Author's note: another new story. I just can't seem to be stopped! I shouldn't complain about having inspiration; I just wish that the time I need to act on each idea automatically came with it!
This came about from looking at reference material for a graphic design job, and noticing that Tombo of Kiki's Delivery Service and Tintin of... well, The Adventures of Tintin, have almost identical hairstyles. It suddenly struck me, and it was so weird - had Miyazaki-san watched the Tintin cartoons? Was it just coincidence? What would happen if the two characters knew each other? It occurred to me, firstly, that the towns in each were similar enough to be in the same world, even the same continent, almost the same country (though apparently Koriko is modeled on Sweden, among various other locals; parts of it certainly wouldn't look out of place in Brussels). And secondly, why not make Tintin and Tombo brothers? The plot evolved from there!
To be clear, I am NOT shipping Kiki with Tintin. If she is intended to end up with anyone, I would say it is Tombo; but this story focuses more on friendship and youthful high-jinks than anything even remotely romantic.
Takes place post-film, post-Black Island (my favourite comic in the series!)
No disrespect is meant to either Herge and Moulinsart, or Miyazaki and Ghibli - I like to think that their characters would all get along well together!
Please enjoy this slightly unusual crossover! ~ W.J.
The Junior Witch and the Journalist
Chapter One
Kiki soared along High Street. She was enjoying the warmth of the fresh summer air; the limitless blue shade of the clear sky above; the pleasant heat radiating from the sunlit buildings on either side. Jiji appeared to be enjoying it all, too. He was curled up on her lap, his claws gently hooked in her dress to keep himself from slipping, half-dozing as they hovered some twenty feet above the ground.
Kiki grinned as she felt him snuggle against the folds of her skirt, sleeping soundly. I must be a steadier flier than I was before, she thought to herself.
She made sure to keep to her half of the road, staying well inside her lane, though she easily overtook several cars that trundled along below her. It wasn't really necessary; she was the only traffic to be found at this height. However, it was a good habit to get into, for those occasions when she flew at street-level.
She passed over a busy intersection. When the policeman on duty looked up and noticed her, he pretended to motion her onward. She laughed, waving down to him, and at the stopped motorists who had also seen her, many of them watching her fly on with wistful expressions.
She turned off High Street, onto Holburn Lane. A second-storey window box was filled to overflowing with some kind of white-petalled bloom; it wafted sweet-smelling perfume over her as she passed level with it. She breathed deeply, savouring the way the scent mingled with the slight tang of the distant ocean, carried down the street to her on an errant snatch of sea breeze.
The more time she spent in this place, the more things she found to love about it.
There was a rickety-sounding creeeak somewhere, above and to her right. A window slid open, and a voice called: "Kiki!"
She had shot past it by the time she recognized who it was; she banked hastily, turning back towards it. Jiji woke, roused by the sudden change of pace and direction. He hopped onto the broom-handle in front of her in order to get a better view of where they were headed, his tail twitching as he recognized someone they both knew.
"Hello, Nico," Kiki said, coming over to float alongside her friend's windowsill.
"Hey. I thought I caught a glimpse of you zooming past. Hello there, Jiji."
Nico - as she insisted on being called, never Nicolette - extended a hand. Kiki edged close enough for her to pat Jiji, who had climbed up onto her shoulder and was offering his head for her caress, purring contentedly.
"Are you just finishing for the day?" Nico asked, eying the sling that hung from the broom. It lay slack, empty of its usual parcels.
"Yes," Kiki said, then hurriedly corrected herself. "Almost. I've got one more thing to deliver; I just have to head back to the bakery and pick it up first."
"I'll let you keep at it, then," Nico said; then she added, almost as an afterthought: "Are you going to Tombo's tonight?"
"Y-yes," Kiki replied, feeling a little flustered. She often stopped at Tombo's place last on her route, but she didn't know that Nico knew about that.
Nico grinned. "I'll be there, too. Any excuse for a party is a good one! I was just trying to decide what to wear."
She gestured at the room behind her; the bed was covered with flouncy dresses that were in various crumpled states, littering the coverlet like scattered flowers that were just starting to wilt. "Perhaps I'll wear my best black one," she said, pointing at a swathe of dark chiffon that was draped over the back of a chair, dangling one filmy organza sleeve. "Then we could match!"
Kiki laughed, bid her friend farewell, then urged her broom forward again. To her dismay, her heart had started to beat faster, and her stomach was a pit of nerves. Jiji swivelled his head around to look at her from his perch in front of her, fixing her with an eloquent stare. It was an almost interrogative look; he seemed to be frowning up at her. She frowned right back at him.
"Don't give me that look," she told him, her voice short. "You can't blame me for still worrying about parties - we don't exactly have the best experience with them! Besides, no one ever expects you to turn up in anything other than your usual black outfit; and if you accidentally do something wrong, claw the furniture or shed hair on the tablecloth, nobody makes a fuss about it. You have no idea how hard it is for the rest of us!"
Jiji eyed her sceptically, then blinked several times, in a rather dismissive way. Kiki sighed and ruffled his ears, as much to reassure herself as him.
She'd had no idea that Tombo was throwing a party. If she had, she would have avoided his place tonight. It was true that since arriving in town, she had made a few new friends among the Aviation Club and Tombo's other acquaintances - Nico included. But the thought of facing so many unknown people at once made her pulse flutter and her mouth go dry.
She guided her broom along the thoroughfare. Now she was close enough to the ocean to see it, stretched out before her like a second sky, the city nestled along its edge. The scent of salt-air was far stronger now; though it was very nearly over-powered by the enticing smell of freshly-baked bread.
Before she reached the 'Gutiokipanja' sign, she banked hard to the left, turned down a side alley, rose steeply in order to clear two neighbouring rooftops, and went into a direct descent, her feet touching down at the centre of the bakery's backyard. She dismounted her broom, hoisting it over her shoulder. Jiji leapt down onto the lawn beside her. She noticed that his gaze went straight to the window of the neighbouring house.
"Do you need to drop in and see Lily?" Kiki asked him.
He took a step away from her, then stopped and looked back, meowing softly. Though she couldn't understand him in words anymore, Kiki knew him well enough to guess what he was saying.
"I'll wait until you get back, if you're willing to come on with me. Don't rush. I want to stop and talk to Osono, anyway."
He looked up at her for a moment longer, then blinked at her in silent agreement. Without further hesitation, he dashed across the yard, leapt from the wrought-iron table to the top of the wall, then trotted along it until he reached the window that Maki always kept ajar for him. He slipped inside, disappearing from her view. Though she knew he would be back soon, Kiki suddenly felt a little lonely without him. If she was going to a room filled with strange people, it would comfort her to know that she at least had someone that she knew - besides Tombo and Nico - who would stay by her side the whole time. She knew he would keep his promise and come with her; for now, knowing this was comfort enough.
Turning towards the bakery, she looked up at the sign hanging outside her window - the one Tombo had put up for her.
She smiled as she looked at it. He had worked so hard to make it for her. He really was a very nice person; she just wished that his friends didn't make her so nervous. She liked him, and though she knew he liked her too - much as she had tried to discourage him - she always worried that his friends wouldn't be so understanding. She knew that they were all really nice people - they must be, if they were friends with him - but it was still daunting, having to speak to people she didn't know well, and who hadn't gotten to know her yet. She was so worried she would say or do the wrong thing, give the wrong impression; after all, that was just what had nearly spoiled her friendship with Tombo, before it had even begun.
As she crossed the courtyard, she glanced at the stairway that led up to her room. She wondered if she should go up and brush her hair, tidy herself a bit, ready for the party. She had no other dress to change into, no accessories other than her hair-ribbon, not even any make-up to put on; so that was the very least she could do. But as she thought about it, she realized that there was little point. If she arrived by broom, the breeze would just mess up her hair and ruffle her clothes again anyway.
She carefully opened the side door to the bakery, closing it soundlessly behind her. She tip-toed down the side passage, then stuck her head into the back room. Osono was sitting on the sofa, knitting something small and fluffy, made of sky-blue yarn.
"Hello," she said, in a low murmur. "I thought I heard you come in."
"Hi, Osono," Kiki replied, also talking in a whisper. "I tried to be quiet, so I wouldn't wake her."
As she spoke, she smiled at the cradle-like basket that sat on the sofa cushion beside Osono. Not a peep issued from it, save for the occasional soft, drowsy intake of breath, made by the infant sleeping inside. She knew that the shop was usually quiet at this time of day - after the mid-morning rush, before the home-going crowd - making now the ideal time for the baby to sleep. She would have come through the front of the shop, as she usually did; but the bell above the door might have woken her.
Osono chuckled. There were slight shadows under her eyes, as there would be on any new parent, without exception; but she smiled a warm, tender smile at the bundle sleeping beside her. "She's been napping soundly for more than an hour now." She set aside her knitting and came over to Kiki, allowing herself to speak a bit more loudly. "How did your deliveries go? You seem a bit earlier today."
"It went well," said Kiki, with a broad grin. "I've found a couple of new shortcuts, so I've sped up a bit. I need to, with all the customers I have these days."
Over the past few weeks, her business had grown; once word had gotten out, she had stopped having to wait too long between deliveries. Now, her daily rounds took her all over the city, and she was constantly taking on new clients. It kept her busy, but she enjoyed it.
"I've just got the last one left," she told Osono.
"Ah, yes." Osono gave a small, understanding nod. "I already set Tombo's things aside. You might need the sling for it; it's a particularly large order today."
"Oh. W-well, that might be because of the party," Kiki said, in a small voice.
Osono learned toward her, her grin spreading on either side. "A party?" she said. "That explains it! No wonder he wants so much food . You didn't tell me there was a party on tonight!" She was evidently surprised; she would have expected to have heard all about it as soon as it was announced.
"I only just found out," Kiki informed her, twisting her hands together anxiously. "If he ordered it from here, he must know that I'm coming to deliver it. I don't know why he didn't-"
"He probably thought you wouldn't turn up if he told you beforehand," Osono finished for her. She smiled kindly as she watched Kiki fall silent and look down at her shoes. She knew how bashful Kiki could be; she had hit close to the truth.
She chuckled again, patting the girl's arm companionably. Even before she had become a mother, she had felt a protective, maternal bond with this little witch, who was so eager and tried so hard, yet was so prone to be uncertain of herself. She well remembered how it felt to be that age; sometimes, she wondered if her husband had ever progressed past it, he was still so shy.
"I'm sure you'll have a great time," she told Kiki, her tone soft and reassuring. "Now, you'd better get a move on. If the party is starting soon, they'll be wanting to have that food ready for their guests." She gave Kiki a wink. "Throw in an extra bag of shortbread cookies, as a treat from Fukuo and me."
Kiki beamed back at her. They both knew that shortbread was Tombo's favourite. She gave an affirmative nod, then darted out into the hallway again, heading for the front of the shop.
Tombo's order, packed in a large brown-paper bag, sat on a shelf that was set among the racks of bread that lined the back of the shop. Fukuo was perched on the stool behind the counter, his head resting in his hand. He stifled a yawn as Kiki came in. She quickly smothered a laugh. She herself often felt bored when she was stuck looking after the shop; but Fukuo seemed grateful for the peace and quiet. He looked as though he could use a little rest.
Seeing her come in, he nodded to her in greeting. She nodded back. He was a man of few words, and Kiki didn't talk to him that much herself - he was such a big, gruff man, she still felt a bit self-conscious when speaking to him on her own - but he was friendly and kind, in his own way. Kiki liked him a lot - as much as she liked Osono.
"I'm going to Tombo's place tonight," she told him. "Unless you need me to watch the shop for you-?"
He shook his head vigorously in reply, then grunted, waving a hand towards the door, as if her were urging her through it. Talking to him was very similar to communicating with Jiji; she quickly deciphered the message behind his charades.
"If you're sure," she said, inclining her head in thanks.
He gave a decisive nod, then smiled broadly at her, making a thumbs-up sign. Giving him a smile of her own, she returned the gesture, then took the large bag of pastries - plus an extra packet of shortbread cookies - back through into the house.
She was just a little bit disappointed. If she'd had to watch the store, she needn't have had to worry about the party.
As she came through into the back room again, she found Jiji already there, half-leaning upon the knitting in Osono's lap, letting her scratch him behind the ears. He jumped down and twined himself around Kiki's ankles as she arrived, signalling that he was ready to go with her. She reached down and stroked him; she was grateful for his company.
"I'll be going now," she told Osono, trying to sound casual, though she was growing more and more nervous as the event grew ever closer. "I'm not sure when I'll be back..."
"I'll make a bit of extra supper for you," Osono told her. "I'll leave it in your room, by the stove, so just heat it up when you get back. Enjoy yourself," she added, since the girl's worries were plainly visible in her face, "and give our regards to Tombo and his family. Be sure to thank him for the mobile. Our little girl loves it." As she spoke, she lovingly smoothed the tiny, dark head of hair that poked just above the rim of the basket.
Kiki smiled at the thought. She also liked the mobile that Tombo had made for the baby. Hanging from a wooden ring - "one of Mother's old embroidery hoops," he had explained to Kiki when he had first shown it to her - were a flock of folded paper cranes, wheeling in an arc above the cradle. A cut-out paper figure of a witch, a tiny cat clinging to her broom, dangled in their midst.
"I'll tell him," she assured Osono. "Good-bye - and bye to you too, baby," she added, bobbing a quick curtsy to the lightly-snoring basket. She got no reply, though the gesture made Osono giggle.
Out in the yard, she stepped astride her broom - Jiji settling upon the handle in front of her - and took off, trailing the bag of baked goods beneath her. She sailed out over the edge of the bluff that the yard backed onto, rounded the side of the bakery, and continued over the sea of rooftops that glittered in the sun below her.
This side of town was closer to the ocean. She could hear the cries of gulls, see the late afternoon sun slanting between ships' masts, taste the salty tingle on the wind every time she drew breath.
Despite her anxiousness about the party, it was good to be on the familiar route to Tombo's place. He was always happy to see her, eager to offer her tea and tell her all about the latest flying contraption he had designed. If she could still do those things with him, besides there being a party today, perhaps it wouldn't be so bad after all.
Preoccupied with these thoughts, she didn't properly take in her surroundings. She approached the small balcony that jutted out of the walkway in front of Tombo's place, as she always did. She didn't notice the nearby treetops tossed by a sudden strong gust; if she had, she would have read the oncoming wind and altered her course around it.
Jiji, who was paying slightly more attention than she was, yowled a warning - a moment too late.
A sudden blast caught them, lifting them up and dragging them sideways. Kiki clung desperately to her broom, glad that it was an up-draft; otherwise it might have slammed her against the hard stone wall. Luckily, they had cleared it, and were instead thrown above Tombo's house, swiftly gathering height. She clenched the broom handle, wrestling back control, flattening herself down as much as she could to reduce wind-drag as she struggled against the current. The force of it abated for a moment, then surged again, catching her off-guard. She found herself swept sideways yet again; this time, the large tree in Tombo's yard loomed in her path.
She ducked and dipped the handle, barely missing a large branch. Another just barely clipped her shoulder, and she grasped it, using it to steady herself. She lowered the broom hurriedly, getting below the garden wall; it acted as a windbreak, shielding her from the worst gusts and allowing her to guide the broom to the ground. She landed a little shakily, hastily checking the sling and finding, to her relief, that the bag of pastries were still there - a few croissants now looked slightly crumpled, and a corner had broken off one of the shortbreads, but it was otherwise all still intact.
It was only then that she realized Jiji was no longer with her.
"Jiji!" she called, craning her head around for any sign of him. She hoped he had made it over the wall with her, and hadn't fallen off before she cleared the cliff's edge...
An answering meow came from just above her head. She looked up, just as Jiji ran nimbly along a branch, his whiskers nearly brushing her hair-bow. He clambered from this branch to a lower one, then leapt daintily to the ground, shaking out his fur and raising his tail high.
He looked more than a little smug. She could just imagine him saying: "There, at least one of us arrived with some kind of decorum!"
At that moment, they were met with an unexpected greeting: a strident bark, coming from somewhere close to the house.
At the sound, Jiji froze; his fur bristled from ears to tail, and his eyes widened fearfully. Before he could react further, a small white shape hurtled across the yard, yapping furiously as it launched itself at him.
Jiji shot off, trailing his assailant. Kiki realized, with a hurried glance, that it was a little white terrier. It was snapping eagerly at the cat's heels, obviously enjoying the chase. Jiji was not; he scrambled for the wall and, finding no way up it, sprinted back the way he had come, the dog dashing close behind him. The cat's dismayed yowling and the dog's eager barks were enough racket to reach the entire neighbourhood.
The back door banged open. "Jiji...?" Tombo asked, looking around in surprise. There was a smear of grease on his spectacles' right lens, and a spanner poked out of his back pocket. He had obviously just come from the garage.
He instantly grasped what was going on. "The dog-!" he shouted, running towards it; Jiji changed direction, and both animals veered away from him.
"Can you call it off?" Kiki asked him, shouting to be heard over the din. She had been trying to get Jiji's attention, motioning him towards safety, to no avail; he was so desperate to get away, he wasn't looking at her.
"I'll try," Tombo called back, looking more than a little doubtful. "Here, boy, here! Heel, boy!" he tried, snapping his fingers and making coaxing noises. The dog ignored him, intent upon its prize.
As they neared the house, a hand shot out, seizing Jiji firmly by the scruff of his neck. He ran in mid-air for a moment, then went still, paws splayed, as he was hoisted out of harm's way.
The dog skidded to an abrupt halt in front of the boy who had just appeared. He was older and taller than Tombo, without glasses, but with the same ginger-coloured hair; it was swept up in an almost identical peaked quiff above his forehead. He raised an eyebrow at the terrier; it whimpered, tail dropping and ears drooping sheepishly.
"Bad dog, Snowy!" he scolded it. "You nearly frightened this poor fellow to death!" He raised Jiji to his own head-height, looking the traumatized cat in the eye. Jiji stared blankly back at his rescuer, clearly not yet sure whether he might share his pet's hostility towards cats.
"Just as well he wouldn't know what to do with you if he caught you," the boy told him, with a chagrined expression upon his face. "Your owner wouldn't have forgiven me if you'd been eaten up for supper. He's a greedy little dog, but he's not really that mean."
The boy crossed the yard, handing the cat over to a very relieved Kiki. "Sorry for the scare," he said, smiling as Jiji clambered up her shoulder and clung to the sleeve of her dress, still watching him with wary eyes.
"Thank you for saving him," Kiki said, gratefully.
"That's alright. It was my disobedient mutt who caused the trouble in the first place." He shot the dog a withering look, making it cower and hide behind Tombo.
Tombo laughed, reaching down to pat its head comfortingly. "And here, I thought the dog was the boss of you," he said, in a half-taunting tone of voice that Kiki hadn't heard him use with anyone else before.
"Only because I'm too busy being your overlord," the strange boy retorted, making Tombo stick out his tongue in response.
Kiki looked from one of them to the other, puzzled. Seeing her confusion, Tombo came over to her; but he spoke to the older boy. "You've saved the cat, but neglected to explain to my friend who you are," he admonished. "This is Kiki, the one I told you about in my letter. Just wait until you see her fly - I reckon she's an even better pilot than you!"
"You mean the witch...? So you're the famous Kiki!" Something akin to recognition came into the older boy's face. "Sorry for the tardy introduction," he said, offering a hand for Kiki to shake. "I'm Tintin, Tombo's older brother."
Author's notes: well, that's it for chapter one. A few quick notices:
I originally wrote Osono's baby as a boy; but on consulting screen-caps, I saw that she was shown knitting something pink, and so assumed it was for a girl. It's nice to think that a little girl will grow up with Aunty Kiki as her role model! I made a mobile for a uni assignment the same way as Tombo, out of embroidery hoops; funnily enough, I now remember that the theme for the mobile was Spirited Away.
Now might be a good time to mention that I have drawn some Tintin fan art, depicting him and Snowy helping an earthquake victim in Nepal - as a recipient of the Dalai Lama's humanitarian award, he was an obvious choice for the kind of hero they need over there - and I am thinking of selling it as a print to raise funds for the relief efforts. Anyone interested in purchasing a print, please send me a PM, I'll let you know when it has been set up. You can view the art by going to deviantart dot com and typing 'Tintin in Nepal' into the search box at the top of the page, it should be the first result to come up (my username is Wai-Jing over there).
I hope everyone enjoyed this story thus far. Please write a review and let me know if you liked it! Also, for those who don't know, I have another Tintin story, 'The Red Feather', just starting out as well - if you liked this one, you might like that one too! ~ W.J.