A/N: A special story dedicated to the most adorablest FF7 character… Marlene! (big smile) I wanted to try something different. This was tough for me to write… considering it's a four-year-old telling it and… I have to resist using big words. I might have squeezed in a few but… oh well. We can just say Marlene knows her vocabulary a whole lot. (nervous grin)

Disclaimer: FF7 doesn't belong to meee… only the idea of the story and so on and so forth.

My Little Star
Chapter One

Knowing Each Other

Today was such a beautiful day! The sun was shining so brightly and Kalm was as lively as ever! My Papa had just returned a few days ago from his travels with Cloud. He had obviously missed me so much… I still can't shake the feeling of his tight hugs out of me. But, I'm used to them already. I missed him a whole bunch, too! It had been at least two months since I saw him last time. I was hoping that he would stay in Kalm with me forever now. But, that dream ended one night.

My Papa had gotten a very important call from one of his friends in North Corel. They said they needed Papa to help them fix a few things there. So, in no time, my Papa packed his things and was ready to leave. But… I didn't want him to leave so soon! It was like he just came back one second ago!

It was in the middle of the night. I heard Papa close the front door of the house we were staying in. (loudly…) I raced down the stairs as fast as I could and burst the door open. I saw him standing next to two of his friends. Papa noticed me as I hugged his arm tightly.

"Please! I don't want you to go! Not yet!" I begged.

He kneeled down in front of me as he pulled me close to him. "I'm sorry, Marlene. But, it's something I can't ignore. My friends need my help."

"B-But!"

"Don't worry. I'll be back in a few days. I promise."

I held back a sniff. "O-Okay."

Papa stood up and looked to his friends. I did the same also. I recognized Tifa… but there was someone else too. I tilted my head and walked next to Papa.

"Marlene, while I'm gone. Vince and Tifa will be looking after you," he smiled at that.

My head perked up. "B-But, why?" I frowned at the tall man with long black hair. I had a feeling that I wasn't going to like his company... Papa seemed to notice me shivering behind his arm. He lifted an eyebrow then turned his head to the scary man, who looked a little confused.

"Vince! I expect you and Tifa to take care of my Marlene. The other's said they had things to do… and you were the only two available. I just don't want Marlene to feel bored while I'm gone."

Tifa nodded her head. "Of course, Barret. I would love to look after her again," she smiled and kneeled in front of me. "Right, Marlene? It'll be like old times."

A smile slowly appeared on my face. I always loved being around Tifa… especially in her bar. She would always hold me tightly whenever I cried about my Papa. I was glad that we could be with each other again. But… why did Papa have to call in a scary man? I didn't think that we would be around as much.

"Well, I guess I'm off!" Papa patted my head. "Don't worry, Marlene. I'll be back sooner or later. The moment you feel that you really need me, I'll be back in a blink of an eye!" He walked right out of Kalm without saying another word.

I ran into Tifa's arms and cried. "I-I miss him already!"

"Now, now. Like he said, he'll be back before you know it. So, let's go tuck you back into bed."

I felt my tears drying away. I clapped my hands. "Oh! And tell me a bed time story, like before?"

"Okay! And Uncle Vincent will help us with that!"

The tall man lifted an eyebrow at that. I couldn't help but giggle. 'Uncle' didn't really fit such a scary man like him. He just shrugged his shoulders and followed us back inside my house.

Once inside, I hopped onto my bed and hid myself under the covers. Tifa giggled as I popped my head out of the blankets with a smile. She pulled the blanket right above my chin as I snuggled in. I loved it whenever she tugged me in so tightly! I felt so warm… like when Papa always hugged me…

"So, what story would you like to hear?" she asked me. "How the Chocobo Got Its Wings?"

I scrunched my face. "I heard that story a bajillion times!" I paused then smiled big. "How about, you two make up the story as it goes along! That's fun!"

Tifa giggled. "Okay!" she sat on my bed and offered Vincent a seat next to her. He didn't seem to enjoy this, but I really wanted to see what he could do. This was going to be fun. Tifa cleared her throat and began the story.

"Once upon a time, there was a Moogle named… Marlene!"

"Ah! I'm a Moogle!" I squealed. I liked how this was going.

She continued. "And…" she turned to her friend. "Your turn, Vincent!"

He blinked and leaned back. His glowing red eyes made me move away from him. "And she… wanted something to eat," he finally said in such a boring tone. I leaned back, thinking that this might take a while. "But, she discovered that she was out of Kupo Nuts… so she…" he turned to Tifa. Aww, why'd it have to end right there? He looked like he was blushing as he was telling the story. I didn't think his part was silly at all! I guess there was more than just his scary appearance. I guess this wouldn't be so bad after all.

"Uncle Vincent!" I said in a sing-song-voice.

He turned to me. "Yes, Marlene?"

I smiled. "Let's have fun, okay?"

I woke up to the fresh smell of eggs and bacon. I climbed out of bed and made my way to the kitchen. There, I saw Tifa cooking breakfast and Uncle Vincent… wasn't there. I guess he was still sleepy. I shrugged and happily skipped in. I tip toed next to Tifa to see what else she was making. My mouth drooled as I saw toast and freshly squeezed orange juice! My favorite kind of breakfast!

"Well, good morning, Marlene!" Tifa happily greeted. "You sure are up bright and early!"

I nodded. "Mm Hm! I could smell the food from upstairs!"

"Here," she handed me a plate of toast and a glass of orange juice. "Why don't you place these on the table while I finish up here, okay?"

"Okay!"

I took a deep breath and slowly made my way to the table. Of course I carried these kinds of things before, but they always ended up on the floor. And Papa didn't like it when I dropped things on the floor. I didn't want to mess up this time! Finally, I carefully placed the food and drink on the table. With a sigh of relief, I turned to Tifa who was just about finished.

"Oh, Marlene?" she started. "Could you wake up Uncle Vincent for me? I don't want his food to get too cold."

"Okay!"

"Thanks! He should be on the couch."

The couch…? I wondered why he was sleeping there. There were a lot of rooms for Uncle Vincent to sleep in. Maybe he didn't like to sleep in beds or something? Such a weird guy. I just shrugged at that and made my way to the living room. And, there he was. His back was facing me and part of his face was buried underneath the blankets, but I could hear his soft snores from underneath all that. I walked around the couch and carefully climbed on top of it. Part of his snow-white face revealed a side of him I never would have expected. I knew that when I first saw him, I thought he would be all dark and scary, but after what happened last night and what I'm seeing now, I'd think he would be a really fun person to be with.

I leaned forward, but lost my balance and accidentally landed right on his side. I don't know what happened, but I found myself being latched on with his right hand. He was still sleeping too! I couldn't move at all! The next thing I knew… a gold claw came out from under the blankets! First thing that came into mind… he was… not a normal person!

"T-Ti-TIFA!" I yelled loudly.

That seemed to wake up Uncle Vincent. His grip on my shoulder tightened and I groaned in pain. I saw Tifa running into the room and pulled me right out of his grip, but… his claw scratched me on my arm. I don't know what happened to him… I didn't think he would do this…

"Oh my goodness! Marlene, are you alright!" Tifa hugged my tightly and stroked the scratch. She turned to her friend who was sitting up on the couch. "Vincent! What did you do to Marlene!"

He seemed to notice the scratch he had given me. His gold claw hid underneath the blankets. "Marlene… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…" he stood up and brought his hand (normal hand) out to me. "Let me see-"

"N-NO!" I hid behind Tifa. I felt my eyes water. "I… I don't want you!"

"Come on, Marlene," Tifa said. "We'll talk about this after I help you with your boo-boo. Now, run upstairs. I'm going to talk to Vincent."

I didn't think it would take Tifa so long to come upstairs. I wondered if she was yelling at poor Uncle Vincent. What he did before… I didn't think he really meant to do it. He was probably having a bad dream… or something. But, after seeing that gold claw… I don't know what to think of him anymore. I never even noticed that when he first arrived! I think I was more worried about his face than anything else. I curled up against the corner of my room and hugged my pillow. Maybe… I shouldn't have said that to him. He probably thinks I'm just… one of those cry babies. I hope… that Papa won't be angry at me when he gets back.

'Papa… I… want him back. I miss him so much…'

Suddenly, my door slowly opened. I lifted my head as Uncle Vincent entered without a noise. He shut my door and just stood there for a while. I could obviously see his claw trying to hide behind his back. For the next ten minutes or so, we never made a single noise whatsoever. My heart was beating like crazy! Was I that worried about him being here? Finally, he stepped up and sat right next to me. I scooted away from him and hugged my pillow even tighter.

"Marlene," he finally said. "I didn't mean what I did before. It's just a reaction I get whenever I'm asleep. I don't even realize until afterwards. I'm… sorry I scared you."

I couldn't stay quiet for any longer. But something was still bothering me. "…did… you only come up here just because Tifa told you?"

He shook his head. "I, myself, wanted to. I know that my appearance may be frightening, but I want to show you that I'm like Tifa. However, I lack a couple of things from her. I'm… not used to taking care of children."

I turned and moved next to him. "But, I already know that you're a good person at heart. I thought you wouldn't actually tell me bedtime stories or… show a soft side of you. I'm glad you came, I knew that my Papa wouldn't leave me with anyone I couldn't trust." I hugged his arm and looked up with a smile. "So, let's have fun from now on, okay?"

For the first time ever, he smiled to me. "Okay, but first," he picked me up and gently placed me in front of him. He took the arm with my cut and gently stroked it with his finger. I flinched a little, but after a while, I didn't feel a thing. I peered over to his left side, where I spotted his gold claw. It still gave me goosebumps, but I knew that I shouldn't worry about it anymore.

After a while, Uncle Vincent helped me up to my feet and said, "Let's have some breakfast now."

I… had no idea that breakfast could be soooo boring. Tifa and Uncle Vincent talked about nothing but their mission with Cloud. Parts of it sounded a little interesting, but later, I just couldn't understand what was happening. I sighed to myself and put my plate and glass into the sink. I didn't even think they noticed me doing so. I made my way to the living room. Cartoons sounded much more interesting than adult-talk. I flipped through the channels and spotted a commercial about Costa del Sole. I leaned forward. I never went there before! I remembered Tifa mentioning about how beautiful it was there. The sun was always shining and it was very relaxing. I wondered if we could go there… but… I didn't think Uncle Vincent liked those kinds of things. I sighed and turned the TV off. There wasn't anything good on anyway.

I trudged up the stairs. I decided to spend the rest of the day sleeping in my room. Before I could reach the top, I was lifted off from the ground and into Uncle Vincent's arms.

"Is there something wrong?" he asked.

I shook my head. "N-No! It's just… a little boring right now."

"Would you like to go to the beach, Marlene?" Tifa called out from the bottom.

"Ah! Really? Can we!" I couldn't believe it! I wondered how they knew… I nudged Uncle Vincent's arm. "You don't mind, do you?"

He smiled and shook his head. "I don't mind. As long as you want to, I'll do anything."

"Hooray! Let's go! Let's go!"

He placed me back on the ground as I ran down to Tifa. She was looking out the window with a worried look on her face. I tilted my head and asked,

"What's the matter?"

"I think there might be a storm coming."

My mouth dropped to the ground. "Aww man… storms ruin everything!"

She giggled and kneeled next to me. "Don't worry. I'm sure the weather will be much better tomorrow. If so, we can go to the beach then."

"Hooray!"

I couldn't wait! My first trip to Costa del Sole… here I come!

A/N: End of chapter one! I thought this was going to be a one shot… but I guess it's not! More Marlene! Omigosh, she's so adorable. (smile) And Vincent… he sort of reminds me of the Vincent in my other story. (ponder) Anyway! Hope you enjoyed reading and please tell me how you thought of it!