1

Tintin let out a huff of breath as he fiddled with the tie around his neck. He could swear he had fixed the darn thing a hundred times, but it still wasn't straight. He kept staring at his reflection, and just when he thought he looked perfect, he would find some tiny flaw that needed fixing. The tie wouldn't be straight, or his jacket would look wrinkled, or there would be some dust bunny resting on his lapel or on his shoulder. Snowy was growing restless, pacing back and forth from the kitchen to Tintin's office to his bedroom and the living room. He would occasionally whine or bark at Tintin, who would just shoo him away, saying, "I'm almost ready."

After a while, he heard a knock at his door and he looked back to see Juliet letting herself in. She smiled at him and he found himself frozen for a moment as he looked at her. She was wearing a lovely mint green dress that went down to her knees with a simple V-neck collar, the sleeves went down to her forearms and she wore white pantyhose underneath. Her red hair was tied back into an elegant bun, with two strands hanging down to frame her face, which had been lightly decorated with makeup. "Evening, Tintin."

"Good evening." He returned the greeting, giving her a smile, "You look beautiful."

She blushed at the compliment as she approached him, "You don't look so bad yourself."

"You don't think it's too much?" Tintin asked, turning back to the mirror and straightening his tie for what felt like the umpteenth time.

Juliet let out a small giggle, "Oh, here." She turned him around to face her and she straightened his tie for him. "You don't need to do anything special to impress him. Just come with me and be your usual wonderful self and you'll be fine."

"Are you sure?" Tintin asked, "I don't want him to disapprove."

"He won't." Juliet assured him, looking up at him, "Trust me, you are a man after my father's own heart."

Tintin didn't say anything, still a little unsure about meeting Juliet's father. Juliet had been invited to a party for one of her father's friends, who was a rather successful businessman overseas, and he had told her father that he could bring his entire family. Juliet had been talking to her family about Tintin (She had gone missing for about a week so the questions came pouring in about what had happened) and she had been more than happy to fill them in on the details of the adventure he had taken them on. Tintin had never met any of them, but from what Juliet had told him, her younger brother was very excited to meet him. And Snowy. She hadn't said much about her father, only that he was looking forward to meeting "The young man who's stolen my daughter." Tintin didn't know if he was trying to joke about it, or be threatening, but he was intimidated still.

Juliet smiled once his tie was straight and patted his chest. "Come on. The cab won't wait all night."

"Wait, just one last check—" Tintin tried to turn around to check himself in the mirror one last time, but Juliet cut him off by tugging on his tie and pulling him away from his reflection. He made a choking sound as Juliet pulled him out of the apartment. Snowy eagerly followed them out. Once the door was shut, Juliet stopped tugging on the necktie but she still kept her hand loosely gripped to the end. Tintin coughed for a moment before pulling at the tie so it would be looser around his neck, "Juliet!"

"Tintin, don't worry so much about appearances." She said, keeping her voice low as she gently pulled on the tie, using it to bring his face closer to hers. He could feel himself blushing, and Juliet's cheeks were a little red as well, "You look undeniably handsome. And I'm glad the only other person who will be competing for your attention tonight will be your dog." She pulled him closer and pressed a gentle kiss on his lips. Tintin returned it, but before they had a chance to go a little further, Snowy barked at them from downstairs.

They separated and walked down to where the cab was waiting for them. Tintin held the door open for Juliet and Snowy, who jumped in just before Tintin slid in beside her. Juliet gave the cabbie the address of the event and he took off. Tintin still kept fiddling with his tie and jacket the whole way over, and every time he did, Juliet would assure him that he looked fine, and he really did. She hadn't seen Tintin in a formal suit before now, and she had to admit he looked incredibly dashing. She found herself helping Tintin straighten his tie and jacket during the car ride, just so he could have the comfort of being told that it was truly straight and she had helped him.

By the time they had arrived at the mansion where the party was being held, Tintin had unbuttoned and re-buttoned his jacket 17 times, attempted to flatten the quiff in his hair 23 times, removed mites of dust from his jacket 28 times, and had his tie straightened and adjusted 31 times. At that point, he looked as dashing and dapper as he possibly could, and he still felt like he needed to prep some more.

"Tintin, the party won't last all night!" Juliet said as she pushed him out of the taxi. Snowy barked at him from outside the car, having been the first one to hop out when Tintin opened the door.

"Are you absolutely sure my tie is straight?" Tintin asked as he resisted Juliet's pushing by keeping his arm against the frame of the car door, "Because it still feels a bit crooked—"

"For God's sake, Tintin, the meter's still running!" Juliet snapped, finally succeeding in pushing him out, forcing him to stumble on the sidewalk while she paid the cabbie. Once she got out and shut the door behind her, the taxi took off and Juliet sighed in relief. She turned to Tintin, seeing that he was straightening his tie again. Juliet crossed her arms over her chest, her hip moving out to one side as she shifted her weight to one foot, the other one starting to tap impatiently against the concrete. Tintin glanced up at her, and his fingers stilled when he saw her dryly quirk one brow up. "Are you about done, Tintin?"

"Yes, I'm done." Tintin said, clearing his throat awkwardly. He offered out his arm to Juliet and she smiled as she linked her arm with his and the two of them started walking towards the entrance. "By the way, Juliet," She glanced at him, "You look absolutely gorgeous tonight."

"You've already said that." Juliet said.

"No, I called you beautiful before." Tintin said, "This time I said you look gorgeous."

"I hope you don't plan on spending the entire night trying to come up with different ways to compliment me." Juliet said with a laugh. As an afterthought, she added, "Although they are appreciated."

"I thought they might be." Tintin replied.

Juliet nodded at the doorman, who returned the gesture before pushing the doors open. Inside, Tintin saw elegant crystal chandeliers hanging down from the ceiling as they walked into the warmly lit foyer. There were already many other people in attendance, all of them dressed very formally as they spoke to other associates. The doors closed behind them and Juliet directed Tintin to his left where he saw a large room that he was quite certain had a ballroom at some point, but for now it was used as a dining room with a long table with a velvet tablecloth stretching down. On top of the tablecloth were many dishes with exotic or luxurious meals like shrimp or lamb legs. He was fairly certain he saw a silver platter that had a small tower of sushi, but before he had a chance to get a better look, his attention was redirected to another party attendant.

A little boy with black hair dressed in a small gray suit came running over to them. He couldn't have been more than five or six years old and Juliet removed her arm from Tintin's as she knelt down and caught him as he jumped up, laughing. She stood up, wrapping her arms around the little boy, keeping one hand underneath his rear as she picked him up. He hugged her around the neck with a happy cry.

"Julie!" He cheered.

"Hello Richie!" Juliet greeted, giving him a peck on the cheek, "My goodness, you look handsome tonight."

The little boy pulled back from Juliet, smiling proudly as he held up his sleeves, showing the buttoned cuffs, "I did the buttons all by myself!"

"Oh, did you?" Juliet said, "Aren't you a big boy! Next thing I know, you'll be telling me you have a fiancée and you're getting married."

"Ew!" Richie's nose wrinkled up in disgust, "I don't want to get married! Girls are icky."

"Does that mean you think I'm icky?" Juliet asked with a teasing grin. Richie shook his head.

"No, you're not a girl. You're my sissy!" He hugged her around the neck again and Juliet laughed.

"Oh, I've missed you, sweetheart." She said, returning the small hug. She turned around to face Tintin, "Tintin, this is my little brother Richard. Richie, this is my friend Tintin. Can you say hello?"

Richard suddenly became shy at the sight of Tintin, and he hid his face in Juliet's shoulder. Tintin smiled at the sight of it and held out his hand.

"It's very nice to meet you, Richard." He said.

Richard peeked out from Juliet's shoulder and his small hand reached out to wrap around Tintin's fingers. Tintin's hand practically engulfed Richard's, but that didn't deter the child from shaking his hand. "It's nice to meet you, too…"

Snowy let out a small whine, as if to show that he was not someone to be forgotten, and Richard's eyes widened as he looked down at the little terrier and he smiled brightly.

"Oh, this is Snowy." Tintin said, "He's my dog."

"Can I play with him?" Richard asked eagerly, suddenly forgetting his shyness as he was faced with the prospect of playing rather than staying at the party.

"Of course." Tintin said, "I think he would like the playmate." He looked down at Snowy as if for confirmation, and the little dog let out a bark.

"Julie put me down, put me down!" Richard suddenly started squirming and Juliet laughed as she did as he wanted, placing him down on the polished tile floor.

"Now, hold on." Juliet made sure to keep Richard still to speak to him, kneeling down to his eye-level. Richard pouted at being denied playtime with Snowy but he listened, "Now, you play outside, and try not to get into any mud puddles or get grass stains on your suit, okay?"

"Okay, okay." He whined impatiently. Juliet released her hold on him and Richard was quick to direct Snowy to the door, calling to him, telling him to follow. The little terrier did so eagerly, and it wasn't long until they ran out the front door where Juliet and Tintin had entered. Juliet still smiled after they left.

She turned to Tintin, "Now was it that hard to meet my younger brother?"

"It's not your brother I was worried about, and you know it." Tintin said, his hand unconsciously reaching to straighten his tie again. Juliet quickly reached up and smacked his hand down.

"Stop grooming yourself, you look fine." She said, taking his arm in hers again, "A man who is perfectly presentable."

"Still…" Tintin trailed off, his hand moving to adjust the hem of his jacket.

"Come on." Juliet said quietly, giving his arm a small squeeze of reassurance. They started walking through the crowds again until they started approaching a small group of older men who were all dressed in fine black suits – except for one. There was one man with dull copper-colored hair that had been brushed back, his suit was a deep shade of green and he wore a bow tie of the same green shade, with small spots of purple poking through the fabric. He was a man easily into his late forties or early fifties, if the laugh lines around his mouth were anything to go by. Juliet released her grip on Tintin's arm as she went up to the man, tapping his shoulder.

He turned, giving Tintin a good look at his emerald green eyes as they lit up at the sight of her, "Juliet! Good evening!" He brought his arms around her shoulders in a tight hug and Juliet was happy to return it. He pressed a quick kiss to her cheek as he pulled away, "You look lovely tonight, dearest."

"Thank you, Papa." Juliet said, giving him a bright smile.

"Is that Juliet?" One of the men from the small group that Juliet's father had been speaking to caught their attention, smiling as he looked Juliet up and down, "Good Lord, what a beautiful woman you've become."

"Oh, thank you Mr. Morrey." Juliet said.

"I think the last time we saw you, you were only this tall!" Another man laughed, bringing his hand up to his waist.

"I wasn't that little the last time you saw me." Juliet laughed. "It was only five years ago."

"And what a difference five years can make!" A third man said, he turned to Juliet's father, "You better watch her, Geoffrey. I just might take your daughter as my third wife!"

"Ha! Already planning the divorce papers are we? We'll see if your second wife takes so kindly to that idea." Juliet's father said before he turned and started calling out, "Oh, Miriam!"

"Shh, shh!" The third man hissed while the rest of the group started laughing heartily. Tintin found himself chuckling along with them.

The second man looked over at Tintin and pointed him out, "And who is this young gentleman?" He asked.

Juliet turned around and smiled at Tintin, "Gentleman, let me introduce my escort for the evening." She reached over, taking Tintin's hand and pulling him closer to her father and his friends, "This is Tintin, he's a local reporter."

"Actually, I'm a journalist." Tintin gently corrected her.

"Of course, forgive me." Juliet said with a small grin.

"I thought I recognized you from somewhere!" Mr. Morrey exclaimed, "I've read your articles in the paper. You're quite the little adventurer from what I can tell."

"Thank you."

"Ah, so this is Tintin." Juliet's father said, stepping past his daughter so that he was in front of Tintin, "You're the young man that's stolen the heart of my only daughter, are you?"

Tintin cleared his throat awkwardly as he looked at the man. This was it. The moment he had been fearing the entire night. He wished it hadn't come so soon, but there was no turning back now. He looked up, keeping his gaze confidently locked on Geoffrey Ryder's as he held out his hand for him to shake, "Yes, sir. It's a pleasure to meet you. I've heard nothing but good things about you."

There was a single moment where Geoffrey hesitated to do anything. His gaze moved up and down, evaluating Tintin's appearance. Tintin could feel his heart starting to race. He dearly hoped his tie was straight and that there wasn't any lint on his jacket for him to point out. Geoffrey moved his hand to shake Tintin's. Now this was the tricky part. Tintin couldn't keep his grip on the handshake too light, or Juliet's father might think him a little too weak-hearted for his daughter, but he couldn't grip too hard either or risk seeming like he was trying to outdo him. This was the language that was spoken through a single handshake between a father and his daughter's caller. Tintin gave it his best shot, giving the man a firm handshake. Geoffrey's eyes didn't falter from Tintin's as their hands shook.

"I should hope so." He said. He pulled his hand away from Tintin, letting out an approving hum as he glanced down at his palm. The young man let out an inward sigh of relief. He hadn't done too much or too little in the handshake.

"If I had known a celebrity was going to attend, I would have worn a better suit." Mr. Morrey said, patting his belly, "I'm afraid this one makes me look a little too rotund."

"Oh rotund-schmotund. You're as fat as a cow and you know it." The second man said, making a round of laughs come from the group.

"Nevertheless, it is a pleasure to meet you." Mr. Morrey reached out and Tintin shook his hand.

"And you as well."

"So, how is it that you and little Juliet know each other?"

"We live in the same apartment complex." Juliet was quick to answer before Tintin had a chance to tell them.

"You don't say?" One man said in surprise.

"Well, have you happened to catch a peek at his writings?" Mr. Morrey said, "I would imagine his best articles would be framed somewhere."

"Actually, I don't keep any articles that I've written." Tintin said.

"What? Why ever not?" Tintin didn't notice how Juliet's father's eyes remained on him, waiting to hear his answer.

"Well, I've already lived what I've written, there's not much need to keep it. Besides, I feel there are much greater journalists out there that deserve to have their work framed."

"A modest man." Geoffrey commented, catching his attention, "Glad to know your status doesn't go to your head."

"I wouldn't dream of it." Tintin replied, "When someone gets overconfident, things tend to go awry. And in my line of work, you need to keep a clear head."

"Indeed." Geoffrey smiled at him.

"So, tell me, Tintin," Mr. Morrey began, "When do you plan to publish for us again?"

"Once I've finished a small venture that's currently in progress, I'll send it in to my editor." Tintin said.

"And when will that be?"

"It's hard to say. It depends on how soon a crew can be found for deep-sea exploration."

"Deep-sea? My word, what are you searching for?"

"I'm afraid that's a secret." Tintin said with a grin.

"Oh, come now."

"I'm sorry, but I'm sworn to secrecy by my editor. Any article that is undergoing publishing isn't to be spoken of until after it's been released."

"But that means that he can regale you gentlemen with one of the many adventures he's already published." Juliet said, giving her father a subtle nudge to get his attention.

"Well, I suppose… if there's nothing else to talk about." Tintin said.

"Oh, believe me, there's not." A third man said, "The only thing these old farts have to talk about is their latest investments. Nothing interesting about that."

"Not like you're much better, with all those miserable stories about your wife." A second man said.

"At least my wife is still attractive."

"My wife is beautiful!"

"You complain about her appearance all the time."

"Yes, because she's not here."

Another round of laughter came from the men and Tintin couldn't help but grin. "Well, where would you prefer I start?"

Juliet smiled as she watched Tintin continuing to speak with her father. Mr. Morrey and his associates had moved on to mingle with other potential business partners. She had left the conversation long before then. Tintin was telling her father one of his many stories of adventure, or at least that's what she assumed. From what she remembered, storytelling didn't really involve such a continuous back-and-forth. She let them have their moment, glad to see that the two most important men in her life were getting along.

She started making her way through the groups of people, snagging a couple hors d'oeuvres off of some plates as she went to the door. She stepped outside, seeing her younger brother running around the courtyard with the little white terrier running around. She walked through the grass, still holding onto the little snacks she had grabbed, calling out to the pair of them. They both ran over and Juliet sighed when she saw the various grass and mud stains that had made their way onto his clothes.

"I thought you promised me you wouldn't get your suit dirty." Juliet sighed.

"I made no such promises." Richard replied with a grin.

"Smart-mouth." Juliet said, holding out the little snack, "Here, I thought you might be hungry."

"Thanks!" Richard eagerly took the hors d'oeuvre, which was just ham and cheese on a cracker, deciding to only eat the ham.

"You can eat more than the meat, you know."

"But I don't like cheese."

"But the cheese is good for you."

"That only makes me want it less!"

"Ugh! Why must you be so picky about food?" Juliet sighed, "You're not picky when it comes to putting non-food items in your mouth." Richard's only response was to stick out his tongue. "Fine. Here, you can have the ham off of this one, too." Richard smiled as he plucked the meat off of the cracker and Juliet held out the remaining pieces of food to Snowy, who gladly started eating it. "I don't know if this is good or bad for you, but I figured you could use it." She affectionately scrubbed his head.

"I like Snowy." Richard said, "He's really fun."

"I'm sure he thinks you're fun, too." Juliet said, she reached down, picking up her little brother, "But I think you've had just about enough for tonight. It's getting cold."

"Aw, but I wanted to keep playing." Richard whined.

"Maybe another time." Juliet said as she made her way back inside, "It's almost eight you know. We don't want you staying up too late."

"I'm too big for bed time!" Richard whined, although he found himself relaxing in Juliet's arms as she carried him through the front doors back inside to the warmth of the crowded rooms.

"You are never too big for a bed time." Juliet said, "Grand Mama and Grand Papa have bedtimes. They go to bed at nine."

"Really?" Richard curled up, getting comfortable as he rested his head on her shoulder. He smiled as he watched Snowy follow them through the crowd.

"Uh-huh. But you need to get some sleep. You're looking pretty tired."

"I am not." Richard said, yawning.

"Right." Juliet rolled her eyes, rubbing his back, "You're just resting your eyes." She walked over to where her father and Tintin were speaking.

"…And I've always found that, when you look at a ship like that in a certain light, you can see just where the previous name used to be."

"Yes, I've noticed that, too. Have you much experience in boating, Mr. Ryder?"

Juliet cleared her throat to get their attention. She looked at her father, nodding at her little brother in her arms, "I think he's had just about enough for tonight."

"Oh, my dear boy." Juliet's father stood up, taking him from Juliet and sighing as he saw all the stains on his shirt, "You've been playing too much again."

"But it was fun." Richard mumbled softly as he rested his head on his father's shoulder. "Papa, can we get a dog?"

"Maybe when you're older." Geoffrey replied. He turned to Tintin, "I think we can continue our discussion later."

"It would be my pleasure." Tintin replied, he held out his hand, "It was wonderful meeting you."

Geoffrey released one hand from Richard to quickly shake Tintin's hand, "Yes, you too. Have a good night." He leaned over and kissed Juliet's cheek, "Are you leaving now?"

"We didn't plan on staying the whole night." Juliet said, reaching over and taking Tintin's hand, "I'll see you another time, Papa."

Geoffrey nodded, taking Richard out through another door while Tintin, Juliet and Snowy made their way to the front. Tintin reached down and picked up the terrier when he started to whine and he carried him out.

"I think your little brother must have tired him out." Tintin said.

"Oh, sweet thing." Juliet cooed as she scratched Snowy's head. She looked back up at Tintin, "Now, was meeting my father so awful?"

"No. It was actually very pleasant." Tintin said. Juliet nudged him playfully.

"See? I knew you had nothing to worry about. Like I said, you're a man after his own heart." They hailed a taxi and one made its way down to them. They slid inside and gave the man the address of the apartment complex.

"I think your father approved of me."

"Tintin, I know he did. With any luck, you're already part of the family."

Tintin chuckled nervously, "I don't know about that. Don't I need to marry you before that happens?"

Juliet couldn't help the smile that crept onto her face at the thought of marrying Tintin, she would wear an elegant white gown, he could wear a tuxedo… Maybe Snowy could be the ring bearer? She shook her head to rid herself of a daydream that might never be. "Maybe. There's more to being family than legal documents."

"I suppose." Tintin absently petted Snowy as the little dog rested his head in his lap, "By the way, what was that party for?"

"It was for Mr. Morrey." Juliet said, "He just struck a five figure business deal with some people in China. It's no wonder he'd be in a celebratory mood."

"Oh."

Juliet reached over and took Tintin's free hand, linking her fingers with his. He gently squeezed her hand, giving her a soft smile as the taxi drove on, taking them back home.

Ta-da! The sequel! Sorry if any of you had to wait on this, but I hope it will be worth it in the end!