I was walking down the stairs when I see dad giving them men orders them having guns on their holsters and see a man putting new locks on the door
"Mija come over here"
"Yes Pa?"
"I want you to come home early now I don't want you going out at night unless one of our men are with you or your with Sweetpea"
"Yes dad"
"Mija come over here" called mom I walked over and she handed me a new necklace
"Wow mom"
"I had your sister send it down when it was done it's a tracker necklace which I will know where you are for safety okay"
"Yes mom"
"I love you my small orchid." I went down to Southside high and in lunch sat next to my cousin
"So little rose" said Fangs
"Yes Fangsys"
"Aww cute" he said I laughed
"Dude don't flirt with my cousin"
"Eshh pea get off his nuts damn" he head slaps me
"Toni his hitting me" she hits his arm
"Ow topaz"
"What you get for hurting the child"
"Haha" he rolled his eyes then he puts on a video and my eyes widen it's Archie oh god and we see Jughead walking over to us
"Hey. I'm guessing we're not watching funny cat videos."
"Check this out. Some sick-in-the-head Northsider posted a crazy-ass video, and we were just talking..."
"About what?"
"Fogarty wants to earn his Serpent stripes. I say bring us the head of that Northsider, and you're in."
"I'm down with that." I flick both their heads
"No, guys, don't."
"What, Jones?"
"I know this guy, he's a milquetoast. He's a football player. It's kind of a lame target, is all I'm saying. You wanna prove something? Why don't you go after the Black Hood?"
"And why would we do that? The Black Hood's targeting Northsiders, who do nothing but blame the Southside for everything that's wrong with this town. And we're sick of it. The Black Hood's doing our work for us. He's a hero." I rolled my eyes slammed my hands on the table and leave
"Celeste" I turned to face my cousin
"What pea"
"What's with the attitude"
"Attitude really after the bullshit you just said his a hero"
"Well what he is you don't know what it's like to have people think down on you"
"Okay I don't but it doesn't mean you can bring bad on others"
"Oh because they've done so much for us right" I sighed
"Okay your right on that and I'm not disagreeing with you their"
"Then are you going to have my back or theirs"
"Sweetpea we're cousins of course I'll have your back we're family" we hugged
"I just don't want you to get hurt"
"It's okay" after school
"Hey Little rose" I turned and saw him coming my way
"Oh hey"
"Hey um crazy to ask you this but um are you okay"
"Yeah I'm fine me and Sweetpea talked it out"
"Names Emilio by the way Emilio styles"
"Your a"
"Serpent too" I laughed a little
"Great .... Well I have to go bye"
"Bye" a couple days later
Betty Kevin and I go to Southside to jug trailer and see Toni their as we crack so codes
"These symbols look so familiar to me. It's like I've seen them before and it's driving me crazy I can't figure out where."
"Maybe if you loosened your ponytail. What? That was a joke, guys."
"Betty's ponytail is iconic and beyond reproach."
"Kev... It's fine. And at this point, I'm willing to try anything."
"Per Mrs. Paroo's books, I'm looking for common letter associations like T-H, A-N, I-N-G."
"I'm looking for doubles. Double L and four-letter words like kill."
"That's morbid."
"We don't know if this thing's even in English. Guys, I mean, this could be an angram."
"I'm literally on the top of my brain..."
"All right. Let's go back to the basics. What do we know about this guy? Who is he?"
"He's a white male, in his 40s. Like almost every serial killer ever."
"No, I mean like why... Why is he killing people? Or at least, why now?"
"We know the Hood's obsessed with cleansing the town of sinners and hypocrites, right? And he seems to be attacking anyone with ties to the Northside."
"Oh boy here we go" I said annoyed
"Here we go with the fake news again. You Northsiders and your privilege. All you do is demonize the Southside so of course you think the Black Hood's from there."
"It's not demonizing, Toni. It's stating facts. There's way more drugs and gangs and..."
"Oh my God Betty" I said annoyed
"The drugs you mean which were sold primarily to Northside crackheads? And what about the Northside Neo-Nazis? The Red Circle?"
"More like The Red Psychos, you mean." I said
"Hell, Betty, I'm surprised you haven't just come out and said it yet."
"Said what?"
"That you think the Black Hood's a Serpent. We all know how much you hate us."
"Okay, Toni..."
"I don't hate the Serpents."
"Oh, yeah? Then why is it that your boyfriend here lies about the fact that he sits with us at lunch?"
"Oh boy" everything was so uncomfortable
"I'm gonna go."
"Yeah, you know what? I'm gonna get outta here, too."
"Okay. I can walk you home. Or you can walk me home."
"Yeah my driver has to take me home anyways Kev I'll give you a lift"
"Um, bye, guys." In the afternoon of the next day
while brushing my hair I get a call from Emilio
"Hello" then he told me what happened I get pissed
"He did what?!" I growled I went over to Archie pounding on the door Reggie opens it
"Wow"
"Move out the way mantle" I walk in
"Hey Archie" he turns and before he said anything I slap
"Wow"
"Wow Celeste what's wrong"
"Wrong with me ask your phycopathic boyfriend going over and threatening my cousin point blank with a gun to his face" I shout at Veronica pissed off
"Cousin what are.."
"Oh now you don't remember how about when you went over to the Southside to spray paint stupid red circle and then you point a gun at my family Archie Andrews" I growled at him then their was a knock at the door he answers it and it's pea of course with serpent behind him
"How stupid are you Northsiders? You really think you can come to my house, stick a gun in my face in front of my boys, and there wouldn't be any payback?" I walked in middle of them
"Sweetpea please go home"
"You know him"
"Know him? This is my older cousin the one you pointed a gun in his face"
"What your a serpent cousin"
"Of course I am I'm serpent too"
"What"
"Celeste get behind me" pea warned me
"Pea please don't do this."
"Now!" He growled at me, I sighed and do
"You have crap timing, bro. Bulldogs eat Serpents for lunch."
"We'll see about that. And the more, the merrier."
"Hey, chill."
"Veronica, stay here."
"What?"
"Sweets please let's go home" I tell him
"No your going home now"
"For what so you can fight and get hurt not on my watch pea"
"You stay here. If you wanna fight, we'll fight."
"What about your gun?"
"What about your knife?"
"How about no weapons? If you troglodytes insist on doing this, there are gonna be rules. Or should I call Sheriff Keller to be referee?" I stayed in the car as Sweets demanded I stay as they fight I covered my eyes hearing the rain go down then I heard a shot I look up but we left i took him home and pacthed him up with Ed help
"What the hell sweets you would haven't gotten killed"
"It was payback"
"For sure pea and now look at you was it worth" I sneered as I pacthed him up I was silently crying he hated seeing me cry I heard him sigh
"Hey.... Hey look at me" I did he rub his thumb over my cheek and wipe my tear away
"I'm fine okay alive even"
"What if your weren't what then pea" I hugged him crying he hugs me and rub my back to comfort me
"I don't want to lose you over something stupid" I sob lighty to him
"You won't I promise" once he fell asleep I called dad and told him I was going to stay over for the night I sat on his couch Emilio came and rub my back
"Your great you know"
"Thanks" I put a hair behind my ear
"I just care too much about family you know"
"I wish I had family like you my parents left me at age 10 then I found the serpents" I frowned then hugged him
"I'm sorry but if you need anything I'm here"
"Thanks" we looked at each other and with one kiss
I knew my life would change from their on out.