A/N: Hey guys! I saw all your reviews! You guys were asking me to update and I promise you I wasn't inactive! Truth is, every time I wanted to start writing, two things happened: 1) university got in the way, and 2) I became a potato with plot-twist ideas and actually getting to typing. This is more of a filler chapter, which will lead to some really good suspense in the next one.

Also, just know my updates will be really slow because I am starting my 3rd year in university and that stuff gets harder each semester you survive! So if you think I am dead, please PM me and I will promptly assure you I am alive, just trying my best to juggle my personal life, academic life and my writing life here on this website!

It had been bothering Ichigo for a while, why that picture always rested on the corner of his desk. For a while, it didn't bother her. A picture of his grandfather shouldn't be speculated. But why would he cherish a picture of his grandfather and her grandmother?

"You know," Miya said during lunch, "If I didn't know any better, I would've said that his grandfather loved her, even."

"What do you know?" Rumi rolled her eyes, "You finally got to spend some quality time with Makoto, much less advice people on love."

Miya scoffed and said, "Who said I was schooling people on love? I'm just giving my two cents because Ichigo brought this up!"

"And…this is all due to Ichigo's ability to smack talk some sense into him, remember?" Rumi continued, as if she didn't see Ichigo's warning stare from the corner of her eyes.

"You two, stop it," Ichigo sighed, rubbing her temples with her index fingers, "Arguing never really solves any problems."

The two sighed and decided to call an end to their bickering for the sake of the young girl. But, a mischievous glint in their eyes that was communicated non-verbally telepathically relayed that this childish banter was nowhere near over.

"But really, what if this is the only photo he has of his grandfather? Is he not allowed to keep it with him?" Rumi asked.

Miya rolled her eyes and said, "Who only takes ONE picture of somebody and that's it? Heck, my family has boxes and boxes of photos of each family member in the attic of our mansion. People have always been obsessed with taking lots of photos for memories, even though it will cost to develop the photos back in the day."

"That's true. And in our generation, teens our age would be obsessed with selfies," Rumi nodded.

"I never knew the day would come that both of you would agree on the same thing," Ichigo deadpanned.

Rumi snorted but said, "Well now that I think about it, Miya does have a point. We can't just sit around and be ok with the fact that the ONLY photo in his office is of his grandfather and your grandmother. Doesn't he care to have his own photo? Maybe with an award he won or a photo of him with other people in it? That's what normal people do, you know. That doesn't make someone narcissist, it doesn't hurt to have memories in your office."

"Exactly! Finally, we see eye to eye!" Miya sighed.

"Well what do you want me to do? Sneak into his office?" Ichigo snapped.

"Been there, done that, you do NOT want to go in there," Miya wiped imaginary sweat off her forehead.

"What? Did you find some inappropriate stuff in there?" Rumi snickered quietly.

"Ew! No!" Miya slapped Rumi's arm and ignored her cry of pain, "I mean that obnoxious girl always lingers in the hallway leading up to his office. Always thinking that somehow if she is patient enough he might be in his office and maybe let her in. But the moment he gets there, he always slams the door in her face."

"I always wonder if something is written on the back of the photo," Rumi mumbled to herself.

"Oh, heaven above, not you too!" Miya exclaimed.

"What? People in movies do that," Rumi shrugged.

"That is EXACTLY what Ichigo said," Miya sighed.

"Well it doesn't hurt to try, now does it?" Rumi asked.

"Well, maybe this time, let's send our Sweets Spirits. I think I have gotten a heart attack from my first attempt at sneaking in," Miya said.

The three girls agreed and decided that Marron and Vanilla would go to his office late at night to get a peek at what's behind the photo.

The two spirits would hide behind a fire hydrant situated on the wall for any fire emergencies. The moment they saw Henri leave, they took their chance. Although he locked his door before leaving, there was enough space in the crack under the door for the two sweets spirits to squeeze through.

And they were correct in assuming they could squeeze through, because they fit like a glove. Both of them pat their cute dresses free of dirt and then decided to rummage as much as they can using the thin strip of evening light. They figured if they turned on the office lights, he might come back to check who infiltrated his office, and the both of them would be caught. If it got dark enough they could use the flashlights their partners gave to them.

"You know," Vanilla said, "You are a lot easier to work with. Chocolat is such a brat."

"Hmm, the one who has a fork and a red apron?" Marron asked.

"Yeah. Always criticizes Ichigo and insults my habits. I guess my cutesy way of personality is overboard, but she always makes sure I feel bad about it. She knew me since forever, and she always claims she can't stand me. That's an excuse because even Ichigo has developed a method on how to deal with me and we only knew each other for a few months!" Vanilla exclaimed.

"Well, I never liked her from the beginning, either," Marron shrugged, continuing to look in a penholder for clues.

Vanilla paused as she looked through his filing cabinet, and asked, "Wait, really?"

"I guess it isn't too obvious because you never really see us in the same room. Maybe if we were, we didn't rip each other's heads off because we decided to keep our distance," Marron said factually.

"Was there…a fight?" Vanilla asked.

"We used to be friends before Miya and Kashino came. That's because we had no partners and we were equally bitter," Marron chuckled humorlessly, thinking about the days the two of them spent together, "We would rant together, pull pranks on each other, and trash talk our ex's. She even told me she liked one of the Jerks. But he was too much of a piece of crap to realize she liked him. And I was the one who comforted her when she shed angry tears over him. I was there with her during her high and low."

"So…Miya and Kashino's arrival changed that, huh?" Vanilla guessed.

"It did," Marron nodded, "She chose Kashino right off the bat to be her partner. He looked and acted kind of like her crush. Also, he wants to be a chocolatier as his specialty, so they were a good fit. Kashino still strikes me as a bit of a brat, all pompous and arrogant with his good grades and skills. But I found some good in him; he isn't willing to sugarcoat his words because he feels like criticism can help someone improve themselves if they are willing to take advice and not feel discouraged. Although, he didn't have to go all Gordan Ramsay on people, but still I do appreciate his honesty."

"So…what broke the friendship?" Vanilla asked in fear.

"We had a fight when she found out I chose Miya. I chose Miya because she was determined. Of course, her skills were atrocious from the beginning and she did improve slowly. And I knew choosing her would mean it would take me a longer time to become a Royal Court patissiere. But I chose her because she is strong willed, stubborn in the right way, and always willing to take criticism to improve," Marron explained.

Closing the filing cabinet and starting on the next one, Vanilla sighed in disappointment but asked, "But that's not what she saw, wasn't it?"

"Yes. She saw a bratty, self-entitled rich girl who probably uses people as a human chair and footstool. She saw some sort of monster when she saw Miya. But I saw someone who was in love, truly in love and wanted him to see how much she felt about him," Marron sighed angrily, "And our disagreement broke our friendship. She vowed to never let Kashino date Miya. But I called her delusional to her face. Who is she to police that kid on what he should or shouldn't do? He can fall in love with whoever he wants and if it happens to be with Miya then I won't allow her to tamper with it."

"I think she went all mother mode on him because he does resemble her crush," Vanilla said, thinking about the obsession Chocolat has with Kashino.

Marron snorted but said, "It sounds…creepy! Trying to fill a hole in her heart with someone who is just a kid."

"Try telling her that," Vanilla sighed, "It always ends with a fight. But here is the thing, I think Miya is a nice person, now that I understand her story. And I won't let her sabotage Miya's relationship with Kashino."

A smile, for the first time in long while, formed its way on the chestnut sweet spirit's face.

"Thank you," Marron said, "Not many people support them together."

"I will be honest with you, I didn't support them either. But Ichigo made me a more open-minded person, to truly discern good from bad. And Miya is a true gem. I am glad they're together," Vanilla smiled.

There was a peaceful atmosphere between the two spirits, but it didn't take long for them to become frustrated because neither of them are finding anything that could be evidence.

"Hey how about we look behind the picture? We can snap a photo with our utensils!" Vanilla exclaimed.

"And what if the Queen sees it?" Marron asked.

"We can choose not to send it!" Vanilla exclaimed.

"That's nice, but I think I see something better," Marron suggested, pointing to the polaroid camera next to the picture frame, "I think Miya and Ichigo should have some hard evidence. Turn on the lights but dim them so no one can suspect us but we have enough lighting to see the photo."

Vanilla did so and they snapped a photo of the Marie and Michiko. Then as the photo developed, they turned around the photo. To their astonishment, they saw a letter. From Marie to Michiko. And it wasn't short. It took the whole back of the photo to fit the letter in it.

"It isn't our business to read it. Just take the photo," Marron whispered.

Vanilla nodded and focused the lens on the photo. Once it was perfectly aligned she snapped the photo. And after it developed, they placed the photo back in the frame and the polaroid camera. They decided that the photos were of crystal clear quality, so the two spirits quietly turned off the light and left the office without a trace of existence.

The next morning, the photos were in Ichigo's hand as she and Miya stared at them in shock.

"Well…who would've thought he watched the same cheesy romance movies as you did?" Miya asked.

"Miya, this isn't the time!" Ichigo hissed.

"Right, right," Miya sighed, "But how do we confront this?"

"Well for starters, we can just read this note," Ichigo stated, "And then decide what to do."

Focusing on the letter, it read:

My dearest Michiko,

I heard you are getting married. Getting married to someone who isn't me. I wish I could stop the wedding and tell you not to marry him. That the person you should be with has been there with you when you made mistakes and went to fix them.

But no one would approve of us. There is a considerable age difference between us, and society only views it acceptable for a man to be a couple years older than his partner, if not the same age.

It wouldn't matter if there was no stigma about age. You wouldn't return the feelings I have for you. All those times my hand would linger on your shoulder, the smiles I gave you and the hugs that seemed to last a little longer than others. You never noticed. You always perceived it as a friendly gesture.

It seems that even I must part ways with you. I am not allowed to sit and pine for you forever, if I could. With social status comes responsibilities. And there are certain things I am required to do to ensure that my 'lineage' and 'name' lives on in the world.

It is disheartening and sorrowful that this is what it has come to.

Yours,

Marie Lucas

The two girls were quiet the moment they finished it. They stared at each other and felt as if their hearts dropped into their stomachs.

"Ichigo?" Miya asked, her voice trembling.

"Yes, Miya?" Ichigo answered, her voice fluttering.

"What did he mean when he said 'certain things'?" Miya asked quietly.

The brunette looked at the photo, and back to her friend. Staring her in the eyes, Ichigo felt her eyes become blurry. It was only when Miya's eyes flashed with alarm and had started to dab away at her tears with a thumb was she aware that she was crying.

"I think it means that he was forced to marry someone he didn't love, for social standing. And to ensure his name lived on, he would have to ensure a boy was born, because that's how families preserve their legacies," Ichigo whispered.

At this point, even Miya couldn't hold in her tears and Ichigo found herself wiping away her friend's tears for her.

"What are you gonna do, Ichigo?" Miya asked despondently.

"I…I don't know," Ichigo replied.

"Well you have to do something," Miya said, "Do you want history to repeat itself? Do you want to marry someone who isn't good enough with you, live a mediocre lifestyle with a mediocre person? Do you want him to marry that brat? Do you want him to suffer? Do you want to go your separate ways?"

"But how do I know he loves me? How do I know I love him?" Ichigo asked.

"Figure it out," Miya said, determined, "But hear me out, do not make the same mistakes your grandmother made. Don't be oblivious."

"So, I have to force myself to be in love with him?" Ichigo argued.

"No, I never said that. Quit taking words from my mouth," Miya snapped.

"So, what are you saying?" Ichigo pressed.

"I want you to figure it out. Figure out what you feel for him. Try to figure out if you do love him, if he loves you. I know for a fact he favors you. It might be something more than what is professionally acceptable, maybe," Miya said.

Ichigo's eyes furrowed as she asked skeptically, "How do you know?"

"The way his eyes linger on you, gives you more attention than he gives to Mari, the way he was willing to defend you when Mari trash talked you, when he got jealous when we made cakes for Kashino and he thought you were in love with Kashino, not him," Miya rambled, "Remember when you told me how his eyes narrowed in anger when he saw you and Hanabusa running towards the kitchen, hand in hand?"

All those times, when she could've sworn the green monster of jealousy creep into his eyes and his lips press into a firm line and his fists ball up, ready to swing? She was floored.

"You have to confront him about this. Before it is too late and he has slipped right out of your hands," Miya said solemnly, a tone of urgency lacing it, "I would be damned if that bitch got to him first."

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TBC