(Disclaimer: I no own Tintin or any of the characters from the comics; they belong to Hergé. I DO own the unfamiliar characters that are involved in this story.)
The Strange Cat Burglar
Chapter 1: The Chatte Noir Strikes Again!
Last night, at the Ruben-Jaunâtre manor, the home of well-known business owner and philanthropist Claude Dupuis, the infamous Black Cat Burglar made his latest theft; again evading capture by the police with his prize; a small Faberge egg believed to be worth three million francs. However, after the thief's escape, authorities noticed many of the objects in Monsieur Dupuis's extensive collection were, in fact, stolen items from several months ago. Dupuis was immediately brought into custody for further questioning…
"Hmm," a young man hummed while processing this latest news, his short gingery tuff fluttering slightly in the wind as he sat on the park bench and a white fox terrier sitting down at his feet, cocking its head in curiosity at his master's sound.
"How incredible!" the journalist known as Tintin said, "This makes the twelfth robbery for the Chatte Noir, and after every theft, recently stolen items are discovered in the possession of the so-called victims. It doesn't make sense, Snowy. This has been far too many times for it to be a coincidence. It's as though this cat burglar is committing crimes to bring the real thieves to light."
'Don't bother with it, Tintin,' Snowy thought, 'Anyone with the word "cat" in their name is bad news.'
Tintin, of course, didn't hear his canine comrade's opinion and grabbed his coat saying, "Come on, Snowy! Let's go see what Thomson and Thompson have to say about this thief."
Reluctantly, the little dog went along with his master thinking, 'I'd better get a nice big bone after this.'
Excitement seemed to be abuzz at the Interpol office when the journalist and his loyal dog arrived. Secretaries scrambled to get paperwork in the right places, phones continued ringing off the hook, and the officers were arguing over whose deduction of the case was correct.
"I wonder if this is what Thomson and Thompson have to go through each day," Tintin wondered, "If it is, that would explain quite a bit about their actions."
Little Snowy woofed in amusement, agreeing with Tintin's statement about the sometimes helpful, but often bumbling policemen.
Sure enough, the said officers made their way to the young man, miraculously avoiding all the obstacles ahead of them.
"Hello, Tintin!" Thomson greeted, "Jolly good to see you!"
"Indeed, it's good to see you jolly!" Thompson added.
The journalist wasted no time, "Good day, gentlemen, I'm here to ask about that burglary last night."
"Ah, yes, the dastardly feline felon!" Thompson said, "We thought for we had him that time!"
Thomson concurred, "To be precise he thought we had the time!"
"What about Monsieur Dupuis?" Tintin asked.
"Well, it turns out he was behind the thefts during those several months; not the Chatte Noir but Mr. Dupuis." Thomson explained.
Thompson added, "As it turns out, he hired professional thieves to steal some and merely used underhanded trickery to get others."
"And the object that Chatte Noir stole?" the ginger haired young man inquired.
"The Faberge egg? That was quite peculiar." Thomson said.
"Peculiar? How so?" Thompson asked.
Thomson replied, "Don't you remember, Thompson? That woman came in here just last week, telling us a Faberge egg that looked exactly like the one the thief took was conned from her."
Tintin's ears perked up at this newfound information, "What was her name?"
"Nicole Endive, if I remember correctly." Thomson told him.
Just then, a secretary came up to the nearly identical detectives saying, "I just got a call from Mrs. Endive. Apparently that treasured item she told you about last week appeared on her window sill late last night along with a note that said 'Fortune is smiling on you.' with a small black cat drawn on the bottom."
"Great Scotland Yard!" Thompson cried, "It's the same as the others!"
"What others?" Tintin asked, even curious at these new findings.
Thompson explained, "You see, Tintin, several days or so before the Chatte Noir strikes, we get a report of a stolen item from someone, and each item the cat burglar steals is one of the same description. Then, the very next day, we receive a call from the people who had reported a robbery saying their stolen item had been returned, and each returned item had a card with it that says 'Fortune is smiling on you,' along with a drawing of a black cat at the bottom."
"This happens every time?" the journalist asked.
"Every single time!" Thompson said.
Tintin stopped and thought long and hard. 'Incredible! It's like a modern day Robin Hood; stealing back from thieves and returning the goods to their rightful owners, along with showing the authorities who the real thieves are and bringing them to justice. If only he wasn't considered a criminal. Still, this has all the makings of a great mystery.'
He then turned to his faithful pooch and said in an excited voice, "Snowy, it seems we have a new story on our hands! Come on, boy! Let's go tell the Captain!"
The young man then bolted out the doors of the Interpol office with Snowy right on his heels, all while saying, "Thank you, Thomson and Thompson!"
"You're welcome, Tintin!" they said in unison.
'Here he goes again,' Snowy thought as he ran quickly behind his master, 'Off on another bothersome adventure; and to find someone who works as a "cat" burglar, too.'
The same kind of newspaper that Tintin was reading earlier was angrily crumpled up by a stout, middle-aged man with an oily-black toupee on top of his bald head and seedy brown eyes, who grumbled silently to himself, "That accursed cat burglar! Making each of my associates be brought down to the authorities while stealing things himself! No wonder the police don't bother catching him. Twelve times he has crossed me already, but the Chatte Noir is about to discover that the number thirteen is bad luck for everyone; including him!" the greedy man then chuckled maliciously to himself, completely ignorant of the eavesdropper just outside his office.
Who is this mysterious man? What is the Chatte Noir really up to? Will Tintin, Captain Haddock and Snowy be able to find out? Stay tuned for the next chapter of The Strange Cat Burglar.