Hello once again! Let's start the last work week before Christmas with Chapter 3!

"Well, here we are. Marlinspike Hall." Tintin announces as we walk through the gates of the luxurious estate.

"Wow, fancy place." I reply, taking in the manicured lawns, the well-tended gardens and the mansion itself in its majesty.

I haven't been to a place like this since… I stop myself and try to redirect my thoughts. Focus, Katrina.

Once we enter, we are immediately attended to.

"The master Haddock is in the Maritime Gallery. He's been expecting you." The butler informs hastily and dashes to answer the telephone.

"Thank you, Nestor." Tintin calls after him and leads me past an enormous staircase and through a door. Before us sits a middle-aged gentleman clad in a blue sweater and sporting a scruffy black beard.

"Tintin!" The man exclaims, shaking the young reporter's hand eagerly.

Tintin smiles back with the same enthusiasm.

"Hello, Captain. It's been a while, hasn't it?"

"That it has, my boy. That it has."

The Captain then looks over at me with a perplexed expression.

"And who's this?"

"Oh, of course! Captain Haddock, this is Katrina Fleming. She's a new reporter at the office that I'm mentoring."

"Delighted, I'm sure." The Captain shakes my hand almost gingerly.

"Likewise," I say, trying not to mimic his bluntness.

Tintin seems to sense the tension between the two of us because he quickly goes on to explain the dilemma with the Professor.

"By thunder, old Cuthbert has gone missing again? This is at least the third time! When will they ever learn, the poltroons!" The Captain bellows at the conclusion of Tintin's story.

Not the most even-tempered man I've ever met.

"I don't understand either, Captain. I can think of no reason whatsoever as to why they'd take the Professor," Tintin remarks, deep in thought.

"But whoever 'they' are, would they be after the Professor himself or is this a trap to get a hold of one of you?" I muse, trying to get the case rolling in my head.

"Good question, Katrina. I honestly have no clue."

"It's the strangest thing though. I received a telegram from Cuthbert just yesterday!" The Captain exclaims.

Tintin snaps to attention.

"You did? What did it say?"

"Just that he was headed to yet another conference on nuclear something or other. I suppose he did mention that it might be a while before he got back, but he also said not to worry if that did happen." The Captain didn't seem to be any more certain than we were about the issue.

"Yes, but we know something that he doesn't," Tintin states.

"The man from Wadesdah!" I exclaim.

"Exactly," Tintin confirms.

"Well, at least now we know what we have to do." I say, relieved to be on the trail of an exciting story.

Tintin turns to the Captain.

"Sorry to be leaving so abruptly, but Katrina and I have some things to finish at the office. But I'll be back in a few hours."

"Of course, Tintin. See you then."

"It was nice to meet you, Captain!" I say as Tintin and I walk out of the room.

All I get in response is a glare that seems to say: "You'd better not bring that girl next time, Tintin."

Once Tintin and I get back to the village, we prepare to go our separate ways.

"I have some errands to run before I return to Marlinspike, so I'm afraid that I can't join you for the interviews. I know that I said that we were going back to the office, but it was obvious that the Captain had something against you." Tintin says as we step off the train.

"No, it's fine. Besides, I could use the practice and I have a few other things to do about as well." I assure him.

"Okay then. See you!" He flashes that gorgeous smile of his before briskly walking away.

My heart skips a beat.

Down girl, down.

I repeat to myself as I too walk away towards my apartment.

But are you really willing to go to Wadesdah with a boy you just met?

The question resounds in my head countless times.

"Katrina?" A gentle hand grasps my shoulder.

I whip around in surprise.

Who could possibly know me around here?

"Katrina Fleming!" The owner of the voice cries out joyfully.

"Holly!" I say in surprise, embracing the middle-aged woman.

"What on God's green earth are you doing here in Brussels?" She asks, giving me one hug after another.

"What am I doing here? I moved here about three months ago on business. What are you doing here?" I bounce the question right back.

"Haven't you heard? I'm here taking care of my other daughter, Helen. Polio, you know, darling."

"I'm sorry." I say sadly, remembering what a wonderful dancer Helen used to be.

"Oh, don't be child. These things happen. And how is my Violet?"

"I got a letter from her about a week ago and she is doing well." I smile, and I promise I can hear my best friend's laugh right now.

"Oh, you absolutely have to come to my place for some tea, Katrina. Come and tell me how life has been for you since I saw you last."

Holly's invitation immediately makes me think of Tintin.

"All right, then." I say hesitantly. "Thank you."

Once inside Holly's luxurious apartment, she immediately puts the kettle on and in no time, we have the hot tea ready.

"Here you go, dearie. Chamomile tea with two lumps of sugar." She gently hands me the steaming china cup.

"You remembered!" I beam, inhaling the warm, sweet drink. It smells like home.

"Of course, darling." Holly gently eases into an armchair.

"So tell me, Katrina. How are you? What's going on in your life?"

I tell her about my new job at Le Petit Vingtieme.

"Oh, how exciting!" She says enthusiastically, while helping herself to more tea.

I make a face.

"Not really. It's been kind of slow the past couple of weeks, but we are working on a story right now that looks promising."

"I'm glad," Holly smiles. "Have you met the famous Tintin yet? If I remember correctly, he's a reporter for Le Petit Vingtieme as well."

"I've more than met him, Holly. He's a good friend of mine and he's my mentor as well." I say, imagining the ginger haired reporter with his unmistakable quiff.

"Yes, he's a handsome young fellow, isn't he?" Holly replies dreamily.

"Very." I blurt before I can catch myself.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say that you have feelings for him," Holly half-teases with a wink.

"Hardly," I scoff. "He's just a friend."

"That's what they all say, dearie." Holly reminds me.

I can feel myself blushing madly, and I color even more at the memory of the last time I had this conversation with Holly. We were talking about…him.

"By the way, what happened to that Eric fellow you were with back in New York?" Holly asks as if she were reading my mind.

I can feel myself shudder at the sound of his name.

"Did I hit a nerve?" Holly says with worry lines crossing her forehead when I don't respond.

"N-No, it's fine," I say to Holly, but I can see that she's not buying it.

"Darling, you know that you don't have to lie to me." Holly says, her tone more gentle.

"No, really. I'm just going through a tough time, that's all." I reassure her.

"Did you ever think, dearie, that maybe it would be good for you to talk about it?" Holly encourages.

"I honestly wouldn't know." I say to the floor. "If anyone is the expert, it's you."

Holly gently lifts my face and I find myself looking into her blue-gray eyes, rich with wisdom.

"Katrina, you are so insecure. I can tell that you are running away from things that have happened to you, things that haunt you. Don't be afraid to embrace your emotions, they will weigh you down and keep you from taking the opportunities offered to you from day to day. But you need to talk to someone; you shouldn't be bearing your burdens alone. You don't have to tell me right now, but I'll be here when you're ready."

I wrap my arms around the woman who reminds me so much of my late mother.

"Thank you." I whisper, nearly in tears.

"That's all right, dearie. Anything for such a good friend of my Violet." She says, holding me close.

"One more thing to remember. It is said that the truth will set you free. So you don't have to sugar-coat things with me. I'm here to listen, just come when you want to talk." Holly assures, while stroking my chestnut hair.

"Thank you," I repeat. "Thank you for everything."

So what will become of Tintin and Katrina in Wadesdah? Find out in Chapter 4, which will come soon! Cue the music and let the action begin! As always, please review with your thoughts!

While we're still on the topic of reviews, here's a shout-out to unemouette about historical accuracy:

"No worries about being too harsh; on the contrary, I really appreciate the constructive criticism and I'm glad that you took the time to read and even peruse this story for possible mistakes I made! (And knowing myself, I probably made even more mistakes than the ones that you pointed out :D)

Anyway, in response to your points…

If you read my author's note at the end of chapter 2, you'll see that I mention that the year that this story takes place is 1947, therefore making it post-WWII when women did have jobs although I'm not entirely sure if a reporter was among them nor if the same was true in the country of Belgium at the time (gathered from what I could find out from a 30-second Google search :D)

Another thing, I consider Tintin's DOB to be January 10, 1929 (which I'm sure that you recognize as the day that Tintin made his first appearance in "Le Petit Vingtième" ) making him eighteen years old in my story.

And finally about Katrina's name, I chose it upon a selection of what name suited her after writing a little bit of dialogue and her thoughts when I first wrote her character. I admit that yes, it is a modern name; unfortunately I didn't really consider the historical accuracy of it! And I made her American because like you, I am American as well, and I felt that I would be able to make her character more believable if she were of the same culture as me.

As for the answers to rest of your questions, you just have to keep reading (mwah haha) ;)

Anyway, I apologize for any inconvenience, and again, thank you for taking the time to read my story and caring about it enough to correct the not-so-perfect aspects of it!

God bless, Dancer1023"