Author's Notes: This was a oneshot written for a contest on livejournal at iyfic(underscore)challenge.
I need to write more group Shichinin-tai humor fics, this one was fun :)
Japanese terms:
Yashiki: The large estate (the central house and the buildings surrounding it) often occupied by wealthy daimyou.
Oo-aniki: Respected Elder Brother. Used by the Shichinin-tai to refer to Bankotsu as leader even though none of them are blood-relatives.
Takoyaki: a fried doughy ball filled with octopus.
Servings for Seven
The yashiki was darker now; the once pale building now painted in blood red. The burning embers that had yet to die off made the outer houses burn with a pale glow. And as each spark breathed its last, it helped send another soul towards the afterlife.
In the main house, everything seemed normal; the lit torches letting the shadows dance about as they always had. But the occupants were new, seven foreign men in place of the daimyou and his family.
Seated at the head of the group was the youngest of the seven, his long black braid brushing against the floor as he tilted his head back and downed another glass of sake. For him and his men, this was a victory celebration of the highest caliber.
"Oi Oo-aniki, we've even got chopsticks this time!" Suikotsu's voice rose above the dull conversational tones of the others; his hand waving the utensils about in place of where his claws usually were.
Bankotsu glanced up at the gruff, spiky-haired man and smiled widely.
"Gesh, chopsticks and all the food we can eat," Ginkotsu added, his metallic voice reverberating about the room.
It was true, the young leader thought to himself; it was rare that they were able to dine or stay in such rich lodgings. Then again, after completely annihilating the entire estate, Bankotsu figured they rightfully deserved it.
The Shichinin-tai had taken many jobs that involved killing a daimyou and destroying his estate. But usually during the 'destroying' part of the deal, any food or eating utensils would somehow end up soaked in blood, burnt to ashes or contaminated by poisons.
This time however, the blood splatter had been minimal and the egotistical daimyou had fallen so easily that neither poison nor extensive amounts of fire were used. The food and sake were left intact, and much to the delight of the seven, even some luxuries such as good china and chopsticks remained.
Mukotsu's distinct laughter echoed across the room as he openly flirted with one of the spared serving girls.
"Don't worry, sweetheart. Soon enough it'll be time for dessert…"
The girl tried her best to hide her disgust, afraid that any sort of negative reaction from her would result in an instant death. Even though she'd been assured by the stout man she'd live if she behaved, she wasn't certain he would uphold his end of the bargain.
"Mukotsu, enjoy the food. There's plenty of women in the world for you to flirt with later," Bankotsu intervened, motioning towards the girl to come and pour another glass of sake for him.
She hastily obliged, knowing that it was this young man who called the shots and ultimately held the key to her life. Hoping to use that to her advantage, she casually let her yukata hang open further as she leaned down to fill his glass.
"Is there anything else, Bankotsu-sama?"
The young man blinked, not quite certain why the woman felt the need to flaunt her assets when she seemed so appalled by Mukotsu's advances.
"He's fine, go back over there," Jakotsu butted in, leaning up against Bankotsu's back as he shooed the girl away.
She left in a poorly disguised huff, the interference causing her to wonder further about the relationship between the two men.
"Jakotsu, she was just pouring my drink…" Bankotsu explained, turning around and finding himself face to face with the other man.
"Mou…she was doing more than pouring your drink," He countered, scowling again in her direction.
Once again, the innocence beneath the killer surfaced, "What do you mean?"
At that, a lewd smile crept onto Jakotsu's features, "If you want, I could show you later…"
He kept in casual contact with the young leader, slowly trailing a hand down his chest.
"Ahem…" Renkotsu cleared his throat sharply, "The rest of us are still eating; if you wouldn't mind, Jakotsu."
Painted lips quirked upwards, the black-haired man snatching up his chopsticks and lifting a ball of takoyaki to Bankotsu's mouth.
"So is he," He countered, stuffing the ball into the leader's mouth.
"Mmmffh," Bankotsu protested, his words stifled by Jakotsu shoving a second ball into his mouth.
"Just don't try swallowing them whole…yet."
Blue eyes widened as he finally grasped what Jakotsu was implying.
"Oh Kami…" Renkotsu sighed in exasperation, "Maybe I shouldn't have burnt down the servants quarters. At least then I'd get a good night's rest."
Ginkotsu nodded, agreeing with the second-in-command as he usually did.
Meanwhile, the young leader flushed bright red at finding himself the center of the night's entertainment.
But before he could chew the takoyaki and speak up in defense of himself, laughter erupted from the other side of the room.
All eyes shifted to the largest of the seven where he sat awkwardly hunched over the small tray before him. Mukotsu and Suikotsu were laughing, and soon, each of the other four joined in.
Kyoukotsu sat frozen, wondering what was so funny that he was missing out on. He glanced behind him, and on not seeing a thing, he turned back towards the room.
"…Wha?"
Jakotsu opened his mouth to explain, but found himself once again falling prey to another fit of giggles. Slumping over onto Bankotsu, he managed to point to Kyoukotsu's hand.
The giant looked down and noticed the set of chopsticks being held daintily between his fingers.
"You…you can hold those?" The young leader spluttered.
The teal-haired man shook his head.
"My Mama taught me, you got a problem with that?"
The room fell silent for a brief moment as the reply sank in, then all six began to laugh again.
So used to seeing him just munch on stray oni, his towering figure lumbering above the treetops as he snatched them up from below, that the group was reduced to hysterics at the sight before them.
For who would have guessed that Kyoukotsu would be so adept at holding the eating utensils perfectly between his fingers- just like his Mother had taught him to.
THE END