being dragged by the girl to another area with Haddock.
They ran under her tow for a minute until she brought them to a halt in a wall indention by the front door where a potted plant sat. The young girl peaked around the corner wall and searched the whole floor until she spotted the main clerk talking to a bus boy and a twig-thin old coot, who was complaining about something confusing concerning his suite (his keys were switched with a bratty woman and they were not having it.)
(Y/n) consistently changed from a lip bite to a pursed mouth while practically bouncing in amusement, thinking out a plan for what she was gonna do.
"Okay," she whispered, pointing, "see that guy with the name tag over there? The one with the super mad old man? He's the clerk up here, right?"
"Um-" Tintin and Haddock moved around her to see. "Yes, that's the clerk," answered Tintin.
"Okay- so- basically- we're gonna joke with him."
(Y/n) began writing something on the notepad she snatched up from the front desk. She took a few pauses to think about it but finished speedily and showed them what it said.
"Here is the note I will leave for the clerk," she told them, tearing it off. "Now, I need to write one more for someone else..."
(Y/n) wrote one or two words slowly before going blank. She couldn't get an idea so she tried handing the Captain. Both men seemed a bit confused.
"Here, write a short love note for me real quick," she asked.
The Captain slowly took the notepad but it was obvious he wouldn't know what to write either.
"Uhh- I- I don't..." he stuttered.
(Y/n) scoffed and took the pad and gave it to Tintin.
"Fine. Tintin, you do it!"
"What do we need to write some frivolous fluff for?" the Captain genuinely asked, catching Tintin's mutual expression.
"I told you- we're gonna mess with him. Just a prank! And I need one of you to write this because I don't know what a man would write. Please, just write a couple of sentences!"
Tintin seemed confused but was amused a little by the idea, and scribbled something on the notepad. As soon as his hand lifted off the paper (Y/n) loosely skimmed it, tore it off, and folded both papers before signing them. She then gestured for Captain Haddock to follow her and they both hurried to the front desk.
(Y/n) placed the note she wrote on the counter and rang the bell. The clerk heard it and tried to excuse himself from the steaming argument between the brat lady and old man along with a bus boy.
"When the clerk comes over here, ask him something random and leave! It doesn't matter what just don't act suspicious because I need him to come over here and read the note!" (Y/n) said, running back to Tintin.
"What??" The Captain grew flustered while calling her with a covered mouth. "Miss! Miss! Aye!-"
"Yes sir? May I help you?" the clerk questioned behind the desk, his German accent was quite subtle and he had a feline smile- quite obviously a dignifiablely pansie man.
The Captain froze in his place, spinning all kinds of words in his mind.
"Aye-" he paused with wide eyes. "I was in need... of..." he struggled to conjure a sentence while gesticulating lightly," of- h-have you any clue were is that lovely Garden spa the suites come with??"
"Yes sir...!" the man hesitated with a strange look, but remaining poised with his smile and gesturing poshly to his forward left. "Past the leisure tables and the study room, you should find the commentary spa room and bath."
Haddock rubbed his hands together nervously and looked over where he pointed.
"Ah, thank you very much..." then the Captain scurried back the opposite way to where Tintin and (Y/n) were hanging and fled up the stairs of a prohibited hall beside them, confusing the clerk entirely.
The group exchanged glances before all three turned in sync at the clerk, who noticed the note on his counter.
(Y/n) bounced with a silent chuckle and gestured the others to follow her to the hall of rooms and suites. She ran around a couple of hall turns before she found the suite number she had written on the clerk's note.
Laughing quietly, the girl slipped the note under the door and knocked, then took her friends back around to the front of the hall to see the clerk read the note.
"Look: look!" She grinned.
"Hm?" The clerk opened his note and read the whole thing quickly with a growing grinch-like smile, his eyebrow flickering by the end. "Tisk-tisk- naughty, Vivian!"
(Y/n) giggled under her breath as she lead her friends back to hide down a hall corner by the door she placed the other note under.
"You guys know what is supposed to happen right?" she asked anxiously.
Snowy yipped and wagged his tail aloofly under her.
That's when the clerk came strolling around the corner boldly, stopping in front of door 36, as (Y/n) told him to. Adjusting his suit and slicking back his hair with a flirtatious grin, he straightened and knocked on the door.
"I got you're little letter, Vivian! I don't know what you're doing here at the Garden but I'm on break!" he sang. "Show Hansford an angelic face!"
The door opened, and lo and behold, the person staying in that room was the cranky old man he was trying to help earlier.
And he looked as unimpressed as Hansford was startled.
The old coot smacked his lips.
"... Mr. Cross! I-" tried the clerk.
"... bah!" blurted the old man.
"I- I-"
"What is this twisted writing, minor??" The old man shook his note while leaning dependently on his curved cane.
"Vivian- is- ah- I- mmm-"
"Adolescent fool! You disgrace the laws of nature! Answer me- I command it!!"
(Y/n) dropped her jaw in shock, not thinking it was funny anymore.
"Did you have him meet that gentleman on purpose?" Tintin whispered.
"No," the girl responded. "It was supposed to be random-"
"Sir, I didn't mean to intrude..." went the clerk, trying to remain poised but twitching under the cat eyes. "But it seems my muse had asked me to find her and this is the room she listed for me! I'm certain there was a misunderstanding, but if you would just tell me where she went, I may-"
"What? Assault me? I'll have the Interpol on you!! You disgusting waste of youth! I've had it with all the pranksters attacking my home in Belgium and now the Erlesen staff is harassing me too?!?"
The clerk pursed his lips and inhaled to calm, snatching the old man's letter and calmly read it to himself, trying to professional.
"I can assure you, Mr. Cross, that I did not write this to anyone," he said with blunt enunciation, still grinning.
"Then who else did, son??" questioned the old man.
" 'If the greatest form of regard is proven by one's efforts, I'd be sure to sacrifice it all to show that to you...' " read Hansford aloud before pausing with a strenuous grin. "This is not meant for an old coot like you, sir. In fact it doesn't even appear finished! This probably was for someone else-" the clerk began to grit his teeth in aggravation instead of smiling, muttering to himself, "Dummkopf."
"At the same time, you skipped along to my door with a debonair smirk?? Why do you torment me in such a way? I had the keys to this room fairly, not that twisted brat you gave the same pair to! Stop trying to get back at me for chewing out your infant backside for not even doing a proper job in this monstrosity of a hotel, Adolescent!!"
"Stop calling me an adolescent, old man! I haven't yet called you a dinosaur or some other exaggerated name!" The clerk started twitching and almost slipped yet didn't. "You'd best refrain from such language-"
"Why you little bitty tw-"
As they argued, a new voice came up behind the group.
"What is this going on?" Kadron asked.
(Y/n) was startled-quiet so the two boys answered.
"She's set a prank," Haddock whispered.
"(Y/n) put two romance letters where these men would find it so that they would confront each other over them," said Tintin.
(Y/n) pursed her lips and continued watching the men argue.
"Might've not been a good idea... though..."
Kadron lifted a brow without visible emotion.
"And what should be done now?" he asked.
"I probably should clear these letters up before this escalates-"
Then the old coot gave a whack atop the head of the clerk with his floppy cane, and then the clerk held his head in anguish before dropping the act to unroll his emotions on the tempered gent.
Kadron blinked before nonchalantly circling 'round the pranksters and up to the idiots in the hall.
"Excuse me, good men, have either of you seen- GASP- are those my letters??" Kadron questioned, picking up the papers off the floor and freezing up the men. "Ahhh yes... these are for my dulcet darling! And- oh- what could this be? I thought I wrote 63! I suppose my head is not in today." He folded them up and smirked a farewell. "Thanks for finding them, gentlemen!"
The two big babies stood there in utter bewilderment as the charming stranger walked back into the next hall, handing (Y/n) her letters.
"You better go," he sang in amusement.
That's when the two men caught the group hiding by the corner and realized the truth.
"Crap-" (Y/n) cursed with a gasp.
"You! You-you-you insolent idiots!" cried the old man before he started coughing hoarsely from yelling so much.
The group fled around the corner as the old man and the clerk began chasing them for a short period around each hall, making a few people peek out their doors to see the commotion. It didn't last long since the two were too well-kept for a goose chase, and the group of adventurers got away with their silly demise, stopping in an unlit dead-end to breathe.
The individuals were quiet for a split second, quietly panting to themselves.
However, after they made eye contact with each other... the girl started laughing at the stupidity of it all, followed by the amused chortle of both Captain Haddock and Tintin.
"They were both so angry!" (Y/n) eventually said with a grin. "Especially that old man! He needs to loosen up a little bit," the girl stated, still kind of giggling.
"A quite sappy letter you wrote, Tintin," Haddock teased, shaking one of Tintin's shoulders. "Tell us your inspiration?"
"Inspiration??" (Y/n) had heard everything and covered her mouth to chuckle, making Snowy bark again.
"I don't know what you're talking about, Captain," Tintin replied.
"It was very iNsPiRaTiOnAl-" (Y/n) further teased, very lively with adrenaline.
"You asked me to write a love letter so that's what I wrote. Now please, do we have to stay on topic- Captain?" Tintin questioned, annoyed by the falsely-ignorant eyes of the Captain as he examined his nails.
"Whatever you say," he replied.
"Ay! AyAyAyayaYaY- Aye!!" screamed the old man from around the corner.
"Shoot-" (Y/n) gritted her teeth and the whole group was sent running back to the main lobby.
The old man was so crippling old he couldn't quite run as fast as they did, yet he seemed to lose all need for his flimsy, wood cane as he raised it with both hands over his head in rage at the friends. The three (and Snowy) were quick to reach the front but decided to hide somewhere until the old timer calmed down.
Tintin subtly pushed the second door to the outer gardens and led the group outside without anyone taking notice, and now they were free.
They rounded down a pathway and stopped to relax when out of the hotel's view. All were panting quietly again, chuckling in relief at what they had done.
"Phew! Glad the freshwater fat-face is out of our hair," Haddock stated, adjusting his cap.
"Fat-?" (Y/n) tried to repeat but only could whisper through her silent laughter at the Captain.
"Where did you get the idea to start all these shenanigans??" the Captain asked her.
"At work I get bored sometimes when it's slow, and I am close to some of my coworkers so we mess around with our boss a lot... he hasn't caught on because he always forgets it happened," answered the girl.
"Well, I'm intrigued how he hasn't figured out it was his favorite employee behind it," Tintin spoke.
"Yeah, I know. Being the favorite had no perks there, though... so it doesn't matter anyway," (Y/n) replied, unintentionally making the group quiet down a bit.
After a peaceful walk around the fountain and into a garden tunnel, (Y/n) did start talking again.
"It's funny to me how you two get along so well, considering you guys are polar opposites," she commented.
"Aye, lassie! In all my years I haven't crossed paths with yet a finer intellectual... better yet, I have become very interested in your arrival," Captain said.
"Tintin told me you thought I had potential," the girl replied.
"Ahah- undoubtedly! Although he probably mentions that more than I do when you're aren't around to hear it..." the Captain lowered to almost a whisper. "Or rather blathers-"
"Yeah alright, Captain, I know what it is you're doing," Tintin interrupted with his hands behind his back.
"You blather?" (Y/n) asked, not sure what that even meant.
"I don't blather anything." Tintin lifted a reprimanded brow at the middle-aged sea Captain. "That doesn't mean we haven't noticed your ambitious spirit. But you know that already..."
"What did your letter say, Miss?" Captain asked.
"Oh, here-" the girl handed it to him. "Nothing special. I was just trying to lure the clerk to meet whoever he said 'Vivian' is... must be his girlfriend."
The Captain skimmed the simple note with anticipation.
"Aww, how quaint with that little heart at the very end." He finished adoring it and handed it back before walking ahead. "Time for my appointment at the complimentary spa-"
"Where are you going?" Tintin asked.
" 'Just to get a couple of winks for our trip in the morning. But you two can continue on a conversation without me, eh?" he stated, making his way back to the hotel.
Snowy wagged his tail calmly and went to sniff out something moving further in the garden. (Y/n) was a bit disappointed that the Captain left, because she was enjoying his company as a friend, but that didn't make her like Tintin any less. With a sweet smile, the girl turned her eyes to meet the journalist's and shrugged. By then it was dark outside, and a few glistening stars were glowing above (still not as beautiful as on the island.)
"Are you going to sleep, too?" she asked.
"No," he bluntly stated.
(Y/n) paused and pursed her lips awkwardly; he didn't even hesitate in that answer.
Tintin spoke again.
"I'm not exactly tired, yet," he added, smiling politely and putting his hands in his pockets.
"Oh, okay." She laughed before pausing to think of a new conversation. "I know I am starting that subject again... but... is there some sort of inspiration for the note?" she said, really just trying to find an excuse to talk to the boy.
"I don't know what you're trying to refer to as 'inspiration.' I did write a romantic letter for you, didn't I?" Tintin answered.
"Well yeah... it was very intellectual sounding, too. Very Tintin." (Y/n) chuckled. "It was sweet."
Only just a bit did this make Tintin smile, but it was very warm, and the girl could see through it.
His smile was nice, she thought.
"You'd probably be good at that, if you had a girlfriend or something," (Y/n) stated casually. Tintin didn't seem to know how to reply to that, so she continued. "Ever felt that way about someone or... anything?"
The idea of Tintin ever liking someone else bothered (Y/n) once she processed her question... and she was then instantly worried.
However, his answer relieved her.
"No, I haven't," he paused," why?"
"I don't know." (Y/n) shrugged, tsking.
Almost changing the subject, she got amused by the memory of Captain Haddock annoying Tintin and decided she wanted to try messing with him herself see if she could get the same reaction.
Raising her brows, she tilted her head in a goofy manner. "You sure, Tintin?" she asked with a teasing grin.
Tintin remained quiet with his usual polite-smile gaze. He initially would've answered the same as he already did: 'no;' yet, (Y/n) noticed the moment his face shifted as if to respond, he... didn't. Instead, the boy's smile faltered at the slightest, and his brows lowered a bit as if he was thinking again.
Before (Y/n) could try to get something out of him, Tintin almost dismissed the question by breaking eye contact to change the subject.
"Have you seen Snowy?" Tintin asked, collected but evasively choosing not to look her in the eye.
(Y/n) furrowed her brows and followed all his head turns to see he wasn't with them.
"Uh, I thought he went to chase a squirrel or something." She called for the mutt. "SNOOOWY-"
Ru-Ru-Ruff
The dog came skipping out of the bushes and circled the two, jumping and pawing up at both of them eagerly to follow him, which they didn't do.
(Y/n) felt a yawn come and stretched her arms tiredly, finally deciding she wanted to go to sleep.
"Now I'm getting tired..." she rubbed her eyes with a groan. "I think I'm going to go inside. Wanna come?"
"You go on. I'll be there in a minute," Tintin said with a polite smile.
"Okay then, I guess I'll see you tomorrow. Goodnight," (Y/n) ended, waving and walking back to the first door of the hotel.
There was a twig snap in the trees, making Tintin spin around in the gravel to see if something was there. Snowy growled lightly and yipped at the sound before looking up at Tintin and stomping with eagerness to get him to follow. Tintin, however, didn't sense any threat behind it and turned his attention back to where his female friend had gone. Through the window, you could see her hugging her uncle goodnight as he pulled her away to say something to her with a smile.
Tintin watched. He felt a significant pound in his chest as he looked away in thought and smoothed back his red cowlick, resting his hand where it slid on his neck rather nervously. He was opposed to all ideas of this at first. Now, however, he realized something had just then become true... but because it was on Tintin's terms as well as real...
Tintin did a double take at the girl inside the hotel, gaping with his thoughts starting to get to him. There was then an internal sense of relief as the boy accepted what he had felt during this moment. His eyelids fluttered as his body relaxed, lowering his hand as he slowly straightened his nervous posture. A final blink of opposition was made, and it all went south.
Caved in, Tintin's round face grew sweltering warm. The stubbornly opposed heart slipped up. A wondrous, sweet smile, glowing brightly over the blushing red madness on his cheeks soon grew in a significantly steady manner, warmer than anything he'd ever expressed before while his big blue eyes tightened from the smile's sincerity. There was a delighted, single sigh that escaped Tintin's beam, fully admitted within himself to this new fantasy he was now seeing.
Fallen, was he? She was a magician of some kind and must have created a trick so that all he could think now was how happy she was making him feel. And it wasn't just the pretty face.
He'd submitted. Finally. He did.
(Y/n) won...
...and she didn't even know yet.
Rrggh
There was a cough from the trees and Snowy growled in his throat. Tintin and Snowy faced its direction in sync and knew someone was there. But then an elderly couple walked out from the gazebo nearby and Tintin relaxed.
"Come on, Snow," he called, not seeing any reason to worry now.
The boy and his dog strolled back inside the hotel for their final night at the Erlesen Garden Hotel. Their next day would be very... tumultuous, and a bit of a turn towards a different plan for their adventure through Europe. It would certainly be an interesting afternoon ahead of them.
And as the lad entered for his well-needed rest, the screwy creep that was watching him in the trees snickered to himself at the Tintin's oblivious eye... knowing if he had only come around the bushes, he would then understand.
~~~