Anything You Can Do I Can Do Better [Chapter 1]
Title: Anything You Can Do I Can Do Better
Author: Thursday Saint Giles
Pairing: Gackt/Miyavi
Rating: NC-17 (eventually) PG-13 (for language for now)
Summary: SKIN needs a forth member, but Gackt still isn’t sure why they need anyone but him. Also, Crack!Fic
Video reference for this chapter:
“But why do we need three members?” Gackt asked, for what must have been the fifth time that hour. He looked so honestly befuddled that Yoshiki couldn’t be angry. He sighed.
“I only play piano and drums, Gackt,” Yoshiki reminded him gently.
“I play piano and drums,” Gackt said immediately.
“Yes,” Yoshiki agreed, patting him lightly on the hand. “Just give Sugizo a try; I’m certain you’ll be pleasantly delighted.”
Gackt protested that he hated Sugizo and his stupid pink hair and chiselled abs and his ridiculous nickname. But Sugizo played beautifully, running through some of his older solos, and showcasing a few new compositions. The older stuff was just lovely and melodic, the newer showing his technical finesse. Yoshiki gave him a stiff smile and a welcoming nod, but Gackt looked unimpressed.
“You play guitar,” he said dully.
Sugizo eyed him strangely, letting his guitar drop to his side, tapping it against his ankle. “Yeah, electric and acoustic. And I play bass and violin.”
Gackt shot Yoshiki an accusatory look. “I play bass and violin.”
Sugizo made a sound between confused and put off. Yoshiki shot a sharp look at Gackt, but he wasn’t paying any attention. He shrugged at Sugizo as if to say ‘sorry about my friend, here, but he has Issues.’ Anyone in the industry should know that by now, anyway.
“Hey, sorry things didn’t work out with Luna Sea,” Gackt said archly.
Yoshiki wasn’t sure how a lesser man would have reacted, but Sugizo took it in stride, answering smoothly, “yeah, but at least we parted ways amicably. It must have sucked having things end the way they did between you and Malice Mizer, so publicly.”
Gackt didn’t respond noticeably. Later, after Sugizo had left after taking Yoshiki aside with a ‘whatever, dude,’ Gackt nodded in capitulation, and though it was a victory, Yoshiki just felt drained. Because they needed their fourth.
“But why do we need four members?” Gackt asked.
Sugizo had taken to just ignoring him, and Yoshiki wished he could take that route. “What about this guy?” he suggested, turning up the volume.
“He’s rather…fluffy,” Yoshiki said, for lack of anything better to say.
“He’s shit,” Gackt snapped. He scowled at Sugizo. “Are you tone deaf?”
Sugizo just turned up the volume and skipped to the next clip. Yoshiki went back to his computer and Gackt muttered a lot under his breath and looked mutinous. Forty-five minutes later Yoshiki was ready to call it a day early, even though they hadn’t actually got anything achieved. Sometimes Gackt’s pacing drove him to distraction.
And then Sugizo let out a happy little sigh and said, “of course! Why the fuck didn’t I think of it myself?” Gackt grunted in disapproval and Yoshiki stared hard at his computer screen.
Only then the music started. Yoshiki’s head jerked up in surprise. The shot was a close up of the hands playing the guitar. Of course Yoshiki had seen slap guitar before, but never like this. Those bejeweled, tattooed fingers blurred at the speed with which he plucked the strings, snapped his fingers and slapped and knocked the guitar. Zooming back, Yoshiki saw a face vaguely familiar, and almost too pretty to be true.
Yoshiki smiled warmly at the sight. “Let me see more.”
“Probably a one trick pony,” Gackt muttered rebelliously and went out for a smoke.
Then Sugizo found Yoshiki a PV, and there was Miyavi in all his bubbly, energetic, talented, gorgeous glory, singing, dancing and playing an outrageous guitar solo that Yoshiki could listen to forever.
“I could do that guitar thing,” Gackt said, but his expression was pensive. Sugizo shot him a ‘yeah? Prove it’ look, that got Gackt off their back for a good two hours while he sat in the corner with his bass and attempted to beat it into submission. It wasn’t bad. It wasn’t Miyavi, either.