Disclaimers: All the characters in this fic belong to Aoki Yuya - and so does the Honky Tonk Cafe.

Obbligato

Required, indispensable

Since she had gotten acquainted with the Getbackers duo and the Honky Tonk cafe crew, Madoka took to frequently visiting the place. Of course, Paul and Natsumi were more than welcoming towards the violinist. And on the way home from the cafe, a smile was always splayed across Madoka's content face. All of this, however, wasn't something that Shido could honestly say he appreciated.

It mostly had a lot to do with Midou Ban.

And sometimes it was Ginji who unknowingly irked him.

"Madoka-chan~ See what Ban-chan and I brought back from out last mission!" Shido shot the clueless blonde a glare as the taboo word had been spoken, but Ginji paid him no heed.

"Jya-jan!" A whole plate full of steaming hot crabs was set upo the table as Ban took Madoka's hand to bestow a courtly kiss. Shido's glare shifted. "Fresh from the rich beaches of Okinawa. These mouth-wateringly tasty crabs, all for you, o princess."

Natsumi was giggling in amusement as Madoka blushed at the courtly gesture. Kazuki, much to the beastmaster's disappointment, was also finding the situation amusing. The slender man was sending a knowing smile his way.

The Getbackers hopped into the booth and began dishing out the feast of crabs. "We had Paul whip up one of his more esoteric recipes. The man actually specialises in preparing crabs, you know?"

"He spent three years as an understudy at a local seafood restaurant until the manager kicked him out," Ginji supplied, blithely unaware of the glower that radiated from the cafe owner who no doubt had similar intentions to give the Thunder King the boot. "Or so Ban-chan tells me."

"Hey! Did not!"

"But you mentioned it on two occasions in Okinawa."

"I was kidding. And...err, really missing Paul at that point of time."

"So, Ban-chan, you lied to me?"

"Not lying; just making up stories that would leave fond memories. And so that we could bring back these delicious crabs for Natsumi-chan and Madoka-chan."

"You used me, Ban-chan?"

The healthy banter went on amidst the cracking open of crab shells, and it took everyone at the table a while to notice that despite all the hype about the crabs and how they were indeed very nicely prepared, Madoka wasn't touching her share. The violinist was seated quietly, smiling at the ongoing conversation.

"Madoka-san, do you not like crabs?" Natsumi queried.

The older girl shook her head.

"Are you allergic to them?" Kazuki asked concernedly.

Again, the nineteen-year-old violinist gave a shake of her head.

"What's wrong?" Shido finally asked in his gruff voice. Too gruff, perhaps, for Madoka blushed immediately.

"Uh, it's a bit embarrassing, actually." The blind girl twisted the napkin in her lap. "I've always eaten crabs without the shell."

Silence descended upon the table as the realisation hit them.

"Gomen ne, Madoka-chan," Ginji started, but Ban cut off the rest of his apology.

"Well, why not have Shido shell 'em for you?"

Shido shot the man a menacing glare. Only Midou Ban could wave off a situation like that and turn it into an opportunity to put the beastmaster in an awkward position.

"Hebi-yarou," he growled.

"Or perhaps I can shell them for you, Madoka-chan," Ban grinned, stoking the incensed man further to jealousy as he reached across the table to assist the blind girl. On instinct, Shido slapped the approaching hand away.

Rather, he scratched.

"Yeowch, what was that for, saru-mashi!"

The beastmaster responded with a snarl. It would probably have developed into another full-blown quarrel between the two hot-headed men had Kazuki not whipped his strings out to restrain them. Madoka apologised, which she really didn't have to, and Natsumi fixed the problem by shelling the crabs for Madoka's benefit.

While their meal ended peacefully with the blind girl satiated with crab meat, Shido was left with a distasteful remembrance of it. He hated it that he hadn't been the first to notice Madoka's discomfort, that it took Ban to offer his help, and most of all that he nearly got into a fight while the violinist was present. He had taken it upon himself to attend to Madoka's needs, chanced upon it, only to let it be fulfilled by another person. Not that he was unappreciative of Natsumi's help, but the beastmaster was altogether diassatisfied with the situation's outcome.

So Paul Wan found himself an inch away from Shido's claws with his blood on the line unless he prepared a portion of crabs.

Madoka was surprised when she heard a cracking sound and felt the warm, soft flesh shoved into her mouth. "Shido-san?" she asked, perplexed.

The beastmaster said nothing for a while as he cracked open the crab shell to expose more of the delicate flesh. It was really embarrassing to have to explain his actions, but the longer he mulled over how to give his reasons, the exact wording he needed dawned upon him.

"Madoka," he started.

"Hai?"

"The next time you need to shell crabs or peel prawns or pick out fishbones, I'll do them for you."

With crab meat crowding the interior of her mouth, Madoka smiled and stifled a giggle. "Of course, Shido-san," came her dolce tones. "I'll need you for that."

A/N:

i) "the taboo word" refers to "see". Madoka is blind, and any expressions assuming her sight is offensive ^^;;

These two chapters are actually all that I wrote in 2007 for Shido/Madoka. Perhaps I'll pick up the fanfic quill again. Perhaps not.

First written: 02 June 2007