His fingers ran gently across the keys of the grand piano, making sure he didn't damage the old thing. It was a bit out of tune, but he didn't mind. Slick was never one to complain about the shape the instrument was in, as long as it could still manage to produce a decent tune. He absolutely loved to play the piano more than anything else. The rest of the Midnight Crew didn't seem to care that much for music. They always mentioned it was a waste of time, when he could be doing more important "business"-like things. 'Screw them' he thought to himself. Music seemed to be the one thing that DIDN'T piss him off. Speaking of the devil…

As much as he hated to admit it, Snowman seemed to be the only one who had similar taste in music has he, himself did. Occasionally, she'd randomly pop in, or teleport, to the room of their "HQ" in which the piano was located, whenever he played. Slick didn't bother locking the door anymore. She could go wherever she wanted, whenever she wanted, and in whatever time frame she wanted. She was the universe after all. He also never bothered arguing with her as much. He knew damn well it would only get him a slap to the face, or… even a cigarette holder to the eye… the OTHER eye.

She always seemed classy. Just… that attitude she always gave her. It was a mixture of class, as well as… geez… he didn't have the slightest fucking clue. It pissed him off just to think about it. That's what he needed the music for. To help calm him down. To help rid his mind of all the toxin clouds of thought poisoning his brain. Classy and cocky he supposed. Slick didn't care what her personality was. It pissed him off. And another thing. Snowman always seemed to put on either the innocent, or dominant act. Back when she was the Black Queen, she'd always use to torture him with fucked up mind games as much as she could. He didn't know how she did it. It was stupid! Its must have been that god damn ring of hers. But… she doesn't possess it any longer… so… WHY does she still have that control over him?! Aw, screw it! Slick has enough on his mind as it is.

:-:

He played a lot of songs… not to mention all from memory as well. Sure, he had a chest of sheet music somewhere in this old joint, but… it just… came to him somehow. That was the way he preferred it. No longer needing to turn those annoying pages, he could play freely. Sometimes, he'd mix-and-match different melodies. He found that amusing. See what you can do when you take two old songs, and make them into something new, something fresh and lively. Slick would sometimes smack himself at the thought. That was too… "fluffy" to think about… as Boxcars would tell him. Whatever! He didn't give two shits about what his comrades thought, they knew this, but really… he SHOULD be focusing on more important things. But… ugh! He couldn't help it! No matter how "fluffy" it was, music was his passion… … …and… HER passion as well…

Black romance is a funny thing, yah know? It involves violence between the two sharing it, and usually end results with either of the two getting severely hurt… mainly him… all the time. He didn't care. His heart is, was, and always will be as black as a spade. He was SPADES Slick after all. But even if that was the case, he played the piano as if it wasn't. 'Weird' he always thought to himself. What WAS wrong with him? He didn't know… and… didn't care either. He couldn't kill her, and vice-versa. But why?

"Damn… this shit is confusing" he spoke suddenly out of his frustrating thoughts, banging the keys harder, without knowing.

"Well… don't take it out on the piano. It's old and damaged enough as it is." Spoke a voice from the corner of the room. Shit. Just when he thought he could have his alone time… this bitch had to ruin it for him… again.

Spades Slick turned just enough away from his current position to see Snowman standing in the farthest corner of the room [from his perspective] with one hand on her hip, and the other holding that blasted cigarette holder… which she stabbed his eye with. 'Thank you very much. I didn't need that to see with anyways.'

"No shit. Can't you see the paint fading?" he growled at her, then turned back to his sitting position he was in before, only wishing HE had the power to teleport. If only…

"Hmhm. I can see just fine. I have two eyes that aren't stabbed don't I?" She said with that smirk she always seemed to have, and advanced towards the agent perched at the piano bench. It's paint fading as well.

"Shut up! I'm not in the mood. I have better things to think about." He countered. Her expression changed from a smug one, to one full of mocking curiosity. She advanced further until she was close enough where she stroked the tip of her finger along the edges of the piano, some chipped paint falling to the ground as a result. "Like what?" She asked.

Slick was about to lose it. 'Stay the fucking hell out of my life, bitch!' He'd say over in his mind again and again like a broken record player. He sighed, knowing he couldn't ignore her question forever. If he did she'd think he was being childish and "rude" then do some real damage. Snowman looked away from the chipped top of the piano and down at Slicks, expectantly. He sighed again, then turned his head in a more downwards position.

"Shit."

He simply responded. The universe mistress did crack a small smile at that. He ALWAYS had shit do deal with; weather it being herself, or some other business related topic. He looked up at her, seeing how she'd become quiet all of the sudden, only to find her smiling. "What's with the look?" he asked out of pure curiosity. He could usually identify all her looks she gave him, but… this one… was rather new. Not a smirk. Not a grin. But a… smile. This made him utterly uncomfortable. He wasn't good with "new" things. Hmm… what the hell was she so happy about?

"Hm. That seems to be all you ever think about… and talk about.' Her smile widened. 'But what 'shit' specifically? You never tell me. Even after all we've been through as Queen and servant. I'm just dying to know…' she took her hand away from the piano, and placed it lightly on his head. '…what you're REALLY thinking." She finished her sentence, and Slick pushed… or more like nudged her hand away. He didn't bother putting up a fight, knowing the end results.

"Don't touch my hat.' He began. 'And why do you care what I'm thinking? 'S not like it'll affect you. Sure, there's the thought of killing you…' his voice trailed off as he rose from the piano bench, and ran a finger across the keys on the piano's right hand side, making an ascending sound. '…but that'll never happen." He sighed, not knowing what else to say.

Snowman eyed him suspiciously for a moment, and then sighed herself. "Why are you always focused on negative things? It makes you sound depressing and boring while talking with. I'd rather hear you play." She responded calmly, while pulling the tip of her hat down. Slicks took offence to this. What a stupid-ass question! She new damn well why he was always so negative. "Because YOU made ME this way!" He snapped. Snowman expected this response, and was therefore not affected.

"Your fucking mind games…' he took a few steps away from her and the piano. 'I am SICK. OF. THAT .SHIT and YOU know it! So why bother?!" He blurted out. He knew she was expecting him to react this way, but he didn't care. He needed to get it out of his chest. "All you've did, done, and always WILL do is torture me! And for what?! Amusement?!" He questioned, ready to throw something or someone out of a window. He stomped towards the universe mistress, causing her to only take three small steps back, unafraid of his ranting. She couldn't help but smile a bit at how childish he was. "YOU THINK THIS IS FUCKING FUNNY?!" Slick suddenly yelled much louder than he did all the other times when throwing tantrums, throwing his arms up in the process. Snowman flinched back a bit, surprised by his sudden raise of tone.

"No." She responded with a light sigh and a small shake of her head. He dropped his hands, but was still enraged. "Then what the hell is your problem?!" He demanded, gritting his teeth, moving closer to the piano. She looked at him with those glassy white eyes of hers. They were filled with disappointment as well as a hint of… sadness? What the yaberloving fuck? "Well?!" He demanded once again.

She walked up to him, with that look in her eyes. She kneeled down a bit so they would be equal height. "Stop." She commanded. What? What the… stop? Stop what?! Before he could break out in rage once more, she placed a finger over his lips, silencing him. He waited for her to speak. Slick was expecting some sort of threat, but… what she said next was... well… different. "Just stop. Your ranting. Your yelling. It's giving me one hell of a headache. Plus…' She paused, standing up strait. '…I know stress when I see it, and it's written all over your face. Stop yelling… … …please…if you're gonna be making noise, do it the right way, and play…" she finished.

"And if I don't?"

Ah. There it was. The old protest she was so sick and tired of hearing as a queen, and even now, whenever he mentioned it. Snowman turned so she wasn't making eye contact with him anymore, but still remained in the room. She took a drag on her cigarette before closing her eyes, thinking of how to respond before turning this argument into a blood bath. Suddenly… it came to her. "Then… I'll play for you instead…"

Huh?

:-:

Before Slick could react to her response, he found himself in another room. It was black and green. Standing in the doorway, he could see rows and rows of different instruments lined up on the walls, decorating the room, giving it a nice shine. There was a fireplace with a black piano standing to the left of it, and resting atop the piano was a violin. After browsing the various types of instruments, he turned his attention to Snowman, who was leaning gently against the pitch black piano dressed in a black short-sleeved dress, covered in green sequences. She also wore a hat much like her regular one with the 8-ball imbedded in it, but this one was without the 8-ball, and had a green ribbon wrapped around it, holding both black and green feathers, the large rim of the hat having green sequence sewn to it, matching the ones on her dress. What was she up to?

"Sit."

She ordered, patting her hand on the black piano stool, the seat being of red leather. She must have teleported them to a room in her mansion. 'Damn…' he cursed himself for a split second, before obeying her wish, and took his place on the red leather-cushioned seat. It was quite comfortable, and the piano itself was gorgeous; lined with Green and gold on the edges… and the keys. The keys themselves looked as if they were crafted from pearls, melted together. He looked up at universe mistress, her eyes closed.

"Where'd you get this piano?" He asked, breaking a long silence. She opened one eye, and glanced down at him. "It was a gift from Scratch. I really can't recall why he gave it to me, though. It was so long ago." She explained. He nodded, but at the same time was wondering why all of the sudden, Snowman was being so nice to him. She had to be plotting something! However, he was too taken away by the magnificent piano at the moment to come up with any assumptions.

"Play~"

That drove him out of the trance-like state from gazing at the piano. "Huh?" She chuckled a bit before restating herself. "You seem so taken away by the piano. Play it. It should be much more in-tune than that paint-chipped one back at your HQ." She stated. He growled a bit before responding. "Don't talk badly about it! That piano has been there for… god knows how long…" he paused, pulling back his coat sleeves, preparing to play… seeing it was his only option at the time. "That piano has been with me thick and thin. Though it's old, it's said the oldest is the most valuable, and that piano still can play a valuable tune… to me at least… not that you care…" and with that, he began to play.

Slicks conscious mind drifted off, and allowed his subconscious to take over, since it has memorized all the notes. His fingers lightly pressed the keys in a slow rhythm to begin with, trying to recall a song… any song. Then the melody became louder, as he got the hang of what he was doing. Snowman simply leaned against the edge of the piano, and listened. If she had to compliment Slick about one thing, it'd be his piano playing skills. All from memory… like how she played her violin…

As the melody came to its middle course, the song became livelier, and a bit more upbeat than when Slick started playing. Then after a few short seconds, the song came to an end. Within that time, Slick peaked up to the universe mistress; her expression being calm, as if she was sleeping, and a soft smile grew on her lips. Apparently she was satisfied with his playing. Good. 'Better to have things in a calm state, rather than a blood bath.' Was what he'd always tell himself, no matter how bad situations got between the two. Like I mentioned earlier, Black Romance is a funny thing. Always either guessing… or able to predict what the others move is.

:-:

A few minutes after Slick finished his song, it remained quiet. Snowman still had her eyes shut, as if allowing the melody to sink in. It was a beautiful one after all. So… Slick sat quietly, hovering his fingers over the white pearly keys. Then, she broke the silence with a simple compliment; "Very nice… you got skills, Slick." Slick just looked away with minor blush on his cheeks, which was completely visible on his pitch black face. Snowman chuckled. It DID feel nice to have his skills complimented, though he didn't want to admit it… since none of the Midnight Crew members did.

"Yeah… sure." He responded with a low tone. Snowman smiled once more before picking up the violin off the top of the piano. "Now…" She began. "…My turn." The universe mistress said, before raising her bow to the strings of the instrument resting on her shoulder. Slick was amazed. He knew she had similar interest in music, but… holy fuck. That's not half bad… for a solo player. Slick sat back on the piano bench, lightly resting against the large instrument, and closed his eyes as she did before. It was a soothing song. He still couldn't believe the face that she could play… that well.

Maybe… Snowman wasn't such a huge bitch after all.

:-:

When she finished her song with one last bow swipe, Slick opened his eyes, smirked, and lightly clapped his hands together. Then in a sarcastic manner, spoke up; "Ha. Excellent. Is this what you do when you're not torturing me?" He laughed lightly. Instead of shooting back a come-back, she frowned, and looked away. Oh shit. What'd he do?! He was in for it! However... that wasn't the case either. She just sighed heavily, put her violin and bow back on top of the piano, and rested against the opposite side Slick was.

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about, Slick…" She began, folding her arms across her chest, looking down at the ground. Slick got up off the cushioned piano bench, and walked over to the other side of the piano near the fireplace. He tried to make out her expression, but her hat hid it too well. "Whaddya' want, then?" He asked with curiosity more than anything. This wasn't like the Snowman he knew. No. This Snowman was much calmer and easy going.

"I…" She continued slowly, drawing out her words. How to put this? She didn't want to break it to him in the wrong way, and just have him yell some more. "…I can't do this anymore, slick." He looked at her with confusion more than anything. She glanced up to see that bewildered look on his face, she giggled lightly, and took a few steps closer to him. Sadly, he seemed to be frozen in place. They were face-to-face now.

"I… I can't torture you anymore… I just don't… have in me what was once there when I was Queen…" She laughed a bit more. "Sorry to disappoint you… Jack…" She said, before moving back a step, allowing him to soak in what she just said. He smirked, and replied; "I'm no longer this 'Jack' character. I'm Spades Slick! Leader of the Midnight Crew! Get to the point." He demanded. Snowman's smile dropped to a frown almost instantly. "Exactly. And I'm no longer the Queen you once knew… I'm… I'm barely a person. I'm a universe for fucks sake." She continued… feeling rather nervous about telling him.

"I don't want to play pretend 'Queen and servant' anymore… Slick. And I have a very strong feeling… that you don't either. We're both two different people now… so…" She moved in closer, taking his hands in hers. The whole time, Spades Slick found himself dumbstruck. What the hell was she talking about?! All of this was already clear to both of them, so… WHAT was she getting at?! Damn… females… After a good long silent moment of holding hands [weird for Slick] Snowman broke it, with words that Slick never thought he'd hear her say in a million years.

"I no longer wish to be in the black quadrant with you."

~SILENCE~

The only sound to be heard was the crackling of the embers in the fireplace.

Slick…

He didn't know what to feel. The first time in his life… he didn't know what to counter with, heck that was such a firm statement… that… perhaps… no! He couldn't do that. Anything but that. However, His eye(s) begged to differ. He lowered his head so she couldn't see his face. He was sure Snowman could feel him shaking since they were still holding hands. When he blinked the next couple times, his eye(s) released five small drops of salty tears, which glistened against the fire light. Snowman saw, and placed a hand on the side of his face, which was a bit wet from a few tears. She sighed.

"I have a reason."

Slick shifted his gaze up a bit further, enough that she could look him in the eyes. "Slick… I'm sorry." She spoke in nearly a whisper. She didn't know what came over her, but the next thing she knew, she pulled the agent into an embrace. Not that huge, but just enough to show him she meant what she said. Slick was lost now; at a loss for words, as well as movement. So, he just stood there, allowing her to hug him. It felt… weird. He'd never really been hugged before, not in the way she was doing now. It felt… n-nice.

"I can't hurt you, anymore… It'd be wrong, now, rather than back when I was Queen. No. That was different…" Her voice trailed off, as she somewhat tightened her embrace. "I don't have a reason, actually. Not to torture you I don't…" She released him, and gently brought his chin up, so they had eye contact once more. Surprisingly, he could see a few tears gathering at the corners of her glassy white eyes. Hey. Just because it's Black Romance doesn't mean it DOESN'T hurt when you break up… especially when the two sharing it were absolutely PERFECT for that type of romance.

"…"

Slick couldn't speak. He just didn't know what to say. Himself and Snowman had been in the Black Quadrant since forever… and now… it just didn't seem right to break it up. Even if they were two completely different people… he didn't care! Slick and Snowman… if they weren't black... what were they? It wouldn't make logical sense to him to be anything BUT black. Unless… NO! Never. He'd NEVER resort to that. But… still… shit. All of this worrying bull crap was making him lament again.

"…Slick…"

He snapped out of his horrified train of thoughts, to find Snowman extremely close, holding both sides of his face in her hands. He blushed like mad when he realized how close she had gotten while he was in a state of horrified shock. The worst hurt you could cause in a Black Romance… was ending it. What else were they? What else was HE?! "I'm… I'm not sure what to say myself… I really am… Sorry. It… just doesn't seem right anymore as it use to." She explained further.

"You…" Slick began, needing to draw out his words carefully. "You say… you wish… not to inflict harm upon me. But this…" He paused, thinking of what he was going to say. "This… is by far… the WORST harm you've done to me. Why? Black is all we've ever been! What now? It's not like I can just … wake up the next morning and go on throughout the day. No!" He protested, pulling out of her gentle hold. She looked at him with a sorrowful expression. "Slick, please… understand. I know how you're feeling. I'd expect that, but…" She paused walking up closer to him, who backed up until he hit the wall. 'Crap'.

"I never said anything… about…" Snowman paused once more, blushing a bit herself. "…the other quadrants…" She finished. Slick didn't know what to say… again… she was DEFINENTALY not the Snowman he once knew… or Queen for that matter. He thought about it for a few moments, then responded as best as he could; "I… I don't know how. Hatred is all I know. You'd be teaching a fish how to walk. Don't waste your time on me…" He explained as best has he could, trying not to fall down, suddenly he felt weak in his legs.

Snowman Chuckled lightly. "What if I wanna' waste my time on you?" She asked slyly, before leaning in and pressing her lips to his in such a way, it made his legs give out, and Slick fell to the floor, Snowman following, keeping up the gesture. A new sense of feel began to make itself known to Slick. This feeling was much different from what he felt when they kissed before. Then, she'd bite down hard on his lips, enough to make them bleed. Now… she was kissing him in a way that made his mind go blank. He was so lost… all he could do was surrender to this feeling, wrap his arms around her waist, and kiss back.

Maybe the other quadrants weren't so bad… besides Black. It'd take a hell of a lot of time to get use to, if that was the case. Snowman slid her hands down from Slicks face, and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer, deepening the kiss much more.

:-:

Time seemed to pass in a slow manner as the two embraced each other in the newly found feelings. By now, they were on the floor in front of the fireplace, setting ablaze these feelings. For some reason… everything made sense now. Funny is all it takes is a kiss… a long heated one, be it that… For some time, they just lied there, enjoying the warmth the fire was emitting. Snowman had her eyes closed and was breathing deeply, but she wasn't sleeping.

She reached over and intertwined her and Slicks fingers. He looked at her, only to find her smiling right back. He then, without hesitation, smiled back. After a while, they got up off the floor, laughing at how they were just lying there. Snowman pulled Slicks into another warm embrace. Never before has he felt… so… happy, and clam… other than when he played the piano, of course… but this was different.

"How was that taste of red?" she whispered, just enough so he could hear her. He chuckled lightly then responded; "Dunno… tastes different than Black… less bloody." He responded. Snowman had to laugh. True… true… it did taste less bloody. She giggled and lightly grabbed the sides of his face, and kissed him on the cheek before adding; "So… you wanna try? To be r-red… I mean…" She asked with a minor blush. He smiled at her before taking her hand. "Sure… why not… 'S not like I got anythin' to loose, right?" Slick snickered lightly.

:-:

Snowman teleported herself, and Slick back to Midnight Crew HQ. It was silent for a while, then Snowman gave Slick one last warming hug, and whispered; "Love you, yah idiot." Slick laughed. "As if that weren't obvious enough…"

Snowman gave a final wave, saying something before vanishing into thin air, as she was always best at doing. "Keep playing, Spades Slick. I'll see you… whenever I can." And with that, she was gone. Spades Slick sighed in relief, as if a huge cinder block had just been lifted off his shoulders.

Now… how was he suppose to break it to the other members of the Midnight Crew?

A/N: Oh meh fawkin gawd. 8 pages on word document. U don't think slenderman will come after me do you?! XD XD XD I lol'ed so much.

So yeah… I thought I'd approach this shipping in a different perspective. Whaddya' think?