He plopped down on his bed with a satisfied grunt, his body aching with all he had been through, and his head throbbed in pain even though he wasn't hurt. But no, he wasn't sick, he surely wasn't ill. He was simply tired, and a bit of sleep would fix that up. See, Snowy got the idea – the dog was already curling to sleep by his side.

Tintin sighed. The last bit of his so-called adventure was one he would never remember ever again.

Oh, it wasn't so bad. Not worse than his usual trips. Better, even, considering that it lacked the life-risking materials such as bullets whizzing to his head. Maybe it would border to the boring side, because he was able to find a story faster than he usually did. Well, the first half of the trip had been safe and boring, anyway. But not the latter half.

Having much free time in a faraway country without having life-threatening trips was a rare gift from above, and the Captain had insisted to have a little 'safe adventure' in the jungle just a by the country's border. It was in the middle of nowhere, and both Tintin and Haddock was sure nothing would come threatening their lives. Well, nothing did. But it seemed that even the extremely lucky Tintin had his bad days, after all.

They planned to simply walk around the forest for a bit, and when they saw a river they simply couldn't resist trying to cross it. It was a deep river, its water running fast and strong, but it wasn't a problem for Tintin and Haddock. They could swim, after all, and they both were strong swimmers. No, the problem was that Tintin just had to slip and fell from the fallen tree they had used as a bridge and took an impromptu dip in the river. Oh, it wasn't much of a problem, you say? Then maybe it must be noted that he took that dip right in the middle of winter.

The river hadn't frozen yet. Chunks of ice had formed at the edges of the river, but the river itself was still running strong. Still, the water was already freezing. Tintin might be strong, but he simply couldn't handle the cold water and chilly temperature.

Haddock then helped Tintin by pulling him out of the river and offering the young boy to take the captain's jacket, but Tintin declined the offer. "You need it more," he said through the chattering teeth, "I'll be fine."

"Blistering barnacles, Tintin!" Haddock yelled. "You'll catch a cold if you don't get warm. Take off your clothes and just take the jacket, will you?!" As if to emphasize Haddock's words, Snowy whined and jumped around his master.

"No, Captain, really," Tintin stubbornly refused, "I'll be fine. Let's just head back to the town, alright?"

After arguing back and forth, Haddock finally let Tintin be in his wet clothes, even though he obviously wanted to just strip Tintin naked and warm him up with his own dry clothes. The only thing stopping him from actually doing so was Tintin's threat to simply walk around naked if Haddock really did that. Haddock didn't know if the boy was serious, but it was really hard to tell if he had been joking or not, so he chose to play safe and just let Tintin keep his dripping clothes.

So they walked back to the town. Unfortunately, they had been walking so deep in the woods that they actually needed more than three hours of walk to actually reach the town, and another half an hour until they reach their hotel. The dripping clothes were nothing for Tintin, but the problem was that they began freezing not long after they resumed their trek. Once they got to the hotel, Haddock forced Tintin to take a hot bath and just go home, back to Marlinspike Hall, worried that Tintin might fall sick if he didn't.

So Tintin did. Except he didn't take a bath. He simply packed his stuff after changing his clothes and went out to Haddock, because he knew that if they didn't leave soon they were going to miss the train, and that Haddock wasn't a patient man. Besides, he was a little homesick.

He figured, even if he hadn't taken a bath like Haddock had told him to, a little bit of rest would do. He planned to just sleep on the train they took, but it turned out it was impossible to do. The cabin next to theirs was extremely noisy, and Tintin was sure that the noise wasn't noises one would normally hear when chatting with a close friend or even a lover… no, the sighs, moans, and giggles definitely meant other things. In the end, Haddock had to barge in the cabin and yell at the couple in them to "keep the voice down, you pair of noisy yet-to-evolve pithecanthropuses, some people are actually trying to rest here!" Needless to say, the noise immediately ceased as if it never even existed in the first place.

But even after that, Tintin wasn't able to simply drift off to sleep. Soon after the noises vanished, a blizzard occurred outside. Tintin just couldn't sleep because of that; he needed quiet environment to actually fall asleep. He had been able to sleep in almost any kind of places, but without peaceful, blissful, lulling silence, he wouldn't fall asleep. And thus the journey in train was spent in silent save for the raging snowstorm outside and the snoring of a ship's captain. And Snowy's occasional grunts in sleep.

By the time they reached Brussels, the blizzard had subsided, but Tintin's head had been throbbing with pain and pulsing on its own rhythm. Oh, such joy Tintin managed to find in pain.

He didn't register most of what Haddock was telling him, or even Snowy's barks and whines as the dog tried to gain Tintin's attention. He managed to brush it off as fatigue, and Haddock was fast to believe him and told him to just rest. Tintin complied, walking up the stairs to his bedroom after making sure he took a quick shower to relieve his aching head. To his disdain, it didn't help the throbbing pain he felt, instead it only flare it up even more. Deciding that rest would be the best medicine, Tintin plopped down on his bed. Surely he wasn't sick. It was all just the fatigue from the trip. He'd be fine after he took a long rest.

"Sleep tight, Snowy," he mumbled to the terrier, although he already knew he wouldn't get a response because Snowy was already asleep by then.

He didn't know how long he slept, but when he woke up it was already noon. He didn't feel much better after such long rest. His head still throbbed, and his whole body felt like it had been folded thousands of times, like all his bones had been crushed.

"Tintin?" he soon heard the captain calling him while rapping on his door. "Tintin, are you awake?"

"Yes," Tintin answered, but found that his voice was gone. He coughed and tried again, now louder, "Yes, Captain."

"Tintin? Thundering typhoons, you don't sound good. May I come in?"

Tintin didn't answer simply because he was unable to. This throat hurt so badly.

Haddock soon opened the door and walked in, checking on the boy lying on his bed, covered with a thick blanket. Tintin didn't even hear him approaching. When he felt a hand on his forehead, he jolted up in surprise, only to find Haddock sitting on his bed with a hand on his forehead, staring at him in disdain.

"Blistering barnacles, Tintin, you're burning up," Haddock remarked.

"I'm sure I'm not, Captain," said Tintin hoarsely, his face completely serious, "If I am, I'm sure I've been turned to ash by now."

"Billions of blue blistering barnacles! The lad's down with a fever and still he has time for jokes!" Haddock yelled, making Tintin wince in surprise and pain. The headache was still there, and loud noises did nothing to alleviate the pain. "Now come on, lad," said Haddock, "your fever is really high. I'll take you to see the doctor, he'll fix you up in no time."

Haddock stood up and walked to the door, but he stopped when he felt something tugging on his shirt. He turned to see Tintin, gripping his shirt with trembling hand, unwilling to let go. "Not the doctor," he pleaded, "I don't want to see a doctor."

"Lad," Haddock sighed.

"Please, Captain," Tintin pleaded again. "I don't like doctors. I don't like hospitals. They reek of sickness and death. Please just let me stay here."

Haddock wanted to say no, but Tintin's pleading, bloodshot eyes made him unable to do so. He sighed. "Blistering barnacles, Tintin. I really don't get you sometimes. Fine, I won't take you to the doctor. But you stay in that bed and sleep, no buts. Understand?"

"Yes, Captain." The relief in his voice was clear, and Haddock couldn't help but wonder why. Tintin snuggled into his blanket and closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep, and Haddock noted that he needed to take care of the young reporter, so he walked out from the room with Snowy in tow ("Now, Snowy, don't disturb Tintin's sleep, alright?") and searched for Nestor instead of bellowing out his name as usual – he wouldn't want to wake Tintin up – and asked him to help taking care of Tintin. The butler soon was busy looking for medicines, making hot soup and warm drinks, and Haddock walked to Tintin's room with a big bowl of cool water and wet cloth. When he was about to open the door, he was stopped by a scream from inside the room.

"Tintin?!" Haddock barged into the room, still holding to the bowl of water, scared that Tintin had somehow been hunted again. The boy was a danger-magnet, after all. So he was relieved to see that no one suspicious had entered Tintin's room. However, seeing Tintin entangled in his own blanket, trashing and crying in his sleep was even scarier than seeing him in the hand of a vengeful psychopath. Haddock quickly set down the bowl and the wet cloth and went to Tintin's side.

"Don't go" was all Haddock managed to hear from the string of high-speed French Tintin was rambling. He quickly woke the boy up, afraid that he might actually hurt himself if he didn't wake up soon.

"Wake up, Tintin," Haddock all but yelled at the young reporter, "Wake up! Ten thousand thundering typhoons, wake up this instance!"

Tintin finally woke up with a jolt. He blinked blearily to the captain, eyes watery and red, panting in his bed. "Oh," he said.

"Oh? Is that all you need to tell me, lad, after almost giving me a heart attack because of all your screams?" Haddock asked Tintin, his voice hard and stern.

"I think so, yes," Tintin answered.

"Tintin. I just heard you scream so loud the dead can wake up! Tell me, lad, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, Captain, it's just a nightmare," Tintin said as he shifted in his bed. He sat and stared at the water bowl Haddock had brought. "Did you come with that bowl? I can take care of myself, Captain, there's no need to do that, really."

"Yes, I did come with that bowl, but I don't think that you can take care of yourself, especially not now. Tintin, tell me, what did you dream of?"

"It was just a bad dream, Captain, triggered by the fever. I'm okay."

Snowy barked at that, as if contradicting Tintin's words.

"See that, lad?" Haddock asked Tintin. "Even your dog doesn't agree with you."

Tintin kept silent. He sagged down to his bed like a puppet which strings had just been cut. Haddock, raising his brow, once again put his hand to the boy's forehead. He cried out in surprise. "Tintin, your fever just went up! No excuses now, lad, we're going to the hospital."

"No, please, no!" Tintin was practically begging for the Captain not to bring him to the hospital. "No, please, don't. I hate hospitals, Captains… just, not the hospital. Please."

"Tintin. We can't just ignore your illness, now. You're getting worse, and I can tell you won't be getting better soon." He sighed. "Tintin… tell me. Why do you hate hospitals so much?"

Tintin didn't say a word.

"Tell me, lad. Talking might help. You can trust me."

Still the reporter didn't say anything.

"Alright, alright, no hospital," Haddock threw up his arm. "But I don't want to see you out of bed, understand, lad?"

"Not sure I'd be able to," Tintin muttered. Snowy jumped to his bed and curled up beside him, determined to stay with his master no matter what. Tintin smiled at the white terrier. Snowy had been with him for such a long time, being beside him all of the time, helping him, assisting him… he was no longer a pet, but a family.

But of course Snowy was more than just a pet. He was never just a pet. Not since the day he got him… not since the day the incident happened…

Haddock turned to the door, but just as he placed his hand to the knob, Tintin called him out softly, "Captain?"

So Haddock turned to face the sick reporter. "Yes, Tintin?"

Tintin closed his eyes, breathing in and out softly, second-guessing himself, wondering if he should just tell Haddock everything. All the buried secrets of his past that no one knew about except for Tintin himself, memories he tried so hard to forget, the childhood trauma, everything that made him the way he was today. Well, the man deserved to know… he had taken care of Tintin like a father would, even though he knew nearly nothing of him. He could just tell him now, of course, but the memories were too painful. Even though he had tried to convince himself that he had come to terms with it, he knew that deep down, he hadn't. He opened his eyes and looked at the captain, who was watching him patiently. Tintin made up his mind, hoping that talking would help ease the pain like Haddock told him, taking in a deep breath, and started his tale,

"There's a reason why I hate the hospital." Tintin's eyes, once locked to Haddock's, were now averted and distant, as if he didn't even register the man's presence anymore.

Haddock walked back to Tintin's bedside, pulling a chair and sat on it, knowing that Tintin's story was likely to be a long one. He nodded, urging Tintin to continue.

"My family and I once drove together to town from our home in countryside," Tintin began. "I've been bugging them to just go to town. It had been such a long time since we traveled from the countryside. So Father drove us with his old van. Mom even packed lunch so we can have a picnic. Even Loy had his books ready to go."

The image of young (younger) Tintin with his family made Haddock felt odd. The concept that the boy even had a family was weird. But of course he had a family! Otherwise he wouldn't even be here… right?

A small smile graced Tintin's lips. "Father said he would take me to a very special place. I was so giddy. I couldn't wait to see the special place Father was talking about. While we drove we kept singing songs after songs. I can still remember them ringing in my ears, even now…"

The captain couldn't help but smile along with Tintin.

The look in Tintin's eyes changed grave far too quickly for Haddock to believe it. Once they were bright, though distant, but now they seemed awfully grim for his tastes. "We never get to the special place Father told me about."

Haddock's alarms immediately went ringing. He inched forward, closer to Tintin.

"When we…" Tintin gulped, and Haddock reached to take his hand. Tintin smiled gratefully to him before continuing, "When we were driving through the streets of the city, a large truck suddenly appeared and rammed our van."

Before he could stop himself, Haddock muttered, "Billions of blistering blue barnacles in the thundering typhoons!"

Tintin chuckled at that, and continued, "We were carted to the hospital immediately. The truck driver agreed to bear all the responsibilities because he knew that he was the one at fault, but it didn't matter." A single tear ran across his face. "Father and Mother died on the spot, and Loy… he died after telling me the special place Father told me about. The doctors tried to resuscitate him, but in the end he died." Tintin drew a shaky breath. "I was the only one in the family that survived… I was thirteen."

Haddock was speechless. Losing his whole family when he was thirteen? He wouldn't have imagined it. A thirteen-year-old shouldn't have to bear that kind of stress. No. No one should bear that kind of stress.

"I should have stayed in the hospital, but I didn't. I saw my parent's bodies there. I saw Loy died in front of me there. I just couldn't bear to stay there. It just brought back memories. Instead, I went to Father's special place." Tintin ran his hand through Snowy's fur.

Haddock's eyes softened at it. "Snowy?" he asked.

"Snowy," Tintin nodded. "My thirteenth birthday's gift. The last gift my family ever gave me."

Another pang of disbelief. The lad actually lost his family on his birthday? His eyes fell on the white dog laying by Tintin's side. Snowy put his head on Tintin's stomach, clearly enjoying the attention Tintin was giving him. Last gift from his family. No wonder Tintin was so attached to Snowy.

"My relatives then took care of me," said Tintin. "They were never much of a loving family, though. At fifteen, I worked as an errand boy in the newspaper I'm working for right now. I slowly climbed up from there, and somehow I managed to become a reporter at sixteen. They began sending me to cover the big scoops when I was seventeen. Said I was the best reporter they had. The rest you already know."

"But what about when you get hurt? Don't they send you to the hospital?"

"They do. But I always ask the doctors to let me go. If they don't, I usually just walk away on my own, nevermind my injuries, unless they are too severe."

"Blistering barnacles, Tintin…" Haddock eyed Tintin in disbelief. "And death?"

Tintin fell silent. "It's… well you know I always try not to get anyone killed. Not in front of me, at least…" He shuddered. "To tell the truth, Captain, I'm scared of death. The loss of someone I hold dear, it's… mortifying."

"I'm surprised you managed to hold out this long, really, with all the trouble you stir and the blood that get splattered all around you whenever you go somewhere and hunt a good story…"

Tintin merely smiled, then looked away from the captain and scratched Snowy's ear. "You know," he said, "I actually feel better now after I tell you all of this… it feels good to actually open up like this. I'm feeling fine now, maybe I'll just head down to the living room and – " as if to contradict himself, he coughed painfully.

"Oh no, you're not getting downstairs, lad," Haddock jumped to his feet. He once again felt Tintin's forehead. "It'll take a long time until you really get well, considering the fact that you won't go to the hospital. If I see you step even just a toe out of your bed, lad, …!" he left the sentence hanging, but he was sure that Tintin knew that he was serious.

"Okay, Captain," Tintin nodded and buried himself in his blanket.

Haddock walked away from the bed, silently pondering on how long it would actually take until Tintin was finally well again. Not too long, he was sure about that, considering that Tintin was practically the healthiest person he knew. He only stopped when, once again, Tintin called out to him softly before he went out of the room, "Captain?"

"Lad?"

"Thank you. For listening." The smile was genuine and grateful.

Haddock returned the smile. "Thank you, too, Tintin. For sharing."

A/N: a fanfic done at last.

This is my first Adventures of Tintin fanfic, and I'm not sure if I got the characterization right. There's probably something that yells 'OOC' up there... hopefully there isn't. *crosses fingers* However, I do feel a bit disappointed at how Snowy turned out. I couldn't give the little guy more spark...

I would really appreciate it if someone can leave me a review. It would really help me improve my writing. Pretty please?