S'WONDERFUL

::Chapter One::

            The air was crisp and fresh. A leaf was blown about by the wind, bright yellow, the only color in the quickly coming dusk. Midnight loved the fall. In fact, she loved it almost as much as she loved the darkness of night. She bent down to pick up the leaf and held it up to her messy curls, comparing the yellow of the leaf to her own corn-colored hair. The colors were close…she twisted the leaf between her hands, enjoying the crunching sound. After one last crumple, she held her hand out over the steps of the Newsies' Lodging House, watching what was left of the golden leaf trickle down from her palm like snowflakes on a winter's day.

            "Don't worry, Mr. Johnson, we'll be back by 11, promise!"

            Midnight straightened up as the sound of her friend's high-pitched voice rang through the door. It always surprised her that it never cracked the glass window. She suppressed a laugh as Kicks came outside to join her, softly closing the door. Kicks smiled at Midnight, twirling a piece of her coal black hair between her fingers.

"Ready to go? I hear they've got a new performer in for this week, his name is Ace Somethin-er-other but they call him Mr. Jazzhands! Penelope said she saw him earlier while she was selling, said he was quite the handsome one. I hope he is, you know, she said he had deep green eyes. You know who else has deep green eyes? That boy who works at Mrs. Lovett's bakery a few blocks away, he has these eyes and…"

As Kicks continued to ramble on about green eyes and bakery boys, Midnight grabbed her friend by the arm and led her along the street, nodding every once and a while to make it seem as if she were paying the slightest bit of attention. As much as she loved Kicks, sometimes her talkative mouth was a tad too extreme for Midnight who preferred silence…or music.

A few minutes later they arrived at Club Scurvy, and Kicks was still talking.

"Really, Midnight, the fish jumped out of his hands and landed RIGHT on Badger's head! Can you believe it? I just about died laughing. Speaking of dying, I hear poor old Ms. Mattie finally croaked…"

"Kicks, shut your trap. We're here."

The two girls looked up at the brick building, still blackened with soot from a fire that happened a few months before. Midnight took the lead and headed into a small alley beside the building where there was a small wooden door with a brass sign that said "Performers and Workers Only". The girls had been around long enough to know that if you were a friend of the owner, Mr. Harvy Shrine, you could get in this entrance for half the normal price. Kicks leaned over Midnight and knocked twice, then after a few seconds knocked once more. A tall, heavyset man cracked the door open, eyeing the two girls suspiciously.

"Friends of the boss," Midnight said as she and Kicks held out two bits each. The man smiled more warmly than would be expected and opened the door fully, allowing them in and holding up a tin box for them to put their pay in.

"Go on in girls, show's about to start. Drink of the night is the Bloody Sailor, half price!"

They thanked the man, then headed inside, making their way through the small backstage quarters to the hall where they had been enjoying music for the past year and a half. Kicks ran off before Midnight, excited when she heard the familiar voice of her friend Roger. Midnight laughed a bit. Kicks always couldn't wait to see Roger. He worked as a waiter here at Club Scurvy, and she only got to see him on nights.

Still walking calmly and coolly, Midnight made her way to the entrance of the Hall. She would have been there in a second if a door hadn't slammed open in her face, sending her flat on her back. Her head ached and her nose hurt…she hoped it wasn't bleeding. The door had knocked the wind out of her, and she gasped for breath, trying to look around and realizing her vision had been blurred. A strong hand grabbed hers and helped her up, pulling her closer to the man that had picked her up.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't see you there….Miss…"

Midnight rubbed her forehead a bit as the man before her came into focus. He was quite young, no older than 23 for sure. The first thing she noticed was his wide smile, perfectly framed by smooth lips. His hair fell boyishly around his face, it was a dark brown, almost wooded color. More captivating than that were his deep green eyes…as bright as Pine. She took a deep breath, then shook her head quickly, as if to wake herself up from a dream.

"Watch where you're going, next time!" She said roughly, trying to push past him, but he had a tight grip on her wrist. A light laugh trickled out of him, rolling perfectly off his tongue.

"I'm sorry Miss, truly I am. But before I let a beauty like you go…may I have the honor of your name?" he said, working his magic. He was used to using his charm, as he always did in every city he played at. This girl seemed like a good one-nighter, and a bit feisty, a challenge.

"I'm Midnight…" she said, pausing a bit before she answered. "Yeah, Midnight. It's a nickname…prefer it to my real name. Now if you would please let me go, I came to watch the show."

The man smiled in amusement. "Midnight? A pretty name, for a pretty girl. You came to watch the show? I'm sure you'll enjoy it…I hear a very handsome young fellow is performing tonight, and every night for the next week. What's his name…ah yes, Mr. Jazzhands, I believe. Well…you enjoy your show, babe"

 Midnight raised an eyebrow at his use of 'babe', then headed into the Hall. As she found Kicks and Roger and sat with them, enjoying a beer before the show, she couldn't decide whether she was happy for her encounter backstage or not. He had been amazingly handsome, but it was quite rude of him not to let her go…and he called her Babe. Midnight had always found the use of the term 'babe' quite disrespectful...but she had let it slide this time.

All around her the people in the club started to applause as the curtains rose. The announcer came in front of the stage, loudly introducing the headlining act. "Ace Kingston, otherwise known as…Mr. Jazzhands!"

The crowd cheered with a great enthusiasm that spread to Midnight too. Curtains risen, houselights down, spotlight on center stage…Midnight's cheering stopped as she saw just who was sitting at the piano.