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Wind howled in the branches. It was eerie and ominous, but FP kept walking.
His son was out here somewhere. He'd find him.
I won't fail him now.
FP knew he was never a good father. He'd never been around, never been reliable. He'd drove his son out of their home.
I won't lose him now.
The metallic scent of blood suddenly hit FP and he staggered, fear ripping through every cell in his body.
Blood stained the grass under his boots.
He followed the trail which gradually got more dense to the base of a pine tree.
Jughead's limp form had been shoved under there carelessly, laying on one arm and his face pressed to the grass.
(He'd been shoved aside like he was worthless, expendable. FP saw red.)
FP shoved leaves away and pulled him out gently.
He wasn't breathing.
FP quickly started CPR until Jughead took in a ragged breath.
Those blue eyes were open wide, glassed over in panic and fear and pain. A hand weakly swatted in FP's general direction, as his body squirmed on the cold ground. Despite his attempted attack, whimpers of pain left Jughead's mouth.
"No, no. Shh, boy, calm down. It's me. You're safe." FP grabbed his son's arms and pinned them to the ground and did the same with his legs. Jughead let out another whimper, but this one was more fear than pain.
Then Jughead slowly fell still and his eyes blinked. "D...ad?"
FP's heart broke. "Yeah, I'm here, Jug. I'm here."
-----
Silence.
No one dared to even breathe as FP emerged from the trees and light fog, holding Jughead's limp body. Everything was eerily still; the surrounding trees, the people, the air.
Betty broke the silence.
"Jug!"
Toni felt Cheryl's grip on her arm tighten as Betty's voice echoed in the trees. It was full of pain. Sorrow. Anguish.
FP's knees seemed to buckle under the weight of too much.
Toni watched, feeling a world away, as Betty rushed forward and dropped to the ground in front of FP.
Toni moved closer as well, and felt Cheryl scramble to move with her.
Betty's hands drew back shakily from Jughead's face, coated in blood.
Toni reached out to stabilize herself on the tree beside her.
Would they be losing two Serpents in one day? First Fangs, now Jug? Her eyes hardened and she turned to Cheryl. Her girlfriend's eyes were wide.
(Huh. Maybe she doesn't hate Jug like I thought she did. I'll ask more about that later.)
"I'm not losing another Serpent today," Toni said firmly to Cheryl. Those amber eyes were suddenly glued to hers with the fire that Toni loved.
"And I'm not losing a friend," Cheryl stated. "But don't tell hobo I called him that."
Yeah. If he's alive later.
"Someone call for an ambulance! I want everyone to spread out, in at least groups of two. Keep guard, you conniving snakes," Cheryl commanded.
She then lightly pushed her girlfriend closer to FP, Betty, and the limp figure of Jughead.
Toni knelt by Jughead's head, hands pressing to the grass to balance herself. She felt Cheryl standing behind her.
Jughead's face was red with drying blood. Not a spot of his pale skin was visible. One of his sleeves had been cut off, and he was bleeding heavily from his arm where his tattoo had been gouged out. His beanie, now with a red tinge, was clutched to FP's chest protectively. Was he even breathing?
Toni wanted to reach out and comfort Jughead, even though he was unconscious, but she didn't want to cause him more pain.
FP slowly lifted Jughead's shirt, winced, and dropped it.
(Toni could only imagine the bruises mapped out on his body.)
She shuddered and suddenly Cheryl's hand was on her shoulder.
Betty's hands returned to Jughead's face, brushing lightly through his hair without touching his skin. "Jug, wake up. Juggy!"
Toni glanced back to FP and she saw that the former Serpent's leader had tears running down his face.
Sweet Pea stepped into Toni's line of view, completing the circle of people around Jughead. "Ambulance won't come. Claims too many people are in the hospital from the riots and the doctors are too busy," Sweet Pea growled and kicked at the nearest tree. He looked torn between crying or destroying the entire forest.
(Sweet Pea may argue with and tease Jughead, but Toni knew he cared about Jughead. She could even see the tears in his eyes too.)
FP laid his son on the grass and buried his face in his hands.
Then Betty placed her fingers against Jughead's throat, where a pulse should be. Toni held her breath. She gave a huge exhale when some of the tension in Betty's body left with a small nod. "It's there, but weak. We need to do something," she urged FP.
Seeing FP was too distressed to do anything, Cheryl spoke up again.
"We have got to get out of here, soon," Cheryl declared. "Betty, FP, and Sweet Pea, let's get Jughead out of here. Archie and Veronica, get the rest of the Serpents to safety."
Everyone was quick to obey. Toni gently held on to Jughead's arm, rotating it a few times and watching his face for any signs of pain.
Nothing. So she pulled the arm over her shoulders while Sweet Pea did the same, and together they lifted Jughead off the ground.
They carefully got into Betty's car, with them three in the back and Cheryl in the passenger seat, while FP drove the motorbike back.
The ride back to the trailer park seemed to take forever. Betty was paying more attention to the rearview mirror so she could watch Jughead instead of the road.
(Toni eventually had to lift Jughead's limp head and place it on Sweet Pea's shoulder so Betty would stop looking and wouldn't drive into the ditch.)
Tires screeched as Betty halted her vehicle. Sweet Pea and Toni were clambering out as soon as it stopped moving.
The door was unlocked so they carried Jughead inside and laid him gently on the floor.
(Didn't want to get blood all over the bed.)
Cheryl and Betty were close behind. "We need to clean his wounds and stop any bleeding," Toni said.
"Well, you are some very lucky people," Cheryl sighed. "Mummy made me take a first aid course for five years in a row."
"And I know how to sew wounds," Sweet Pea added.
"Let's get to work," Toni announced.
And work they did. Betty gathered a bunch of towels and soaked them in warm water while Toni got some alcohol and a rag.
When they got back to Jughead's room, Sweet Pea and Cheryl had managed to remove Jughead's jacket and shirt.
(Toni had been right - Jughead's skin was more blue, purple and green than its normal milky white.)
He was mostly bleeding from his face, and the spot on his shoulder where his Serpent tattoo had been cut out. Toni pressed the alcohol-drenched rag to that first, to disinfect it, then moved on to the bleeding gashes on his face so Betty could clean it. Sweet Pea then went to work on sewing up his arm.
(Toni found the lack of movement on Jughead's face extremely worrying.)
Once he was cleaned up to the best of their abilities, they moved him to the bed.
Toni noticed Betty was missing suddenly, and squeezed Cheryl's arm before sliding away. She found the blonde on the sofa, head in her hands.
Toni sat quietly beside her. "Hey."
The teen lifted her head and looked at the young Serpent with teary blue eyes. "Is he okay?" she croaked.
"So far. I think he'll make it. Hey." She reached out and carefully wrapped an arm around Betty's shoulders. "Us Serpents have helped each other through lots of stuff that should've been dealt with in a hospital. We're good at it, okay? And we don't give up on one of our own. And putting him in the hospital could put him at risk, especially if Penny or the Ghoulies find out he's not dead."
Betty nodded shakily. "I know. I know. I'm just worried. Scared."
"And that's totally okay."
As the others, except for Cheryl, emerged from the hallway and left with a wave goodbye and a promise to return the next day, Toni stood up from the couch. She ventured down the hall to the bedroom.
Cheryl was sitting on the edge of the bed by Jughead's hip, one hand gently brushing against the blankets that covered him.
"Cheryl?" Toni asked.
Toni was surprised to see tears in her girlfriend's eyes. "What if this had been you, Tee-Tee? What if-"
Toni grabbed Cheryl's hands in hers. "It's not me. I'm fine."
"They had you hostage. If Jughead hadn't went to go get you- if he hadn't come to me for backup-"
"Cheryl. Look at me." Cheryl did as Toni asked, her amber eyes wide and sad. "I'm fine. I'm unharmed," Toni assured her.
Cheryl nodded. "I love you, Toni."
Toni smiled. "I love you more." She leaned in and kissed Cheryl hard.
"Ugh. If you must stick your tongues down each other's throats, can you not do it when I'm trying to sleep?"
Both girls jumped at Jughead's weak, raspy voice. "Jug!" Toni said, leaning around Cheryl to inspect Jughead's face. His eyes were barely open, and his hair was a disaster that any hairbrush would cower from.
"How're you feeling?" Toni questioned.
"Like crap." Jughead winced when he shifted on the bed.
"I'll get you some water, hobo," Cheryl said and left the room.
(At least typical Cheryl was helping this situation be somewhat normal.)
"Now that you're awake, we can deal with potential internal injuries," Toni said softly to Jughead. She pulled his blankets away and started poking at his ribs carefully. He winced with every change in pressure but nothing felt broken or cracked. Badly bruised, but not terribly damaged.
A small miracle. I'll take what I can get.
She gently pressed against his nose and he gave a small cry of pain that he immediately tried to cover up with a fake cough.
(Which led to a very intense, very real coughing fit.)
"Your nose is broken. Not much we can do about that. Just be careful," Toni said.
"Right, no more walking into doors. Got it."
Toni swatted Jughead's leg lightly and then Cheryl entered the room again, glass of water in hand.
"Here, Jones," Cheryl said and handed Jughead the glass of water.
(Toni took note of Cheryl's use of Jughead's real name. Baby steps.)
Toni held it for the boy so he could drink. He took a few sips and then settled down and fell asleep again.
(And if Toni and Cheryl resumed kissing, Jughead didn't have to know.)
-----
Thump. Thump. Thump.
The only thing Betty could hear was the sound of her heartbeat in her ears.
The walls of her boyfriend's trailer seemed to be getting closer, and closer, and closer.
With a gasp Betty stood up.
I can't do it. I can't sit here and wait and-
FP hadn't returned. He'd taken Jughead's motorcycle, but it had been hours since they'd gotten back.
Where is he?
She stopped in the kitchen and grabbed a knife before she exited the trailer and pulled her coat tighter around herself. The cool night air was brisk and unforgiving.
She hopped in her car and drove, following the motorbike tracks in the soil.
She finally found him in a clearing at the side of the dirt road a ways away from Sunnyside Trailer Park.
The clearing overlooked a lake, waves crashing below them against the sharp rocks.
Betty parked her car and walked over to sit beside FP on the dry grass.
Jughead's father had a half empty whiskey bottle in hand and he sat on a rock, elbows on his knees and his head down.
"Hey," Betty said and crouched beside him.
"Betty." FP looked down at her. "Why aren't you with Jug?"
"I want revenge on Penny," Betty replied, monotone.
If FP was surprised, his face didn't show it. "I'm waiting for her. She always drives past this road."
"How do you know?"
"I've been keeping track of her since she first threatened Jughead," FP sighed, taking another sip from the bottle.
"I'd like to stay and get that revenge."
Betty was sure that if FP wasn't drunk, he'd protest and find a way to get her home.
But, he was drunk. He only focused on catching Penny.
Lucky for me.
-----
Penny did drive by. Alone, by a miracle.
It only took FP throwing a knife on the road to pop her motorcycle's tires.
"Jones?" Penny hissed as he stepped into the headlight's glow.
"Penny. You almost killed my son," FP growled.
Penny laughed. "Almost? Damn. He wasn't breathing when we left him."
Betty clenched her hands into fists, her nails digging into her palm. She gripped the knife tighter as she snuck closer to Penny.
"Now what, Jones? You gonna kill me because I hurt your little Jonesy? You can't, because you'll end up right back in jail!" Penny taunted.
Then Betty had an arm around Penny's throat, choking her.
"He can't. But I will not hesitate."
"Ponytail! I didn't think you'd do such a non goody two shoes thing," Penny wheezed out.
Betty has it too. That dark streak. She'll be just like me, and my father, and my grandfather.
She shoved Hal's voice away and pressed the steak knife to Penny's throat. The older woman tensed instantly.
All bark, little bite.
Without second thought, Betty slit her throat.
-----
Where's Betty?
Jughead was confined to his bed. If he so much as moved a finger, Sweet Pea or Toni or even Cheryl would be all over him. All, "Jughead you nearly died, take it easy," and "Jug, just relax and heal," and "For heaven's sake, Jones, we're trying to help you, quit undoing all our hard work!"
Jughead was tired of sitting around.
Sure, maybe it had only been a few hours since he'd first woken up. Sure, his whole body ached.
But Betty was out there at night. So was his father.
No Serpent gets left behind.
No one was around now. Now was his chance. He slowly, painfully slowly, swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood.
He made it one step before he collapsed.
(He winced, more from the sound of his knees against the wooden trailer floor than the pain that rocketed through all of his limbs.)
Then Sweet Pea was there, in front of him, arms crossed. "Jones."
Jughead ducked his head to hide from Sweet Pea. "Hey, Sweets."
Sweet Pea huffed and knelt down to grab Jughead's arms. Surprisingly gentle.
"Get your ass back in bed, Jones. You won't be walking for at least another three weeks," Sweet Pea said as he lifted Jughead back to a standing position. He all but dragged Jughead back to his bed.
"Now," Sweet Pea said. "If I see so much as one finger leaves this bed, I'm tying you to it. Don't test me."
Jughead looked at Sweet Pea with wide eyes. "But- Betty's out there, and so is my dad!"
Sweet Pea shook his head. "Some of the Serpents are looking for them. Relax and rest, or I'll knock you out myself."
Jughead sighed.
(He didn't sleep.)
-----
Blaring.
That was Veronica's ringtone. She reached across her bed to grab her phone and accept the call.
"Arch? Is everything-"
"Betty's been arrested."
Veronica dropped her book onto her bed. The white walls of her bedroom blurred together through her tears. "How? Why?"
"She killed somebody. Penny Peabody."
The woman who beat up Jughead, Veronica remembered the name.
"Okay, I'll talk to you later."
She ignored her parent's confused calls as she ran through the house and to the driveway.
Next stop: police station.
-----
Veronica held Betty's hand through the cold metal bars. "Bee."
"I'm sorry, Vee. I had to. I don't regret it."
And Veronica knew her best friend well enough to know that every word she said was true.
-----
Telling Jughead was the hardest, Veronica decided.
The teen boy, wide eyed and weak and bruised on his bed. He'd recently showered, and was now propped up by a mound of pillows, his black hair shiny with water and a complete mess, huddled under blankets.
(She hated to tear apart the already broken boy.)
She glanced quickly at Toni and Sweet Pea, stood in the doorway of the bedroom.
(Waiting to tear her to shreds if she hurt Jughead, she was sure, based on their defensive posture.)
"Jug… Betty's been arrested."
-----
Broken.
That was the only word Sweet Pea could use to describe Jughead.
The teen had been so strong, so powerful, so motivated for such a long time.
Now, even getting Jughead to take a sip of water took all of Sweet Pea's energy.
(But he tried his hardest. Sweet Pea wasn't a quitter.)
Sweet Pea took Jughead every day to see Betty in prison, despite the obvious limp he now walked with. Jughead still loved her, but Sweet Pea didn't know why.
(She wasn't the same Betty he'd fallen in love with. This Betty has stone cold eyes, eyebrows permanently furrowed angrily. She never maintained eye contact with Jughead. Never told him she still loved him.)
Sweet Pea was helpless as the Serpents fell weak. With FP having never returned, and Jughead lost, the Serpents had no leader.
Sweet Pea found himself having to protect Jughead from his own family of Serpents who were angry with the lack of leadership.
Until Toni and Cheryl became the Serpent Queens.
Eventually, Jughead seemed to snap even farther. Sweet Pea caught him drunk and still drinking sometimes.
(Sometimes he had to wrestle the bottle away from Jughead.)
But eventually, Jughead caught himself. The first time Jughead kissed Sweet Pea, he wasn't surprised.
(He wanted to kiss back, but Jughead was drunk.)
Once they started dating, Jughead seemed to come back to himself a bit. He made an active effort to talk to his old friends, including Veronica and Archie. He even spoke to Cheryl. Sweet Pea was there for him, even when Jughead didn't know he needed his boyfriend.
(Jughead never thanked Sweet Pea. But that was fine; Sweet Pea knew he was grateful, if the amount of I love you's said daily were anything to go by.
Maybe things would never be the same.
FP was gone to who knows where.
Betty stuck in prison.
Jughead broken and struggling.
Archie and Veronica never showed up to see Jughead, but they did text him.
Well, Sweet Pea thought as he laid in bed with a sleeping Jughead one night. I suppose things could be worse off.
Even if we're all left in pieces anyways.