A/N: I've been in a slump lately, and I almost fell asleep when I was writing this. But, that was due to my lack of eating/drinking sugar-related stuff. Mmmm… sugar… Anyway, this is a very wordy chapter, but it's okee dokee.

Thankies for reviewing everyone!
Yep! Expect more chappies! I don't know how much, but hopefully around the double digits even. Hehehe…
Glad you guys likey! (smile) Hope you'll enjoy this chapter as well.

Disclaimer: FF7 shtuffs doesn't belong to me. And etc etc…

My Little Star
Chapter Six

Come Back Home (Part 1)

As soon as Uncle Cid picked us up from Wutai, we headed back to Kalm. Good thing too… I wasn't in the mood to travel anywhere anymore. Ever since Papa called, I haven't spoken to anyone. I know it was mean, but I didn't want to start complaining about how much I missed Papa (even though I really wanted to…). Once we made it back home, it was already lunchtime, but I wasn't really hungry. I just ran straight to my room and locked my door. I needed to be alone for a while… maybe even until Papa comes back… but… how long would that take?

Several hours have passed as I had been staring at nothing but the ceiling. I was surprised I haven't died from starvation or even boredom. That was definitely new to me. I sighed and shifted positions on my bed so I was now facing the window. The sky was perfectly clear of clouds and the sun was shining right on my face. I didn't really mind though. It actually felt nice. I stayed in that position until I heard a knock on my door (which was thirty minutes later).

"Marlene? May we come in?"

It was Tifa. I climbed out of bed and stopped in front of the door. My brain was telling me to open it, but my arms wouldn't respond. I just sighed and leaned my head against the door. This feeling was so new to me, I didn't know what to do. I think I remembered that Papa used to act like this. I wasn't sure why, but he always stayed in his room, mumbling to himself about this and that. Hm… I wonder where I got that feeling from…

Finally, I decided to let my friends inside. Tifa kneeled down and hugged me really tightly. I weakly looked up at Uncle Vincent who had a bowl of soup in his hands. He placed it on the floor and gently stroked my head. Now I felt really bad. Since I haven't talked to them in a while, they must have been really worried. I took a deep breath and pulled away from Tifa.

"I'm sorry," I started. "I just needed to be alone for a while."

Tifs shook her head and smiled slightly. "That's okay. If it's too personal, we understand."

I wouldn't say it was too personal. I mean, they already knew what was bugging me. I would love to share it, but I would just cry in the end. Crying was not something I wanted to do right now. I think I showed enough of that yesterday. Uncle Vincent picked up the soup and placed it on my bedside table.

"Here. You haven't eaten lunch yet."

That seemed to make my tummy growl. I sooo had to agree! I smacked my lips together and quickly sat on my bed. But before I could start digging in, Tifa's cellphone rang. She picked it up and answered,

"Yes?" A smile formed a few seconds later. "Oh! Cloud! It's nice to hear from you again!" I perked my head up and ran up to Tifa. Cloud… that was a name I haven't heard in like… forever! I wondered why he called? I leaned forward to hear on the conversation. "Oh, so you've been staying in Cosmo Canyon?… eh? Nibelheim?" she lifted an eyebrow at that. "You… want me to pick up something for you?… ehehe, okay, okay. No! It's not a problem. I'll have to bring some of my friends over if you don't mind… okay, good. See you later!" she hung up the phone and sighed.

I tilted my head. "Nibelheim?"

"Apparently, Cloud wants me to pick up some equipment back home. Geez, he's so lazy. I mean, he's like… right there! I swear I'll punch him straight to the moon!"

Uncle Vincent stepped forward. "If you do not mind, I will stay behind."

Tifa paused then nodded. "Okay, Vincent. I guess it's just you and me Marlene."

I tugged my shirt and shook my head around. "N-No. I'm not in the mood to travel anywhere anymore. I wanna be right here for when Papa comes back! I bet he's… on his way home… right now!"

She frowned and patted my head. "Well… alright," she turned to Uncle Vincent. "Please take good care of her. I'll be back as soon as I'm done."

"Don't worry. And be careful, Tifa." At that, she made her way out of the room. I could hear her talking to Uncle Cid. And from the way I could hear, he sounded really annoyed. I couldn't help but feel bad for him… having him take us everywhere. I ran up to the window and watched Tifa walk out of Kalm. Something inside told me that she wouldn't be back in a while. I sighed and dragged myself next to Uncle Vincent. He lifted me up and sat on my bed.

"She'll be back," he said. "In the meantime, you should eat your food."

I nodded and slurped my soup loudly. For a while now, an awkward silence filled the air (of course, except my loud slurping). I couldn't help but notice Uncle Vincent staring out the window. I wondered why he didn't want to go with Tifa. I was sure he wanted to go for… whatever reasons. I placed my spoon on the table and took a deep breath. Steam blew out of my mouth as I exhaled for a while. I turned and faced Uncle Vincent's back.

"Is there something wrong?" I finally said. He just turned around and stared at me with those glowing red eyes.

"It's nothing. Nibelheim brings back memories of my past, that's all."

I tilted my head. "Are they… bad?"

"…I… don't know."

He turned away without making a noise. I scratched my head and sat on the floor. Okay… so he didn't want to talk about it. That was all right with me… it sounded way too personal anyway. I sighed. I think it was best to bring up something else.

"Hey, hey, you remember my friend Damian? He said he lives in Cosmo Canyon! Isn't that neat? And that's where Tifa's going!"

"…why didn't you go with her then? You didn't have to stay here because of me."

I shook my head. "I wasn't in the mood to travel anywhere anyway. Besides, Papa could be coming back anytime now. You know what? He could be right here right now!"

Uncle Vincent turned around. "Marlene… he said-"

"No!" I got up and ran right out of my room. I know it wasn't possible, but anything could happen! I ran down the stairs and opened the front door really fast. A huge burst of wind brushed passed me as I stepped outside. I glanced around, spotting nothing but the villagers walking around. I sat on the ground and rested my chin into my cupped hands. Anytime… Papa will be right in front of me… anytime. I wanted to see him so bad, but if I go to North Corel, I would only slow his work down. Then he would have to stay there for even longer.

"Come home already…"

"Marlene," I turned around as Uncle Vincent crouched down next to me. "Yesterday, I spoke with your father on the phone, and he told me to tell you that his work is almost complete."

I perked my head up. "Really?"

"However, another thing that's preventing him from returning is the fact that half of the people residing in North Corel are really ill. Your father will remain there until everyone is better."

I frowned and turned away. "O-Okay. Well, at least he's helping. I'm fine with that."

"…are you sure? You've been acting a little differently."

"Nuh uh…"

"Yes, you have."

"Nooooooo."

"…are you positively sure?"

I snapped my head back and stuck my tongue out. "Yeah huh!" I giggled. "No, but I'm fine. As long as Papa's alright, I shouldn't worry about him. I just miss him a lot."

"Well, what do you do when he's not here?"

"…sit, eat, sleep, and stare out the window, hoping he'll be back any day."

Uncle Vincent lifted an eyebrow at that. He stood up and closed the door behind him. "I think we both need some fresh air." I nodded and clamped my hand into his.

We just visited all the stores and said 'hello' to a couple of people I was friendly with. We did this for at least hour or so. That was okay, because I was feeling a little better. And, I think Uncle Vincent was as well. He seemed so relaxed and happy (of course, it was impossible to see for others, but I could see it clearly). It was already six in the evening and we haven't heard from Tifa at all. She was probably lost track of the time or something. I balanced on one foot and shifted around, only to spot a crowd forming around a man and his two Chocobos. It was really rare to see Chocobo riders in Kalm! I gasped and tugged Uncle Vincent's cape.

"Look! A real live Chocobo!"

"Would you like to see it?"

"Yes!"

We made our way inside the crowd and watched the man ride around on his Chocobo. It was so cute! Its feathers were a pretty black color and it made the most cutest 'Kwee' noise ever! The other Chocobo had yellow feathers but didn't make a sound. One of the kids patted the animal's beak and asked,

"What's its name?"

The man hopped off of the bird and smiled. "Her name is Geezabel. And the other, his name is Raizon. These are just two of the many Chocobos I have on my farm."

I smiled and walked up to the man and asked, "How long have you had these?"

"Geezabel… perhaps about two or three months, and Raizon, I only had him since yesterday. He's still a little shaky, but I think we can work things out eventually."

"Wow! And already, you trained him to sit still. I've seen Chocobo's that can't even do that for even a second!"

"Yes, well, the key thing to remember is to bond with them. You and the Chocobo will soon gain trust with each other."

"That's really sweet."

"Say, would you like to ride Geezabel?"

I lifted my eyebrows and nodded my head a lot. "Oh, yes! I always wanted to ride one!"

"Alright then," he lifted me up and placed me on Geezabel's back. It actually felt really comfy up here. It was like I could see almost anything! The man handed me the reins and began walking around. The Chocobo 'kweed' and followed him around. It took me a while to balance myself, but I got the hang of it. I smiled and waved to Uncle Vincent who gave me a small wave. Once the ride was over, the man helped me out.

"Thank you, mister!" I said.

He smiled. "No problem," he turned to the crowd. "Now, who else wants to ride Geezabel?"

I skipped over to Uncle Vincent but stopped in front of Raizon. He seemed really shy. I smiled and waved, but that seemed to make it really scared. Its loud 'Kwee' seemed to spook the kids as they started to scream. Raizon stomped its large feet and charged right at me. I could hear Uncle Vincent yelling at me to run away, but I couldn't move. The Chocobo's head bowed down and scooped me up as I landed on his back. I held the reins tightly as the animal ran around Kalm. I balanced myself and looked back. Uncle Vincent was close behind, riding Geezabel.

"U-Uncle Vincent!" I screamed.

"Hold on, Marlene!"

Before I knew it, we were outside of Kalm, running blindly through the darkness. This was the first time I ever went outside of Kalm!… not to mention on a Chocobo! I pulled the reins back, but it just made the animal run faster. I had no idea where it was going, but we were passing through a huge meadow. It was absolutely silent, but I could have sworn I heard something. Raizon suddenly came to a stop, making me fall right off. I scratched my head and looked around. I couldn't see Uncle Vincent at all, and it was really scary. Suddenly, a distant howl was heard, spooking Raizon out. Before I could grab its reins, it ran off… leaving me alone. I turned around and grabbed my shoulders.

Suddenly, I felt a slight earthquake nearby. I jumped away and found myself face-to-face with the most enormous snake ever. For the next few seconds, it just stared at me with its big red eyes. Finally, it lunged forward. Luckily, I ran away before it even struck. Before I knew it, I was playing tag with the snake, and he was it! Just then, I heard several gunshots behind me. My legs seemed to weaken as I fell flat on my face. I turned and found the snake twitching on the ground. That's when I spotted Uncle Vincent on Geezabel. He jumped off and kneeled in front of me. His face was red and he was panting like crazy (I was also). He grabbed my arm and pulled me up without saying a word.

A/N: End of chapter six! Eeee… I really really dislike the ending. To tell you the truth, I added more stuff, but I decided to save it for next chapter. I need to think more into it. Remember, slumps… are evil. (twitches) But you know what? The image of Vincent riding a Chocobo gave me more ideas for the next part! (falls over) Anyways! Oh dear! Is Marlene in trouble? What will Vincent do? Find out next chapter! I hope you liked and please tell me how you thought of it!