OH MY GOD IT'S FINALLY HERE! Which would be my expression and yours by now lol! I'm so sorry for the 3...week...wait...heh heh...but it's finally finished! I had enough time today and I completed it! I hope it was well worth the insanely long wait!

Also, I want to thank all of my readers who expressed concern for my grandmother, it really made me feel so much better. She's doing just fine now and is in a rehab hospital and should be able to go home soon :) Thank you all so much -hugs for everyone-

Amelia stood in front of the full-length mirror, fidgeting her hands as she bit her lower lip for her nerves had started to get to her. She was dressed in a frightfully beautiful gown with the bottom of the skirt barely touching the ground. The large, loose sleeves around her arms were black with silver trim around the edge. Her top was purple with a black spider web pattern and a v-neckline. Along it was a familiar collar that looked much like the bat wings of Jack's infamous bat bowtie. It even had the bat's head at the base of the V-shape. Around her waist was a small, silver sash which attached the skirt of her dress to the rest of her outfit. The bottom belled out around her legs and split down the middle, starting at the center of the silver belt where an azure jewel hung. It revealed the purple underskirt with the same spider web pattern as her top. She even wore black shoes with a little bit of heel in them to make her an inch or so taller.

However, she couldn't help but feel slightly awkward for she wasn't used to such fancy, albeit scary attire, other than her normal sorceress garb. But even that really wasn't nearly as formal as what she wore now. Her fingers lightly touched the cool stone of the pendant around her neck that matched the gem in the silver circlet crown upon her head. To even further emphasize to her new attire, she wore her elbow-length, dark blonde hair down instead of up in its usual ponytail. She took a deep breath and exhaled for she hoped it would calm her nerves down some what, but with not much luck.

Amelia had fallen asleep soon after the encounter with Elizabeth, and wasn't sure if it even really happened. She never did figure out who could possibly betray her trust and try to kill her. Having gone against Jack for the second time, she just couldn't bring herself to address him about it. He was protective of her enough as it is, which to her, was a good enough reason not to tell him. At least, that's what she thought.

It was now the afternoon of Halloween Day and Amelia had pretty much ignored her ancestor's persistent warning. She had not seen, or heard, the ghostly Victorian since that night and the young sorceress became more and more worried as each day had passed. She had reached a crossroads of what to do, and just simply didn't know where to turn. The best she felt that she could do was to teach herself a few more spells for her own self-defense, which of course, she did.

But oddly enough, her book went missing a few days prior, after she had mastered those spells. She nearly tore apart her room when she frantically looked everywhere for it, but to no avail. She gave up on the search with the thought that it would turn up eventually. To occupy her time the past few days that didn't have to do with the holiday preparations, she taught herself to dance a simple waltz, with the help of a little magic of course. She used a different type of shadow manipulation to form a lamp's silhouette into a simple dance partner. It took her several tries but she finally got the steps down. But dancing with a shadow was one thing, dancing with an actual person was another.

Amelia took a deep breath as she stood in front of the mirror and began to move across the hardwood floor in time to music that only she could hear. She felt a little awkward as she danced in her heels, which she had broken in only the day before. Her ankle wanted to twist several times as she tried to keep herself balanced. Living up to her reputation as a clumsy sorceress, she tripped over her own two feet and started to fall backward. She tightly closed her eyes shut and braced for impact with the hard ground below. But she never did. Instead, she felt a strong arm wrap around her waist and another firmly grasped her hand. Instinctively, her own gripped the person's shoulder, still in slight shock from falling.

"Are you alright?" a familiar voice asked after a moment.

Shakily, she opened her eyes and looked up at her savior.

"Jack!" her face turned several different shades of red as she stared wide-eyed at the smiling skeleton man. "I-I'm fine…th-thanks to you." She tried to beat down her blush from embarrassment, and from their close proximity.

"Better be more careful next time." He winked and gracefully lifted her up to stand on her own, almost as though they were dancing.

"What can I say?" she laughed sheepishly as her blush finally started to die down, "I guess I just have two left feet."

"Well to be honest," he crossed his arms, "you were doing just fine up until you tripped."

"Erm…" she looked down at the floor, her cheeks regaining their pink tint, "How long were you standing there?"

"Long enough to tell that something is bothering you." He uncrossed his arms and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, "What's on your mind? You know you can tell me." He smiled warmly at her.

"It's just that…I'm nervous. Scared is probably a better word for it." She admitted and finally glanced back up at him. "How will I know that I won't mess up? Or, as you just witnessed, fall flat on my face?"

"Also, as you just saw, I'll be there to catch you." He said reassuringly, "Don't worry so much. No need to put the extra pressure on yourself."

He removed his hand from her shoulder and lifted her head up to make sure she looked him directly in the eyes.

"Chin up. I have full confidence in you." He beamed, "Besides, I couldn't have asked for a better Queen."

"Queen!" her eyes went wide in surprise. She tried to fight down the blush that yet again threatened spread across her face.

"Yes, you are going to have complete rule over Halloween tonight." He explained as he moved his hand away, "This is, after all, a test to see if you are capable of taking over because you will one day become The Pumpkin Queen." He chuckled, "Well, at least I hope you do when the time comes that I decide to step down."

"Oh right, right." She gave a curt nod to show that she understood. 'Of course it was that!' she mentally scolded herself, 'Why on earth would I think otherwise! Gee, maybe it's because of the guilt of breaking my promise to him keeps growing! Why am I such an idiot!'

"Although by the looks of it, you're already stealing my style." He gently grabbed the tip of her bat-collar. "I thought I was missing one of my bowties."

She laughed at his light-hearted joke and he soon joined in as well.

"Well, I'll leave you be, time for me to get into my own costume anyhow." He turned and started out the door, but then turned back to face her for a moment. "You'll do fine for you've already proved to be more than able." With one last smile, he left.

Amelia beamed happily and had a sudden boost of confidence. "Yeah, I can do it. He obviously has faith in me, so why shouldn't I?" She glanced around hesitantly before she twirled in a circle with glee and giggled a little. "I'm so glad Jack is always there for me, if he wasn't I don't know…" her eyes widened again and her pupils shrank down to their familiar microscopic dots.

'Someone, who you think cares for you deeply, is going to betray you…' Elizabeth's words rang in her head.

"No…" she breathed. "No! Jack wouldn't! He couldn't! But…it seems he cares for me more than anything else." She became stricken with anxiety. "Why? Why would he?" she glanced over to her mirror in the corner of the room. "Oh I wish you were here Elizabeth. I can't figure this out on my own!"

A feeling of sorrow greatly overwhelmed her and she put her face in her hands in despair. It took all of her willpower not to cry from both fear and worry.

"There's just no way…" she whispered.

'I'm so proud of Amelia.' Jack thought has he casually walked down the hall, 'As well as amazed at how fast she has grown up. It's quite remarkable how she seems to bloom in maturity more and more each day. She's come so far in such a short amount of time.'

Jack hummed in content as he made his way up the spiral staircase to the tower. He was very pleased with how good everything was going so far that day. Needless to say, he was rather excited for the celebration to start, and to see the heir to his throne take the lead. He skipped a few steps as he neared the top and finally entered his room. Gleefully, he made his way over to a tall, dark brown, wooden wardrobe, which was slightly deformed like everything else in Halloween Town. Opening the doors, he reached in and pulled out a rather spooky looking ensemble for the approaching Halloween night. It had a black and orange pinstripe vest with a pale orange undershirt. The dress pants, shoes, and the long trench coat were all midnight black. The sleeves of the coat had pale orange cuffs to match the undershirt. The collar, cuffs, and edges of the coat were cut and torn to create a more scary effect.

Jack was very pleased with his new attire, though he had had a rough start. He wasn't at all sure about any sort of design and pondered about asking Amelia. But, she had been busy at the time with all of the other sketches for costumes by request from some of the citizens that he felt it would have been rude to bother her. So, he decided to ask the two witches for assistance. They were more than "unhappy" to help their king whom they admired so dearly. Almost immediately after he had asked, they began their work. The two of them quickly came up with several designs and had Jack pick the one he liked best. All of the designs were good, but a big smile spread across his face as soon as he saw the outfit which he now held in his hands. It was quite different from his normal pinstriped suit and he very much welcomed the change.

The Pumpkin King stood in front of a mirror that was inside one of the wardrobe doors with his new attire on, fixing the spiky collar and the cuffs of the coat sleeves which had crinkled a little. He then took a few steps back and analyzed his appearance.

"Hmm…I do miss my bat bowtie, but I am very satisfied." He put his hands on his hips and beamed at his reflection.

"Hey Jack I…Whoa." a feminine voice spoke from behind him which caused him to turn toward the visitor.

Amelia had come up the spiral staircase and started toward him, but quickly froze in her tracks and her jaw dropped when she saw him. He didn't notice it, but her cheeks had turned a faint shade of pink.

"It's a little unexpected yes, but what do you think?" Jack asked smiling, eagerly awaited her opinion.

"I-it's amazing!" she walked over to him, still awe-struck. "Wow. You look great! Err…horrifying." She grinned.

"Thank you my dear." He gave a small bow. "Oh! Excuse me, how could I have been so rude? I never complimented your costume!" He crossed his arms, "I must say that you look quite astounding! Very frightening indeed."

"Thank you." She looked down as her light blush intensified.

"Come now, don't be modest Ami." He beamed and lifted her chin up with two bony fingers so she would meet his gaze. "You look beautiful, and I'm not using Halloween speak."

Her cheeks turned several different shades of red from his words, and her thoughts about how he looked very handsome in his new outfit didn't help matters. She gulped and tried to calm down her racing heart.

"Y-you're just saying that t-to get me all flustered, aren't you?" she asked suspiciously, though she stuttered some.

"Maybe." He teased and held his hands behind his back, trying to look innocent. Jack couldn't help but enjoy picking on her a little, even though he had, in fact, meant what he said.

Amelia just smiled and rolled her eyes, then playfully punched him in the shoulder.

"Well knock it off." She giggled. "I'm Queen now after all, so you had better watch it." She poked him and winked.

"Oh of course, please forgive me your majesty." He gave an exaggerated, yet graceful bow to play along.

"I will this time, but next time you won't be so lucky." She shook her finger and placed a hand on her hip.

He chuckled and walked up next to her as he offered his arm to her.

"Shall we then?" he smiled warmly.

"Yes we shall." She beamed up at him as she gratefully took his arm and they began their descent down the spiral staircase.

'Jack couldn't be the one Elizabeth was trying to warn me about.' Amelia thought to herself, 'It just doesn't add up! He's so kind, loyal, generous, caring…tall…handsome.' She mentally slapped herself as soon as it had crossed her mind. 'Get a grip Amelia! He's practically family! Not to mention you still have a boyfriend whom you have yet to break up with. You know how disappointed Jack would be if he knew! He wouldn't trust you anymore!'

She tried to keep her composure normal so as not to alert Jack about her inner turmoil.

"Oh, by the way Amelia, I was meaning to ask you something." He suddenly said out of the blue.

Her face went as white as a sheet when he spoke those words.

"When you came upstairs, were you going to tell me something?" he asked.

"Oh that!" she heaved a mental sigh of relief. "I was wondering if you could cast a spell that would create the illusion that I was on fire."

He raised an eyebrow in slight confusion.

"Well, you set yourself on fire during the normal Halloween celebration and I didn't want to break the tradition." She explained, "But I can't exactly be set on fire." She laughed sheepishly.

"Ah yes, I suppose I could." He grasped his chin in thought. "But I thought you already had something planned."

"I did, but it's kind of difficult to concentrate to maintain an illusion while dancing." She over-exaggerated her frown, "Especially in heels."

He laughed at her comical grief.

"A girl who isn't used to wearing high heels, now there's a shock." He arched a would-be eyebrow and smiled.

"Oh can it." A wicked grin spread across her face and she looked up at him, "Scaredy Skeleton."

He sent her a heated glare at the loathsome nickname. "Touché," he let go of her arm and opened the front door for her like a gentleman. But as she passed him, he leaned downed and said, "Pumpkin Princess."

She turned to see him give her a mischievous smile of his own which caused hers to falter. She crossed her arms and huffed as she turned on her heel, giving him the cold shoulder.

"See if I let you escort me the rest of the way." She began to storm off down the outdoor steps to the front gate.

"Come on Ami, I was only kidding." The skeleton said as he quickened his pace a little to catch up with her.

"Nope, I'm ignoring you starting now." She held her nose high in the air and began to walk a little faster.

"If you do that, I won't help you with your spell." He countered as he crossed his arms and continued to follow her. To his surprise, she didn't respond.

"Um, Amelia?" he asked dumbfounded, even though he should have known that she meant what she said.

"Ok you're right, I wouldn't do that." He admitted and tried to think of something else he could use.

"Alright, alright I give up." The skeleton stated after a few minutes of pondering with no luck. Silence was his only response from the young sorceress.

"I'm sorry?" he tried apologizing but that got him no where fast as well. "Teenagers," he mumbled, then heaved a sigh for he knew he would immediately regret saying what he was about to offer.

"What can I do to make it up to you?" he got a bad feeling as soon as the words had left his mouth.

"Really?" Amelia had stopped and turned toward him.

"…yes." He slumped a little.

"Hmm…" she grasped her chin in thought, but then a sly grin spread across her face and she happily walked over to him. "Promise to never call me that again." She stated.

"Eh! That's it!" he was stunned by the simplicity of her request.

"Yup." She put her hands on her hips and looked up at him expectantly.

"I don't know if I could keep a promise like that." He crossed his arms and glanced off to the side.

"Huh? But you have to! You said you would." She pointed out.

"Ok, I will. But on one condition." He held up his index finger for emphasis.

"Well that hardly seems fair!" she complained.

"It's a simple one, nothing special." He reassured her.

"Fine," she rolled her eyes, "what is it then?"

"You'll see." He winked at her and then began to leave her behind as he made his way toward the town square.

"What! Hey! Come back here!" she managed to catch up to him, even in her black high heels. She tried to get him to tell her, using everything she could think of, but he wouldn't budge.

Jack had successfully turned the tables on the now confused sorceress.

What could Jack possibly want? Will Amelia tell him about Elizabeth's warning? Will she ever break up with Alucard! Stay tunned to find out! You've all read so now it's time to push that review button! :D