OMG WHAT, AN UPDATE FOR THIS FIC?

…My bunnies remembered this fic, as I was recently reminiscing about my childhood and happened to share a certain belief that Marik has in this particular chapter. This is set way back in Marik's toddler years…again. I like toddler!Marik, what can I say? Admit it, you guys like bitty little Marik too, chubby cheeks and all :D

"Shizu?"

A small hand shook Ishizu's shoulder awkwardly, causing her to open her eyes; the distressed note to her youngest brother's voice was a fairly good incentive to get her awake. She gingerly rolled over and sat up on the cot, blinking back the sleep before glancing at a nearby candle to gauge the time. "Marik, it's well past your bedtime," she chided, stifling a yawn as she studied the child. "Why are you up?"

The boy looked up at him from beneath his bangs with wide lavender eyes, his small face holding an expression of alarm. His hands were clasped together in front of him "Shizu, hewp me," he said anxiously, looking back down at his hands. "Buggys haf sta-wer in it."

Ishizu blinked. "…What?"

"De buggys haf sta-wers inside, 'Shizu," repeated the three year old impatiently, shoving his clasped hands forward for his sister's inspection. "Sta-wer s'pposed to be up in de sky, but buggy eated it. I caughted one," he added helpfully.

The black-haired girl studied the thoroughly upset child for a moment before prying his hands open; this was done in some trepidation, because the last time Marik had captured a "buggy" it had turned out to be a scorpion and had nearly stung the child before Rishid had gotten rid of it (she thanked whatever deity watching over them that her father had not witnessed this). At first she could not see anything because of the dim lighting of the room, but then a soft glow emanated from the palm of Marik's hand and she suddenly understood.

"See?" asked the child, looking dangerously close to tears. "Make buggy spit de sta-wer out."

"Oh Marik," said Ishizu with a small (and admittedly relieved) laugh, ruffling his hair affectionately. "There isn't a star inside the insect."

The toddler looked up at him with a look that clearly indicated he thought otherwise. "Why it glow like sta-wer?"

"That is because this is a firefly," replied his sister patiently.

"Fi-fwy?"

"Yes. Fireflies glow like stars, but they do not actually have stars inside them," Ishizu explained, watching as her brother's hands folded back over the insect to keep it in his hand.

Marik's face scrunched up in thought as he mulled over his answer. "Dey haf fi-wer in dem?" he asked at last.

Ishizu repressed a sigh. "No, Marik. They are called fireflies because it looks like they have fire in them. They do not, though."

"But why dey glow?"

It was at times like these she wished Rishid was there to explain. Her older brother was a master story teller and often times could find ways to relate questions like these to Marik's understanding. Right now, however, Rishid was utterly exhausted and she hated to wake him up for something like this.

A sudden stroke of inspiration struck her and she said, "Remember how Rishid told you that stars were the skies candles?"

The child's head bobbed up and down enthusiastically, gazing at his sister with rapt attention.

"Well, the fireflies did not always glow. They were down here with us, forced to find their way through the dark," she began. "They often times got lost because they did not know where they were and they would become separated from their friends and families."

Marik's lavender eyes rounded in alarm.

"But," she continued, smiling at him warmly, "the stars were watching these poor fireflies and they took pity on them. They decided that they would give the fireflies light to guide them, just as they guided the moon into the sky every night. So every star gave up a small bit of themselves and transferred it to the fireflies, and ever since the fireflies have used this gift to light their way."

The toddler's eyes lit up. "So…fi-fwies don' haf sta-wers t'apped inside?"

"That's right. Their glow is a gift from the stars," she explained, stifling a yawn.

Marik looked back to his folded hands before opening them slowly. A second later Ishizu caught a glimpse of the firefly as it took flight, the small insect briefly lighting up before disappearing out into the hallway.

The child rubbed his eyes sleepily and Ishizu slipped out of her cot to scoop the three year old into her arms. "Come, Marik," she said gently, her smile growing when the child snuggled against her. "We'd best get you back to bed. It's way past your bed time."

Marik said nothing as his sister carried him back down the hallway and into his room, but as she was tucking him in he looked up at her with sleep-clouded eyes and asked groggily, "If I asked de sta-wers, would dey give me sta-wight too?"

Ishizu paused, uncertain how to answer such a question, but then Marik's eyes slipped closed and his breathing evened out—he was fast asleep. She smiled sadly at the child and kissed his forehead before tiptoeing out of the room.

If there was ever a child who deserved a gift such as that, it would be Marik.