Me: So…this is it. The first chapter of Reunion.

Kashino: By the way, Hoshimi made herself a stupid goal that she will never be able to accomplish.

Me: Dx Eh?! Okay, you didn't have to be so mean! T.T Anyway, my goal is to publish at least 3 different updates (some of them are new stories, though) all before I start school! :3

Ichigo: Hoshimi-chan's school starts next Monday! 19th August, to be exact.

Me: Yep! Anyway, this is the update of Reunion! I hope you guys enjoy it and I don't own Yumeiro Patissiere! By the way…I gave Kashino a more rebel-like personality. xP Sorry about that…

Reunion

Chapter One: Marie's Garden

Why am I thinking about her again? I'm not supposed to think about her. I don't even love her or anything. She was someone who faded in the black and white memories of the past. She was just a girl in my history. Just one of those annoying, pestering fangirls that admired me to no end. Gushing about the amazingly talented, stunningly handsome chocolate sweets prince. Like all those other girls back in Saint Marie Academy…

Still in a slight daze, I drag my suitcase behind me. Finally, I arrive at the house I'm supposed to stay at. I stare at it with my eyelids narrowed, just slightly. It's more of a Japanese style. Well, that was…kind of…expected.

That's right. I came back to Japan just a night ago. Andou told me to help out at Yumezuki. He says he needs a new headline product for his menu. I couldn't decline him, after all, he had helped out a lot when we were against Koshiro Miya in that competition some years ago. I sigh irritably. Creativity for sweets has never really been my thing. It's always been the sort of thing Amano would…take care of.

Whatever. Not like I care. We'll make up a sweet that will be much better than that Amano could have ever thought of. Dream of, even. A confident aura surrounding me, I knock on the door.

Ichita opens the door. He's really grown up now. His dark hair sweeps across his eyes, the bangs just slightly on top of them. His eyes are a dark shade of brown, not chocolate, but even darker than that. A plate of red bean cake is in his left hand, the fork in his right. An amused smile playing across my lips, I smirk, "Hey, I thought you hated cakes?"

"That was history, mabodofu." He retorts. "Come on, just come in. We prepared slippers for you. Just put your shoes here, though."

I scan my surroundings. They moved into a much bigger house now that Andou opened Yumezuki in Marie's Garden. There are polished cherry wood floors and three windows in the spacious living room. Light colored curtains adorn the windows; making it very pretty and somewhat calming in a way. I take off my shoes and change into the slippers Ichita prepared for me, awkwardly trying to find a place to put my suitcase.

I mean, I knew Andou was neat, since he's my childhood friend and all, but I never knew he would go to this extent. The things in the bookshelf and even the shoe cabinet is arranged in a flawlessly neat way. The books are organized as if their house was an library, and the shoes are sorted by color and size. A comfy couch sits in the middle of their room, with some lights and tables, as well as a television.

"Well…" Ichita hesitates, "I guess…make yourself at home."

"Thanks." I mutter, finally deciding to drag the suitcase with me, "So, I assume I'm sleeping in the guest room, right?"

"Yeah." Ichita smiles smugly, "Hanabusa…well, let's say…hm…decorated the room…for you."

"Why do you call your brother and Hanabusa by their names now and call me by my nickname?" I narrow my eyes into slits as Ichita leads me to the guest room. I widen my eyes, suddenly understanding what he means. Annoyed, I grumble, "I don't like him to decorate things…He's just such a plain narcissist."

Ichita smirks sadistically and slides the door to the guest room smoothly. It reveals a comfortable room. It's quite spacious and there's a bedside table, a desk, a chair and a bed inside. What irritates me the most is the roses everywhere.

Rose petals on the bed. Big, fresh roses on the table. Roses hanging from the ceiling. There are some roses on the floor, too. All of them are different colors, from red to purple. It's beginning to look like a multi-colored flower playground. I already feel nauseous. Rolling my eyes, I cross my arms, "Ichita, I'm not gonna stay at your house if it's infested with roses."

"Too bad, 'cause you're gonna have to extract the roses yourself. See ya." With that, Ichita finishes the last of his red bean cake and heads towards the kitchen. I sweep up the roses and kick them into the rubbish bin.

I don't know how many times I've done that already.

Damn Hanabusa.

"Hey, Ma-kun." A more deep, friendly voice greets me. I turn around quickly to see Andou. Almost instantly, a relieved smile appears on my face.

"You gotta fix that attitude of Ichita's. And stop calling me Ma-kun. Kashino is fine." I state firmly. Pushing my suitcase near my bed, I put my hands on my hips, "So, what should we do now?"

"…Can't you give me a somewhat…normal greeting?"

"Fine." I try again, "Hi."

Andou nods in response, "…Well, let's go to the kitchen and start planning out a headliner menu item!"

"I suppose so."

~X~

"So, you want to make an sweet that contains red bean, has an unique flavor, and isn't in this shop yet?" I ponder on the idea, "That will increase Yumezuki sales…"

"Well, it has to be a dessert too, but that's obvious."

"How about something that is cold?" I suggest, "Something that will be refreshing and cold, yet has flavor and is unique?"

"Maybe something that is chewy and soft, yet the inside is cold and refreshing?

…Something that would probably be perfect for a hot summer day?" Andou contributed helpfully. "Something that would cool someone down and yet have a deeper, delicate texture?"

"Yep." I grin slightly, "Then…I know exactly what to make."

~X~

Andou's eyebrows furrow, as if he's working out some difficult math problem or calculating the number of species in the world. He stares pointedly at the sweet I made that is still covered in a white cloth, "So…what is it?"

I watch his face carefully for his expression when I pull off the white cloth, "Surprise!"

The sweet in front of him is a cake. More accurately, it's a ice cream cake. I've already cut a slice out and ate it to try the taste. You can see the inside of the cake clearly, the softened red bean ice cream and the delicate pastry of the cake outside.

"…I thought ice cream cakes were just a block of ice cream that looked like a cake." Ichita rolled his eyes, "Why did you make it into an ice cream filling instead?"

"There'll be more flavor," Andou explains to his younger sibling. Sometimes I wonder how much patience is in that guy. My patience would be drained if I had so many younger siblings. Thankfully, I only have an older sister, so that's okay.

I cut a piece for Andou and a smaller piece for Ichita. They both widen their eyes at the same time, "Delicious!"

A triumphant smile crosses my lips, "Great!"

"I mean – not like it's delicious…" Ichita stutters, looking away as his face reddens more, "…It's…decent. For a guy. Like you."

I glare coldly at him, "Then you make one, hm?"

"Now, now…" Andou smiles sheepishly, "You guys…need to calm down. Anyway! Ma-kun, how about we go to La Reve Coleur now? You know, to help out?"

I'm silent. La Reve Coleur…There were so many memories made there. That competition against the heiress…When we tried to rise our sales…All the practices and sweets we invented and discovered…Just those three French words instantly send a chill down my spine. A picture starts forming in my mind. Her cheerful voice, the sound of chiming bells. Her experience and her talent to pick up the skills of baking so easily…

"Ma-kun! C'mon, let's go to help out! Yamagashi-san and Johnny seem to need us." Andou tries to convince me.

"Fine." I heave a big sigh, and we leave Yumezuki.

~X~

"Kashino-kun, please make your signature chocolate sweets!" Yamagashi begs quietly. I can see the desperation in her eyes. "The customers can taste the change in chocolate because of the difference in our tempering skills!"

"Okay, okay." I pat her shoulder, "You're acting like a frantic mouse."

"EXCUSE ME?" Yamagashi rolls her eyes. She goes to Andou and starts begging him for him to help her with some other baking procedure. Lowering my eyelids, obviously not out of amusement, I avoid Johnny and head towards the kitchen. I roll up my sleeves and prepare my tempering tools.

I haven't tempered in a while. For some reason, I've been slacking in my practice lately. I don't know why, maybe it's because I'm travelling all over the world recently. Casually, I grab my tempering tools. A wave of nostalgia floods me. It seems the tempering tools fit perfectly in my hands.

"Kashino, make me some chocolat chaud!"

"Kashino, I'm hungry! Can you make some sweets for me?"

"Kashino, you devil!"

I drop the tempering tools to the ground. It's like being insane. How can I hear her voice in my head when I hate her? It's more than weird. I wash my tempering tools that have been picked up from the ground. I rest my hands on the counter and lean forward, so the weight of my body is completely leaning on my hands.

I hear her voice again. The playful, soft voice of the melodies that birds would usually chirp in the morning. The gentle, kind voice that reminded me not to overwork myself. The innocent, quiet voice that begged me to buy more things for her. I could almost see a picture forming in my head again, where she was pouting. About to shake it off, I realize…

I gasp. No. I'm actually hearing her voice in reality. Not in my head. This isn't a flashback. This is official – she came back, to La Reve Coleur.

And that was when my world came crashing down.

Ichigo: Do I make a appearance soon? Do I make a appearance soon? Do I make a –

Me: You'll see…I'm not giving spoilers! :3

Ichigo: Aw, this is just all about Kashino and Andou…T.T I haven't even been mentioned yet…I'm just a 'enemy' of Kashino's…

Me: Yeah…Anyway! I hope you guys enjoyed that first chapter! xP Tell me what you think about it; if you found any places where I could improve or any moments you enjoyed. You can even take a guess on what's going to happen in the next chapter! xD Do you think Kashino will really meet Ichigo again?

:) REVIEW REPLIES :)

Animelover0508 – Ehe, I guess I never really liked writing tragedy stories. But Hurt/Comfort/Romance is fine by me! I'm going to start another Hurt/Comfort story about Kashigo soon, so please look forward to that! It'll be called "Amnesia and misunderstandings", by the way.

And you didn't take up the whole page. xP Feel free to continue rambling…And, this is the update! What did you think of it?

ICCFOWIGSM – Thank you! Your short review really brightened up my day and made me smile. And I continued it! I'm glad you liked it! xD I thought it was pretty fitting for Kashino, too.

Love Sparkles – Ooh! Thanks! Suggestions received. I'm glad you liked the chapter! What did you think of this update?

The Chibi Writer - LOL. x3 Your review made me laugh. Honest. But if it's not Ichigo; the plot won't flow! I'm sorry about that...And no! Makoto-kun is still Ichigo's...

Guest - Aww, you're a very nice person. Konnichiwa! Life is going well for me, but I'm starting school now though. I'm pretty surprised. I'm usually not very good at summaries (check out the summaries for my other stories)...so I'm glad you stumbled upon this story! :) Thanks for reading! How was this chapter?

Me: Also, thank you to ICCFOWIGSM, KawaiiAnimeGirls and Leavepandasalone for favoriting this story!

Ichigo: Please review! :)