A/N: I read Twilight for the first time a little over a month ago, after years of being very much in the anti-Twilight camp. But now I love it, and mostly I love Alice and Jasper. (But I wish to stress, I hate the fan-girlyness.) There are many, many stories telling of Alice and Jasper's meeting, I know, but here is just one more, because I couldn't help but write it. I hope you enjoy.

He placed his hand in hers.

She smiled up at him.

He stared back at her.

She pulled lightly on his hand.

He followed her willingly.

He couldn't understand it. He was a soldier. He was trained to be suspicious and wary. Yet he followed this vampire without a thought for the possible consequences. All he knew was that he had never felt anything like this before.

She radiated joy. Her wide smile could not do the depth of her feeling justice. Finally, she was with the one she had longed for every day of the last thirty-two years.

Outside, the rain was still pouring. She laughed and skipped into it, without letting go of his hand. He gazed at her, fixated, memorised by the musical sound she made.

She pulled him further away, across the road and into the porch of a derelict building. She laughed again as she turned to face him, unable to contain her happiness. He could feel the warmth and electricity of her emotions, and he didn't know what to do with them. He had never expected to feel such emotion directed at him. He still couldn't think clearly.

"I'm Alice," she said, lifting her free hand to push her short, wet, black hair out of her face.

"My name is Jasper Whitlock. I'm very pleased to meet you, ma'am," he replied automatically.

She giggled. "Yes, I know. I've been waiting for you." Suddenly, before he could wonder what she meant, she leant towards him and grabbed his other hand. Some part of his mind knew that the Jasper he had been before he walked into that diner would have jerked away, immediately defensive, ready to attack. But the Jasper he was now didn't; instead, he felt an overwhelming urge to pull her even closer to him.

"You have no idea how wonderful it is to finally meet you. To finally be able to touch you, to see your face..." She trailed off, words unable to articulate the emotions he could feel rolling off her.

Gradually, his senses began to return to him. With effort, he pulled away from her and gently released her grip on his hands. He felt the jolt of hurt and loss run through her, and found that he experienced a similar feeling of loss when her hands were no longer in his.

"Excuse me, ma'am, but I must admit I'm confused. Who are you, and why have you been waiting for me?"

He kept his queries simple and polite, but inside questions began to swarm into his mind and his suspicions belatedly began to rise. Why did she have such strong emotions at the sight of him? Why was she not deterred by the scars that covered his face? Why had she been waiting for him and how did she know where he would be? How had she known his name? And... her eyes were amber. Why was that? He took a slight step away from her, tensing and surreptitiously adopting a subtle defensive stance.

"I'm Alice," she said again, "I... Oh, I don't know what to say!" She laughed again and despite the fact that her answer should only have made him more wary of her, he couldn't help but relax at the sound. "I've spent thirty-two years imagining this moment and I've never managed to work out what to say."

"Thirty-two years?" He defences rose again.

"Yes – oh, Jasper, please, you needn't be so guarded and on edge, there's nothing to fear. I can explain, and I will, but please will you promise to hear me out? Promise me?" She looked up at him imploringly, reaching out for his hands again.

He replied, "Yes, I promise," before he had a chance to think about it. He couldn't deny her anything.

She smiled again, and that smile lit him up inside.

"Okay. Okay. Now hear me out. I have visions. Visions of the future." He immediately tensed and pulled his hands away. His instincts screamed at him to get out there – this gift was too powerful. But he couldn't leave. He was bound by his promise and, besides, he was struck by the thought that he did not want to find himself away from this mesmerising woman.

She continued as though she had not noticed his reaction, though he could feel the renewed hurt, tinged with resignation. "I was made in 1919. But I don't remember my human life at all. I don't know who made me. When I woke up, I was alone. I didn't know what I was. I didn't understand anything. I was lost and alone and confused with a burning in my throat. And then I saw you. Just you, standing in front of me, utterly perfect. I knew that one day I would find you and that gave me hope."

He swallowed. Hope. He knew what she meant. He too was lost, alone and confused. The burning in his throat tortured him every day. But the moment she had taken his hand in hers, he had felt hope.

She grinned, sensing that he was less wary now. "I've had many more visions of you since. I've seen you fighting, reading, leaving the south, travelling with your friends, playing games, and I've seen many more things that are still to happen. I know you already. I know about your gift. I know about your past. I know how you hurt. I know that you are distrustful of me now. But I swear – I belong to no coven, I have no desire for power, I care nothing for hunting grounds, this is not a trick, I want nothing other than to be with you. I will never, ever hurt you."

She gazed up at him, willing him with every ounce of her being to understand and to stay. She stared at the face that had been ever present in her mind since she first came to be. She could not believe she was finally seeing him for real. His blonde curls, his strong jaw, his thin mouth – each detail was magnified a thousand times. She floundered in his beauty, struggling to maintain her train of thought. All she could think was, Jasper.

He could feel her sincerity, her hope, her honesty. He wasn't used to such feelings from others of his kind. A small part of his mind – the Jasper-that-he-was-before – filled with suspicion, demanding he attack or leave, but the Jasper-that-he-was-now could not doubt her. He believed what she told him. He couldn't imagine leaving her. Even now, so short a time after they had met, he was struggling to recall with any clarity what life had been like before her. She filled his vision, she was everything.

But still a part of him held back. Though he longed to hold her close, he didn't. How could this be? Why would she want to be with him? She knew about his past, she could see his scars... and she was so full of innocence and joy. He didn't deserve someone like her.

"Alice," he whispered.

He pulled her closer, wrapped his strong arms around her waist. No matter what his head told him, his heart felt differently. It overpowered everything. He had to be with her.

This angel that had come for him was tiny – her head just touched the middle of his chest. She rested it there and he heard a small whimper of pleasure escape her. But the sound was nothing compared to the emotions emanating from her. So strong, they almost overwhelmed him. Relief, happiness, pleasure and... what was that? He couldn't identify it. He frowned; he had never had trouble naming an emotion before. He could taste it, strong and pure, and he could feel it inside himself. But what was it?

"Jasper," Alice sighed, curling her own small arms around him, one hand running down his spine.

Oh, he thought, as he lost his breath for a moment. Love.

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