Hiiiii guys :) So I know I'd said that the last one was going to be it forever...but then I remembered I'd started this one while working on the last chapter of Bookworm. So someone please help me, I've got an addiction to Tintin and Nollie. (But that's a good thing, right?) ~DisneyPrincess55

One

Orphaned

Tintin twisted and broke his wrist while carrying boxes into our old-new house the other day, leaving me to carry in the rest, much to his dismay. He wanted me to relax while he brought in box after box of our belongings, but after he fractured his wrist, that desire was out of the picture.

"The doctor wants you to sit and relax," I instructed. "So sit. And relax. Watch me carry in boxes for a change." He was not pleased with this one bit.

For the next few weeks, I was to be his personal assistant. I didn't mind this—catering to my fiancé was not that difficult. Tintin wasn't a needy, demanding person; even if he tried to be.

The difficult part was having to be him.

I was unpacking a box of books in the study upstairs when there was a knock at the door. Tintin was seated at his desk, staring at a book on the table blankly.

"I'll get it," I murmured, standing and hurrying downstairs. When I opened the door, two children were standing on the porch. "Hello," I said cheerfully, "This is Tintin's house."

"We're here for Mister Tintin," one of them, a small boy, announced quietly.

"Whatever for?"

"Our parents were murdered, ma'am," the older child, a girl about ten, answered. It was then that I noticed a baby in her arms. I immediately thought of myself and ushered them inside.

"Please, come sit down. Get out of the cold. Come in, come now," I gestured for the sofa, which was covered in an array of boxes and objects. Tintin was descending the stairs at the same time the children were sitting down, watching the scene unfold in front of him.

"Who's this?" He asked, and I silenced him.

"What are your names, children?" I sat down in a chair adjacent from the sofa where they were huddled.

"I'm Alice," said the girl, "this is Henry, and this is Lilly." She pointed to her little brother and baby sister as she introduced them. She was wearing a dark blue dress with a fold of buttons near the collar, black stockings, well-worn leather shoes, and there was a leather bag slung around her shoulder. She bounced her feet on the floor as she sat there, tucked the baby closer to her chest, held her little brother's hand.

"Tell me everything that happened." I instructed, and Tintin came to sit on the arm of my chair. Alice was about to speak but froze as soon as she saw Tintin. I turned and looked at Tintin before looking back at Alice, smiling. He had red stubble coming in—he'd broken his right wrist and was unable to do anything that required that hand—one of those things was shaving.

"Y-you're Tintin," She said so quietly I almost didn't hear her. Her eyes were wide as she stared at Tintin, completely flabbergasted at his presence.

"Yes I am," he smiled. "Now, Alice, you were telling Nollie everything."

"Right, I was," Alice shifted the baby in her arms, tightened her grip on her brother's hand, and began to talk. "Henry and I came home from the grocery last week to find a bunch of police officers outside of our flat. We…we asked them what was going on, and they asked for our names. I told them that we were Alice and Henry Ashworth, and the officers instructed us that our parents had been murdered. They gave us Lilly, and our neighbor, Mrs. Emberton, took us in for a few days to allow us time to recover and gather some things from the flat." Fat tears began to roll down Henry's little freckled face.

"So what do you want us to do?" I asked.

"We—I think I know who might've done such a thing," she murmured, "But I want Tintin's help."

As I was making dinner that evening, I was setting up a makeshift bed for Henry in my bedroom—Alice had my bed—all the while trying to find an appropriate bed for Lilly in the office. I'd be sleeping in Tintin's room until all of this settled down.

"Do you have any relatives that will be able to take you in?" Tintin asked Alice, balancing Lilly in his good arm delicately, "Anyone at all?"

"No sir," Alice shrugged, "Our grandparents all died when I was little, and all that's left is our uncle Paul, who lives in Boston. He doesn't even know we exist." She was wringing her hands together as she spoke to Tintin, a complete nervous wreck. Tintin was undoubtably someone she fancied.

"Boston, Massachusetts? In the United States?" His voice had an edge of excitement to it at this.

"Yes, sir." I finished making Henry's bed and hurried down to the kitchen to finish dinner. Henry was seated amidst the boxes in the parlor, digging through one of them. Tintin followed me into the kitchen, still holding Lilly.

"Nollie, we should adopt them," he said, shifting Lilly in his arm so he was cradling her, "I mean, c'mon, they need a home! It's either us or their uncle in Boston who doesn't even know who they are."

"Or the orphanage," I murmured, stirring the green beans on the stovetop, "Tintin, we can't. We can't! We're not even married. And I…I don't know how to take care of a baby! I don't know how to raise a four-year-old, or parent a ten-year-old! Tintin, we can't. It would be unfair to them."

"How would it be unfair to them?"

"We'd be cheating them out of a good life by adopting them. Two unmarried teenagers with no parenting skills, just adopting three kids? They deserve better than that." I was about to walk across the kitchen to reach the sink, but Tintin stopped me and plopped Lilly in my arms.

"Look at her," he said quietly. I gazed down at the chubby, blue-eyed six-month-old who was sucking on her hand. She smiled when she saw us looking at her and cooed. "Look at her, Nollie. Isn't she something?" I handed her back to Tintin and walked over to the sink.

"She deserves a mother and father who will buy her all the dollies she wants. And a pony! Yes. She deserves parents who can buy her a pony, and a puppy, and everything her heart desires."

"She's not going to find that in an orphanage, Noll."

"Well she won't find that here, either!" His expression fell, and I took a deep breath. "Look. I would love to take in these children, believe me. Maybe we could give them a good home—but that wouldn't be until after we were married, and after I've read all the child rearing books in the whole world. And besides, we don't even know them!" Tintin stared down at Lilly again, longingly. "Children are not dogs, Tintin. You can't just keep the ones you find on the street."

So that's the first chapter of Tintin and the Orphans! I hope you enjoyed it! Please review! And remember to check out Tintin and Nollie's blog on Tumblr! XO ~DisneyPrincess55