Happy Halloween! It's time, it's time! Time for some little Halloween truffles, a few two-fers.

All credit for characters and setting to the amazing Stephenie Meyer, of course. She creates, I play.

Thanks to GeezerWench for the prompts and to my amazing beta, EdwardsMate4Ever.

A-Mazing – Chapter 2

The blanket with the rocks behind it was lifted and a face surrounded by a shaggy mane of blond hair appeared from behind it.

"Need assistance?" he asked with a drawl.

Jasper. It was Jasper from school. One of the doctor's kids. He was all right, surely.

"Hi," Bella said. "I thought I was stuck out here alone."

"Nope, not alone," Jasper said as he stepped out from under the blanket and stood up.

Had he always been this tall? She had only seen him across the lunchroom and in the hallways.

Bella looked down at her lap as she pulled her gloves back on, getting ready to stand up, relieved to have some company.

"This maze is longer than I thought," she told him. He reached out and took her hand, pulling her to her feet.

"It goes on a piece," he replied. "How much of it have you seen?"

Once she was standing, she withdrew her hand from his grasp, thinking he seemed reluctant to let it go.

"Enough. More than enough," she replied. "I'm ready to go home."

"Have you seen jack-o-lantern row?"

"I've seen a few jack-o-lanterns," Bella said. "Someone's done a lot of work."

"I did some of these," he said, gesturing to an elaborate scene of a carriage in front of a full moon.

"Wow, nice work."

"Sure you won't come have a look?" he asked, leaning in and exhaling. He was close enough to kiss. She blinked, feeling, what was the word for this? Dazed. Whatever, it was making her forget how cold and afraid she was.

"Um, okay. Sure, I can stay out here a few minutes longer." Her knees were wobbly.

Jasper put his hand in the small of her back. "Careful, there are tree roots everywhere."

"Yeah, I tripped on over half of them," Bella replied.

He slipped his arm around her waist and pulled a flashlight out of his pocket.

As they walked together, she relaxed. The maze wasn't so bad when you had company. Surprisingly, the maze was now lit. Light glowed from candles and occasionally from twinkle lights strung along the lower halves of trees.

Concentrating on Jasper's arm around her waist, she didn't really look where they were going or think about how far they had traveled as they walked. Sometimes they stopped for a few minutes, admiring one of the jack-o-lanterns.

"Another Frankenstein," she said. This one was in profile.

Jasper crouched gracefully next to the glowing pumpkin, switching off the flashlight so the pumpkin's flickering candle was the only light in the aisle. "Yeah, he's kind of a theme with us, I guess. He started as a human or several humans, and he was made into a monster."

The wind blew over her face and damp spots on her jeans, setting off her shivers again. Jeepers, but it was cold. Jasper noticed and said, "Can you stand the chill just a little longer? There are heat lamps ahead."

"OK," she said, "but I have to be heading home soon. Charlie, that's my Dad, is going to get home and wonder where I am."

"Right over here," Jasper said, nodding toward the next turn.

As they made the turn, past a tree with a few crows dangling from the branches, Bella saw a brighter light ahead of them.

"And here we are," Jasper said, making another turn.

In front of them was a charming gazebo with heat lamps next to it. The gazebo's lacy woodwork was strung with orange twinkle lights.

Jasper reached up to turn on one of the heat lamps. "It'll be toasty in a few minutes." He stepped up on the gazebo as she stared at the lamp, worrying despite herself that the heat might ignite the wood.

She paused on the first step to look more closely at the jack-o-lantern. It was a profile, a girl with long hair and…"Wait, is that me?" she exclaimed.

"Um, yes," Jasper said. "Just a profile. Do you like it?"

"I'm just surprised, that's all," she replied, staring at the flickering profile. It was her nose all right, but the hair seemed fuller. "Where did you get the photo?"

"I carved it from memory," he said, stepping back down from the gazebo to stand directly behind her. Bella could feel his breath on her neck. She shivered and he slid his hands around her waist, pulling her closer to him. "I think about you a lot," he whispered.

"Why?" she blurted out.

"Don't you feel it?" he asked.

She did feel something, like his arms around her waist and his breath on her neck. It was making her dizzy and dazed. She shook her head to clear it and pulled away from him. "What's on the table?"

In the center of the gazebo was a table, covered with a black tablecloth and silver dishes.

"Oh, just some snacks for anybody who made it this far," Jasper replied, taking her hand and leading her up the steps.

He pulled off the dish covers. The largest held pasta in a white sauce. Steam rose from the pan as he pulled off the lid. A warm scent of pasta and something creamy made Bella's mouth water. Dishes on either side held bread and chocolate brownies.

"This is for anybody who made it this far?" she asked.

"Well, no," Jasper replied. "My sister Alice set this table up for us. Before setting up the table, they put up a blanket cutting off the maze behind us."

"Why?" Bella asked, flattered and confused.

"Alice has been telling me to introduce myself to you at school, but you're always with your friends and I didn't want to interrupt." Jasper ladled up a generous helping of pasta onto a plate and handed it to her.

This admission stunned Bella. She didn't know how to answer, so she decided to talk about the food instead. "This might be the wrong time to say this, but I'm vegetarian," Bella said, plate. "But it looks great."

"It's mushroom ravioli," Jasper replied. "I noticed you never had ate anything 'carnivorous' in the school cafeteria."

"Um, thanks," Bella replied. He had been watching her that closely? Sounded stalker-ish. Kind of cool and romantic, but also kind of scary.

Jasper pulled out two folding chairs from behind the table. "Have a seat?" he asked, setting one in front of her.

She sat, holding her plate in her lap. Jasper moved the plate holding the brownies to one side and scooted the table in front of her.

"Aren't you having something?" she asked as she set her plate on the table.

"Special diet, but I'll cheat with one of your ravioli, if you don't mind," he said, holding a fork out.

"Sure," she replied. He speared a ravioli and slipped it in his mouth.

She ate one too, closing her eyes to enjoy its warmth and savor the flavor. "Wow, that's good," she said. "Did you like yours?"

"Yes. Unaccustomed, but flavorful." He kept a straight face as he spoke, though, not looking as if he were enjoying anything.

She finished her plate, mostly for the warmth, then mopped up the remaining sauce with a piece of the Italian bread.

"Good?" Jasper asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Great." She took a brownie and looked up at the twinkling lights. "It's getting really late, I should be getting home."

It was raining now, so she was sure that everyone else had left the maze. They were protected on their gazebo, the sound of the raindrops on the roof soothing.

"Let's just sit and enjoy the moment a bit longer, shall we?" Jasper said, pulling his chair closer and putting his arm around her shoulders.

They sat comfortably, looking out at the rain falling beyond the orange lights.

"I could stay here forever, though we might need to put in a better heating system," she said after a few minutes. How long had they been here anyway? It was full dark. Had she really been in here an hour? Or longer? Charlie would be getting worried. She wondered if Angela had called the house looking for her when they didn't meet up at the maze.

"Heat. That's something I miss sometimes," Jasper whispered.

He stroked her cheek. His finger felt cold and hard on her skin, like he was using his fingernail. She reached up and touched his hand and was startled. His hand was not only cold, it was hard and smooth, like a marble statue.

She froze.

"You can feel it, can't you?" he asked, bending in closer to her face.

If I touch his face, will it feel like his hand? she wondered.

As if reading her thoughts, he lifted her hand to his cheek. "What are you thinking?" he asked.

"Um, you feel different, if you don't mind my saying so," she mumbled, confused. Did he have some kind of skin condition? Something told her this wasn't a human affliction. Fear started spreading across her body, clenching the muscles in her stomach and chest, setting her on edge. Suddenly a flush of relaxation ran through her, unclenching her muscles, putting her at ease despite herself as Jasper stared into her eyes.

"That isn't all you're thinking, though, now is it?" he asked.

"You know what I'm thinking?" she asked him.

Jasper sighed. "More like I know what you're feeling," he replied, taking her hand off his cheek and putting it on his lap. He put his other hand on his face, scrubbing it as if thinking. Or trying to wash away a thought.

"And you can change what I'm feeling," she stated.

"You are observant," he said, looking back at her. "In answer, yes, I can influence emotions. I've been able to ever since I died."

Died?! "And how am I feeling?" she asked, nervous, but wanting to engage him.

"You have a mix of fear, curiosity, and a touch of attraction."

"A touch?" she blurted out.

"A bit more," he admitted.

She blushed. "You were being gentlemanly."

"That's how I was raised. A long time ago…" he said, his voice dropping off at the end.

"How long ago?" He makes it sound like it was more than fifteen years. And what was that about monsters and being made of several humans, anyway? And being dead?

He stared at her thoughtfully, then ran one cold finger down her face.

"If I tell you, there's no going back," he said, leaning forward, capturing her with his eyes.

"I want to hear," she said.

He leaned in closer, so that his lips hovered over hers. The sweet scent of his breath made her feel weak and alive at the same time.

"No going back," he said.

"I don't want to," she replied.

"You can't imagine how long I've been waiting to hear those words," he said, touching her lips with his.

It was like being kissed by a statue. His lips moved but were stony and cold. Bella didn't care and set out to warm them with her own. She put her hands on his shoulders, then slipped them around his neck.

He pulled her close.

From the corner of her eye, she saw blue and red lights flashing somewhere in the distance, and heard Charlie's voice through a bullhorn, calling "Bella. Bella?"

The sweet scent of Jasper's breath overwhelmed her, and she felt herself sinking deep as cold arms lifted her and fled into the darkness.

THE END

xxx

So, thank you for reading!

I appreciate all of the feedback and reviews I've received so far.

Please leave a review. Reviews keep my jack-o-lantern smiling! Happy Halloween!

I'm posting a Halloween drabble now through Halloween called Halloween, the movie- Twilight style. A wacky take-off on Halloween (the original movie). Anybody remember that one? Please stop by and check it out.