Chapter title is from Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
NOTE: okay so Fangs' real name (in the comics) is Edward, which is where Eddie comes from. My HC for Sweet Pea's name is Lathyrus (which is the sweet pea's latin name), which is where Lath comes from
WARNING: oh god... so canon violence (the penny tattoo scene, a recap of archie being buried alive), implied sexual content (healthy communication about comfort zones!!!), and pretty implicit past pedophilia/underage sex between Penny Peabody and a teen serpent
So FP didn't retire, instead he became Penny's drug mule, Jughead and the poly squad had sex, the Black Hood is still around, and it's just about time for Christmas
(Cast Not Your Stone at the) Wayward Daughter
Terror Made Me Cruel
Amy winced as the harsh sunlight streamed in through the trailer window, lifting an arm to shield her eyes. She felt, more than saw, her bedmates doing the same, and was struck with regret for not closing the blinds the night before.
Thankfully Toni was a morning person, and had no problem getting out of bed and taking care of that, smiling fondly while the other four rubbed the sleep out of their eyes. As their eyes adjusted to the light, they started taking in their various stages of undress—Toni herself was in knickers and Sweet Pea's shirt, the boy clad just in boxers. Fangs was wearing boxers and his shirt, and Jughead was fully nude, a stark contrast to Amy who was still wearing her dress from the night before, although her knickers had disappeared somewhere under the covers.
She watched as they, slowly growing more aware, seemed to remember the night before, biting back a laugh as Jughead seemed to become aware of his own nudity, flushing red. Amy seemed to have no such qualms, stripping off her dress, and reaching to the floor to pull on Jughead's boxers. It seemed that the change from a dress to his boxers was what finally reminded Jughead of everything that had happened the previous night, as he looked at her awkwardly.
"So, last night—"
"Last night was fun," Amy interrupted, "you're better than I expected from a virgin."
"But we—"
"We did. Regrets?"
"I mean no—"
"So what's the problem?"
"Last time... Last time you told me that you didn't, you know—do that—with anyone other than these guys."
"Yeah, my policy is only oral outside of the group, what's your point?"
Jughead could feel her tense up, the bed too small for anyone not to be touching, and tried to keep his own voice calm. He would have appreciated if any of the others would step in, but he knew that this was something that he and Amy needed to talk about.
"My point," he said softly, "is that you broke that policy last night."
Amy took a breath, and when she spoke, both her face and voice were blank.
"So what?" she asked, more passive than Jughead had ever seen her.
If he didn't know better, he would have thought that she didn't care. But he did know better—it wasn't that she didn't care, he realized, it was that she shut herself down. It was how she protected herself. The blank looks, waiting for whoever she was talking to to lay their cards on the table? It had never been that she didn't care; it was that she cared too much. He was starting to understand the dangers of being vulnerable among the Serpents, and after what Amy had told him the day before, he understood how precarious her position actually was. People respected her, but a lot of them didn't particularly like her, and any sign of weakness would quickly be used against her.
He felt a rush of—not pity, never pity—of sympathy, as he took her hands in his. "So, there has to be a reason. It's just us here, Amethyst, nothing ever has to leave this room."
Amy shrugged, faux-nonchalant. "Just something Archie said. It's not a big deal."
It was—of course it was; if it wasn't, she wouldn't be trying so hard to avoid the subject, but Jughead knew that pushing her would just backfire.
"Okay. But, I mean... where do we stand?" he asked, looking around at the other three.
"You're our friend, Juggy," Amy told him, "does there have to be more to it?"
"We had sex, Amethyst," Jughead reminded her, "which you specifically told me you only do with these three."
"Well maybe I want us to be five now. Not like, the relationship thing, just... friendship?"
"The friendship is there, Amethyst. It's not going anywhere. But how does the sex play in?"
"Sex is nice. It feels good, it's a good stress reliever. But it's also a reminder that at the end of the day, you have someone in your corner."
Jughead looked to Toni who shook her head—a warning not to follow that train of thought.
"Okay."
"Wait," Fangs spoke up suddenly, "Really?"
"Really," Jughead agreed. "I mean, if you guys are all okay with that? And like, not if Betty and I ever get back together or something, but yes, really."
"We're all okay with it," Sweet Pea assured him. "We've been talking about it since your gauntlet."
Jughead felt – surprisingly giddy, really. Not unlike how he felt when he started dating Betty. "Okay," he repeated.
"But now you have to lay out some ground rules, Jug," Toni told him.
"I—what?"
"You're new to this—I mean, to us, and to sex. We need to know where you stand on things, which lines to never cross."
"Oh." Jughead blushed again, suddenly remembering his nudity as all four of the other Serpents watched it spread down his chest. "I... I don't know. Can that be an answer?"
"Maybe," Sweet Pea told him, "but you still need to talk to us."
Jughead relaxed slightly as he felt Sweet Pea shift in the bed, arms wrapping loosely around Jughead's torso.
"I honestly don't know," he told them. "I've—I've really liked everything that we've done, but everything has been a first. I don't know what I like or don't like."
"Okay, that's okay. That's good, Jones. You're doing good—" and oh, Jughead would forever deny the whine that escaped him when he heard those words. "Is there anything that you know you don't want to do?"
"I... I don't think so. I mean—if I say no now, I can always change my mind, right?"
"Of course," Fangs promised.
Amy smiled at Toni, watching their boys step up to the plate. They knew that they needed to be involved in the conversation, it was between the five of them after all, but Jughead had only ever had a girlfriend, had had all of his firsts with girls, and it was important that the boys be on the same page, that they all know if there was anything that was okay with the girls but not the boys.
"Then I don't think so," Jughead said, thinking for a moment. "I mean, if we try things, or whatever, then maybe, but not right now."
"That's good, Jones, that's really good," Sweet Pea told him, having picked up on Jughead's reaction to his last praise.
As expected, Jughead keened again, the sound escaping against his will. Sweet Pea chuckled fondly, pressing a gentle kiss to the shorter boy's lips.
"So we're good?" Fangs asked, looking to Amy and Toni for approval.
"We're good," Toni told him. "But we need to get ready for the last day of school."
"Do we have to go?" Amy whined. "We finished our exams last week, today is just like... I don't even know. An excuse to keep us troublemakers in school and off the streets for as long as possible?"
"Something like that," Toni laughed. "I mean... I guess if we wanted to stick around here for the morning—"
"Yes!" "Please!" "Thank god." "Okay." The four voices spoke, not in unison, but all in agreement, and Toni couldn't stop the smile from spreading over her face.
"Well, in that case, who's in the mood to watch Rudolph?" She asked.
"..."
"Jug?"
"I said—I—yeah um—okay so I was maybe terrified of the abominable snowman when I was a toddler and haven't watched it since."
"That's fucking adorable," Amy told him, pushing herself onto her knees to lean over and kiss him.
"We can protect you from the big, bad Bumble," Fangs promised.
Even through his dark blush, Jughead was beaming. Clearly the boy was as desperate for affection as they had all been when they first started their arrangement-turned-relationship, and luckily all four of them loved doling out affection even more than receiving it.
"Okay, Jug, put something—anything—on. I'm sure that Fangs has some sweats around here that you can borrow. Amy, babe? Put a shirt on before Sweets' eyes fall out of his head."
"Was that really necessary, Tiny?" Sweet Pea complained.
"Absolutely," Toni agreed, yelping when he tossed a pillow at her.
"Okay, no, we are not having a pillow fight right now," Fangs told them firmly. "Someone will fall out of bed and crack their skull and I'd much rather watch movies than go to the hospital."
"Fine," Toni agreed reluctantly, "but only if Sweets lets go of Jug so he can put on some pants."
Sweet Pea pouted, but complied, and Jughead stood quickly. He was relieved when Amy, now clad in an oversized shirt which could have belonged to any of them, tossed him a pair of dark sweatpants, since he realized that he wouldn't have known where to look. He looked back at the bed, wondering how they were going to arrange themselves, put suddenly strong arms wrapped around him and he was on his back, head resting on Sweet Pea's chest. Fangs had grabbed Toni, he noticed, and Amy was somehow touching all of them—her legs were entangled with Fangs' and Toni's, and her head was tucked against Sweet Pea's hip, brushing against his bare chest whenever she moved, one arm thrown across him. He figured that someone must have set up the movie while he was dressing, because he saw Fangs press at a remote and the TV lit up.
They watched through the trailers, and Jughead was somehow not surprised that Amy had an opinion on every single one of them. He wasn't even sure if he believed that she'd watched all of them, or if she was just making them up as she went. She fell silent when the movie started, her hand finding his and interlacing their fingers.'
It was more comfortable than he would have imagined, the five of them squished into a bed meant for one, feet and elbows occasionally bumping into each other. He was able to relax, more than he could ever remember doing, and lose himself in the feeling of genuine affection, and the nostalgia of the movie.
The movie ended, and they slowly started to sit up, trying to stretch without hitting anyone.
"So, the Wyrm? Juggy, you said yesterday that you needed to talk to your dad?"
"Yeah... this... this is all my fault. Dad, he found out that Penny was trying to blackmail me. That's why he didn't retire."
He was ashamed to realize that he was tearing up, but suddenly had four arms wrapped around him, and two different pairs of hands wiping away the tears.
"That's not your fault," Toni told him. "FP is a grown man, he can make his own decisions. And Penny is a bitch, we all know that. Honestly I wouldn't be surprised if she heard that FP was going to make Amy king and started blackmailing you to make sure he'd stay—he puts up with a lot more of her shit than Amy does."
"Yeah, well, I've read legal books," Amy pointed out.
"Wait, really?" Jughead couldn't help but ask.
"Yeah, really. I'm going to go to law school, learn the ins and outs, and then come back to Riverdale. I'll be able to help the Serpents without all the fucking favours that Penny demands."
"I thought you hated school though."
Amy laughed. It should have sounded mocking, he realized, but the gentle smile softened it. "I have an image to uphold, Juggy, but I work hard. I'm acing all of my classes, even after missing two months of school. No one gets scholarships, gets into good universities and top law schools, with shit grades."
"I never knew," he admitted.
"There's a lot you don't know about me," she told him, brushing a strand of hair from his face. "There's a lot you don't know about all of us, and a lot that we don't know about you. But, we learn as we go."
Jughead smiled, leaning in to kiss her. Amy kissed back, soft and gentle and possessive.
"Come on, horndog," Fangs said, pulling Amy away by the collar, "let him breathe. We've got a king to knock some sense into."
"Cockblock," Amy told him, twisting around to kiss him quickly.
She hopped off of the bed, moving gracefully around the mess of clothes on the floor. By the time he had gotten out of bed and found his jeans, she was already dressed in her usual lace up shorts—she must have multiple pairs, he realized, since he was sure that she had been wearing a pair before changing at his trailer the day before—with a lacy black bra, a mostly open green and black flannel, and her jacket.
The other three were also dressed before he was, and he was suddenly struck by the fact that this was a routine for them. He had never done this before, but from what he'd gathered, they'd been doing this for over a year. He didn't know if that was why they all left spare clothes all over the place, or if that had to do with how frequently they changed where they were sleeping, but for a moment he felt like an intruder. He was pulled from his thoughts when he felt something on his head. He lifted a hand, feeling his beanie, and realized that Sweet Pea had just put it on for him. Was this what domesticity was supposed to feel like, he wondered, before his jacket was being shoved in his arms and they were piling out the door and onto their bikes.
FP was already at the Wyrm when they arrived, looking over when they walked in.
"Shouldn't you kids be at school?" He asked.
"Last day," Amy reminded him, "only half a day."
"Right," he nodded. "Well, Topaz, Fogarty, I need you to help out with some Toys for Tots deliveries."
"Toys for Tots?" Jughead asked.
"We do it every year," Toni told him, "sort of a way to give back to the Southside."
"Topaz, Fogarty, let's go," Byrdie ordered, gesturing to a large pile of gift boxes.
"Gotta go," Fangs said, "Ride or die?"
"Ride or die," the other three repeated, before he and Toni joined the group by the door.
"Alright, we've got to go. You three hold down the fort," FP told the remaining teenagers.
*"Or I could come with you guys," Jughead suggested.
"Nice try. The answer's no."
"We do need another set of hands, boss," Tall Boy said.
"There you go," Jughead agreed, "Let me pull my weight. Dad, I don't know what the Snake Charmer has you doing—"*
"Lath, you're with us."
"Lath?" Jughead asked, seeing Sweet Pea start to move.
"That a problem, Forsythe?" Sweet Pea asked, and although his voice was hard, his smile was playful.
"Okay, let's go," Amy agreed.
"I didn't ask for you, Adams."
"No, you didn't," Amy agreed, "but you know we're ride or die. You want Sweets, you take me too—and you're lucky that Fangs and Toni are out or they'd be saying the same."
FP blinked, having never once had Amy argue with him when he used her last name. She knew as well as he did that using their last names—or real name, in Sweet Pea's case—meant that he was talking as their king, not their father figure.
He looked between them, all three of them, before sighing, "Fine. Adams, you can come to. Jug, hold down the fort."
Jughead wanted to argue, but FP was pulling the other teens out of the door before he had the chance.
When Fangs and Toni returned, Jughead filled them in on where the others were, and Toni walked him through some Toys for Tots preparation.
Soon enough, FP and Tall Boy were walking through the door, but Amy and Sweet Pea were nowhere to be seen.
"Where are they?" Fangs demanded immediately.
"Relax, Fogarty," FP told him, "they went straight from the drop to the prison, Adams wanted to check in with Malachai.
Fangs breathed a sigh and relief, and Jughead felt himself relax slightly.
Meanwhile, across Riverdale, Amy was just finishing checking in, strolling down the hallway to see Malachai.
"Talk to me, Princess," he said immediately.
That was all it took for the dam to break, and Amy filled him in on everything that had happened in the last two days.
"Okay, that's—yeah, that's chaos. I'm good with chaos. I take it that's why you came to me?"
"You don't sugarcoat, Mal. I can handle the Jones', but I don't know what to do about the Peabody situation."
"That's easy, Princess. You need a show of strength. Reminder her that it's her against all of you, not you against all of them."
"You think that would work?"
"If you do it right. You're the most ruthless little spitefire I know, Princess, you'll figure it out."
"Thanks, Mal."
"Anytime. Now, I think you have some Serpents to rally. Go get em, Princess."
Amy beamed at him, waving goodbye as she left. Malachai chuckled fondly, watching her go.
Amy didn't tell Sweet Pea any of the details, just that she needed to talk to Jones and then she'd fill them all in. As soon as they got back to the Wyrm, Amy grabbed Jughead by the arm, pulling him to the backroom as he had seen her do to each of her partners at some point or another.
"Amethyst?"
"We need to talk."
"Is everything okay?" He asked, worried.
"No, it's not. But it will be. We need to deal with Peabody, once and for all."
"We can't kill her, Amethyst!"
"I mean, we could. That's totally on the table. Not what I was going to suggest, though. We need a show of strength."
"What are you thinking?"
"We rally the younger Serpents. Make sure she knows that she's not welcome in Riverdale anymore."
"But the law—"
"Penny broke the law first, Juggy, this is just making sure she gets her dues. But in case she needs a reminder that the laws don't protect her anymore, we take her tattoo. Get our pound of flesh."
"I—I don't know if I can—"
"Doesn't matter if you can, I'll be doing it. She already hates me, okay? And we can't give her anymore ammunition against your dad."
Jughead took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. "So, what now?"
"Well first, you need to learn how to act Serpent. Then, we get rid of Peabody. And Juggy, listen... I can't predict how FP will react, but if you ever can't stay at home, I bet we can fit one more in the Jeep."
"I—thanks, Amethyst. And, um, what do you mean by learning how to act Serpent?"
Amy grinned, bouncing out of the room. "Toni, Fangs, Sweets, finish up and meet me outside. FP, I'm stealing them for a while—Jughead too."
"Do I want to know what you're doing?"
"Hot, kinky sex in your trailer," Amy informed him with a bright smile.
FP choked, and so did Jughead, "You—"
"I'm fucking with you, FP. Just some good old teenage rebellion, don't worry."
"Every single thing you just said worries me, but go ahead," FP told her, waving them towards the door.
"I can't believe you just said that," Jughead told her, as the five went outside.
"It's the best way to prevent questions. And to keep him from noticing a suspicious bag of Serpent masks. Now," she turned to the other teens, "Little princeling is ready to become a prince, you guys ready to teach him?"
They all nodded, and the five climbed on their bikes, following Amy to the riverbanks.
"Is this really necessary?" Jughead asked, once they had finally pulled to a stop.
"Yeah, it is," Toni told him. "You're a Serpent by blood, and FP's son to boot, but you need to be taken seriously."
"Okay, so, what do I do?"
"We'll start with the basics," Amy assured him. "You can strut or you can slouch—Sweets and Fangs are so much taller that a slouch still keeps them in pace with us, so that'll probably work for you too. It's still a power walk, but it's about the pacing. A strut means you have something more important to be doing, and don't have time for this shit; a slouch means that you don't care, and you know that everyone will wait for you. You keep your hands in your pockets, jeans or jacket, unless you're stealing or fighting. Nod, don't smile; and for fuck's sake, drop the 'please and thank you' shit."
"I—okay?"
"No. Don't ask, Jones," Sweet Pea cut in. "You sound like you're waiting for approval, that makes you look weak. Look, when it's us or your dad, we're on the same side, it's fine. Anyone else, you have to assume that they're just waiting for you to stumble. Sound like you know exactly what the fuck you're talking about, even if you don't have a clue."
"Okay," Jughead agreed, more confidently.
"Better," Fangs teased. "Now weapons. I know you carry a blade, but do you actually know how to use it?"
"No idea," Jughead told him.
"Okay, we'll work on the handling and the tricks later, but right now, all that matters is that you can open it—you just need to copy my movements."
Jughead nodded, watching carefully as Fangs pulled out his switchblade and flicked it open in one smooth movement. He tried to mimic it, failing miserably, but Fangs just smiled, walking him through it step by step. He put his knife away, moving to stand behind Jughead, placing one hand over Jughead's, and coaching him through it. It was rough, and both boys were blushing furiously, but the blade opened.
"Again," Toni demanded.
Fangs led him through it again, and this time it was slightly more fluid. They repeated it a couple of times, until it was almost perfect, and then Fangs took a step back, letting Jughead do it himself.
It wasn't perfect, but it was smooth. From reaching into his pocket to holding the blade out, ready to attack, it looked like a single movement, and Amy could feel heat pool in her gut.
"Fuck," she whispered, not quite quietly enough for the others to miss.
"Did I mess up?" Jughead asked nervously.
Amy laughed, almost hysterical. "God no, Juggy, that was, that was fucking hot as fuck," she told him.
"I thought you were ace?" Jughead asked.
"Oh, right. We haven't actually talked about that yet. Yes, I'm ace. I like sex, but I don't experience sexual attraction. That said, you don't need sexual attraction to know that, objectively speaking, you look hot as sin right now."
"We're pretty sure she has a knife kink," Sweet Pea teased.
"It's not a knife kink," Toni retorted, "it's power couple fantasies."
Amy rolled her eyes, "Or it's just hot. Juggy, do it again. Fucking watch him."
They all listened, and Jughead repeated the move, even more fluidly than the last time.
"Well?" Amy asked.
"Okay, so, yeah you might be onto something," Sweet Pea agreed.
"Good. Now, ready to rally the troops?"
Jughead nodded, and Amy pulled out her phone. There was a group chat for the teen Serpents, which Jughead had recently been added to, affectionately referred to as 'Slyther In'. He saw Amy's message come through, a demand for everyone to meet at the riverbanks immediately, but silenced his phone as the flood of affirmatives came through.
Serpents started to show up shortly, forming a circle around he and Amy.
"What's this about, Jones?" Ricky asked, when the last few Serpents arrived.
*"Penny Peabody has got my dad dealing drugs. I know this, cause she had me doing it before him. Now, she's roped in Tall Boy and Sweet Pea* and Amy. *I don't want the Serpents to end up like the Ghoulies. And I doubt that any of you became Serpents just to be at the beck and call of a drug queen pin. I know where this ends. Death. Jail. Which is why, in the interest of self-preservation, we have to take out Penny."
"Snake Charmer's helped some of us,"* Lottie argued.
"At what cost?" Amy asked.
*"How many favours?" Jughead continued, "Now, if we don't stop Penny tonight, she is going to get every single one of us in on this. I promise you. I promise you."*
"FP is our King," Amy added, "If Peabody can turn him into a dancing monkey, what does that say about any of us? Penny betrayed the Serpents, she broke the law."
*"What I'm asking," Jughead said, "is are you willing to risk your necks to save* the Serpents?"
There was a moment of silence, before Toni spoke up.
*"What is the first law?" She asked, voice loud and clear.
"No Serpent stands alone," every single Serpent in the clearing chorused.*
With everyone in agreement, Amy began to lay out their plan. Once she was certain that everyone was in agreement, she handed out Serpent masks, the ones they used for The Beast.
"You don't want her being able to point any fingers, just in case she tries to make a stink. She should only be able to see me and Jones."
Soon everyone had a mask, and Amy directed them to the tattoo parlour where Penny had her lair.
When only the five remained, Toni shoved her mask into Amy's hands.
"If she's seeing you, she's seeing us too."
"Toni—"
"Ride or die," Toni reminded her.
"Ride or die," Amy replied. "Fine. Toss them back in the bag."
All three of her partners did so, before they climbed onto their own bikes, quickly catching up to the other Serpents outside of the parlour.
It was surprisingly easy to ambush Penny, and get her to the docks just outside of Greendale; Amy had honestly expected her to have at least a couple of lackeys around.
She decided not to question her luck—Penny was definitely conceited enough to believe that no one would ever side against her.
*"Where am I?" Penny demanded*, when Toni yanked the hood off of her head.
*"You're in Greendale. Your new home. But frankly, Penny, I don't care where you set up shop. But it's not gonna be in Riverdale and it's not going to be with Serpents." Jughead told her.
"You want to deal drugs, you want to extort people, that's your business. But not on the Southside. That belongs to us,"* Amy continued.
*Penny laughed, "You stupid, cocky kids. Serpent law says you can't hurt one of your own."*
Penny looked around the circle, eyes stopping on Fangs.
"You really gonna let them do this to me, Eddie?"
'Fangs' Amy mouthed to Jughead, while Penny was facing away from them.
Fangs said nothing, not budging in the slightest from his spot beside Sweet Pea.
"Standing aside?" Penny asked mockingly. "Oh Eddie, you always were one to let someone else take charge."
Fangs flushed red, in both anger and embarrassment, and a series of confused glances between his partners confirmed that none of them knew what was going on.
"You still flush that pretty pink, don't you Eddie?" She cooed.
That was all it took for the pieces to click in Amy's head, rage flooding her veins.
"You say another word to him and I slit your fucking throat, Peabody," Amy told her.
She didn't yell; she didn't need to. Her voice was hard and cold and absolutely deadly, and in her peripheral vision she could see Jughead, Toni, and Sweet Pea making the same connection that she had—Amy was glad that she had made the other Serpents stand slightly further back, hopefully none of them had heard anything.
"You can't hurt me, Princess," Penny sneered, "A Serpent never betrays its own."
"Oh Penny," Amy cooed, "you broke the law first—you betrayed the Serpents—and you're not a Serpent anymore. The laws don't protect you."
Penny turned back to Fangs. "Come on, Eddie," she goaded. "We both know you could never hurt me. After all, I was your first. I'll always be your first."
Amy was done. She flipped her switchblade open, approaching the woman. She grabbed her arm, slicing through flesh, until her Serpent tattoo was in Amy's hand, and then tucked into the box she had brought along.. She ignored the woman's screams, ignored the blood dripping down her hands, ignored everything except for her absolute fury.
"Keep talking and your tongue will be next, bitch. And if you ever show your face in Riverdale again, you'll be leaving in a body bag."
Amy spun on her heel, walking away with her partners close on her heels, and the other Serpents circling around the outskirts to meet them back at their bikes.
"No one talks about what just happened unless you want to be next," Amy told them simply. "I'm going to tell FP the truth, but beyond that, nothing happened. Are we clear?" Everyone nodded. "Good. Now just—don't come back to the Wyrm right now. Do whatever the fuck you want. But if you tell anyone about any of this, your tattoos will be joining Penny's and I'll start up a collection."
She waited until everyone had left before getting on her bike.
"Sweets, Fangs, Toni? Head back to Juggy's, okay? We'll talk to FP and then meet you there."
Fangs didn't react; hadn't reacted to anything since Penny first called him 'Eddie', but Toni and Sweet Pea nodded, and the five took off, breaking several traffic laws to reach Riverdale as soon as possible. They split ways when they got to the Southside, and as much as she hated to leave Fangs in a state like his, she knew that she needed to talk to FP and that reliving it would be even worse for Fangs.
She and Jughead made their way to the Wyrm, seeing FP in the corner on his phone.
"Let me guess," Amy drawled, "Peabody didn't show?"
"What the fuck did you two do?" FP demanded.
"We got rid of her," Jughead said, "drove her out of Riverdale."
"And I got my pound of flesh," Amy added, lifting the box.
"Are you out of your fucking minds?" FP shouted, before burying his face in his hands.
"You know what? After what she did to Fangs, she's lucky I left her breathing."
"What did she do to Fangs?" FP asked, anger fading away to concern.
"It's not my place to say, and I don't know the details, but, well—it was bad. Really bad. And look, if she does come back, we'll take care of her, FP. All of us."
*"In unity, there is strength," Jughead recited.
"Oh, god," FP groaned,* and Amy didn't know whether he was reacting to Jughead's words or to what she had said about Fangs.
*"That's the sixth law," Jughead continued. "While you were in jail, I recited that every day, I lived by that. You want to take my jacket? You want to relegate me to Toys for Tots, fine. But I am still a Serpent, Dad, and this, this life that you wanted to protect me from? I'm proud ot this. I'm proud of you I am. You can't take that away from me."*
"He's turning into a real Serpent Prince," Amy told FP, smiling fondly. "And look, I did the dirty work. If Penny wants to start shit, it's with me, not with him—not with you. But she won't be back."
"God, kid..."
"I don't regret what I did," Amy insisted. "She fucking deserved it. She deserved worse. But look, what's done is done, and now I need to get back to Fangs. We good?"
"We're good, Adams," FP agreed. "And Amethyst?"
"Yeah?" Amy asked, taken off guard by the use of her first name.
"You protected your own. I'm proud of you."
"Thanks," Amy whispered, trying not to cry.
"Hey, c'mere you two," FP mumbled, pulling the two teenagers into a hug. "Now go, take care of your boy."
"Roger that," Amy teased.
She and Jughead left the bar, heading straight to the trailer. She was relieved that one of the others, probably Toni, had left the door unlocked, not sure that she would have had the patience to deal with that.
She walked into the trailer, heading straight for the bedroom while Jughead stopped to lock the door. When she walked into the room, she saw Fangs curled up in the middle of the bed, with Sweet Pea and Toni wrapped around either side of him.
Amy kicked off her boots, tossing her jacket to the floor, and climbed into the bed, squeezing herself between Fangs and Sweet Pea. Jughead joined them a moment later, leaving his own shoes and jacket on the floor beside hers, climbing in behind Toni and reaching an arm around to hold Fangs.
"Fangs, Love? What was Penny talking about?" Amy asked gently, pressing her forehead against his.
Fangs took a shuddering breath. "Back before... before the relationship, before we were really friends, when I first started hanging around before my Gauntlet... Penny—she—she would talk to me. She was the only one who ever really did back then. She told me that I had—" he swallowed hard, trying to ignore the tears streaming down his face—"potential. And I mean... I was still thirteen, and no one gave a shit about me, and then this grown woman was talking about my potential and my talent and I felt... I felt special. And then she started saying that I didn't appreciate her, that I should show her how thankful I was. And... and I did... again and again... and then there was that fight at school, remember? And my arm got broken defending Lottie, and then suddenly people were talking to me and then we were friends and I ended everything with Penny... and I ran the Gauntlet and I was actually in, and then we, you know... and I just—I never wanted you guys to know. It's disgusting, I know that. I'm disgusting. And look, I get if you guys want to end—"
"Don't you dare suggest that we would want to end things. Penny is disgusting for what she did to you, but we could never be disgusted by you, Darling. Not about this, not about anything, not ever," Sweet Pea promised.
He leaned in, going to kiss him, but then seemed to remember what they were talking about, and pressed a soft kiss to his forehead instead.
"We love you, Fangs," Toni added, "no matter what. It's us against the world, right? And that includes Penny."
"Fangs, I... I know that I'm not part of this, not like these guys, but they're right. What Penny did to you was horrible, and she deserves way worse than just losing her tattoo, but none of it is your fault. We're not going to look down on you because of this, and we'd definitely never hate you for it."
Fangs looked at them, a smile lighting up his face even through the tears.
"What do you need, Love?" Amy asked.
"Can we just, stay like this? Until I fall asleep?"
"Of course," Amy agreed immediately. She pressed herself closer to him, allowing Sweet Pea to do the same, and on Fangs' other side, she saw Toni and Jughead do the same.
The five of them stayed like that, holding each other close, until Fangs drifted off to sleep, and for a while after that. Amy eventually did slide away, feeling her phone vibrate in her pocket.
Red: I need you ames, come over?
Ames: on my way
"I need to go," she informed them abruptly. "Archie texted me and I need to get to him, like, five minutes ago. When he wakes up, please tell Fangs that I love him."
"We will," Toni promised.
"Do you want me to come with?" Jughead asked.
"Not yet, Juggy. I don't know what's going on. I'll call if I need you though, promise." Amy kissed the three of them, and Fangs on the forehead, grabbing her boots and jacket from the floor before taking off on her bike, pulling to a stop outside of the Andrews' house.
She didn't bother knocking, just pulled her key out and let herself in.
"Sweetheart?"
"Fred! Is Archie—"
"It's bad," Fred told her. "He won't tell me what happened. All I know is that Betty and Archie were on a bridge, Archie nearly shot the Black Hood, and Keller managed to take the shot before Archie did. I don't know what happened before that."
"I'll take care of him," Amy told him.
"I know you will, sweetheart. He's in his room."
Amy nodded, taking the stairs two at a time, running down the hallway and practically throwing herself onto Archie's bed. She pulled him into a hug immediately, needing the reassurance that he was okay; that he was still there.
"He's dead, Ames. The Black Hood. Keller shot him."
"I heard," Amy told him, heart breaking when she saw the blank look in his eyes. "What happened?"
"Me and Betty, we got a call from the Black Hood. Told us that if we wanted to save Mr. Svenson—the janitor's—life, then to meet him at the site of the first sin. We figured it out, talked to Rose Blossom... his family was murdered, and he blamed the wrong man for the murder. He was buried alive in the forest, and we... we did some digging and found the tree, and we went. And, Ames, there was a grave, and two shovels, and it had his name. And god help us, we dug it up. There was a casket, and I climbed down to open it, but it was empty. When I turned around, the Black Hood was there and he was pointing a gun at me and told me to get in. I said no, but then he said that he would kill Betty if I didn't—and I did, Ames, I got in."
All Amy could do was hold him close, cradling his head in her neck and rocking back and forth as she watched her best friend—her big brother—fall apart, talking about being buried alive.
"He made Betty shut me in, made her fill the grave. And I don't know what happened then, but there were sirens and suddenly Betty was opening the casket, and he was gone. We ran after him, Ames, down to Sweetwater Bridge. And I had his gun—I don't remember taking his gun, but I had it—and I was going to shoot, I would have shot, I thought I did, when I heard a gunshot. But Sheriff Keller was there, he took the shot. And then he took the hood off, and Ames... It was Mr. Svenson. God, we even suspected him but I didn't recognize his eyes, and god, Ames, maybe if I had realized it then I could have done something different." He trailed off, unable to continue to form words around the sobs in his throat.
"Red, oh my god, Red, I am so fucking sorry. But, you're going to be okay, Red, I promise. It's going to be okay."
"How?" Archie asked, broken.
"With a lot of time, and probably therapy. But he's dead now, Red, he can't hurt you, or anyone else, ever again."
"Betty kissed me," Archie said suddenly.
"What?"
"Earlier—her grandpa was one of the men who buried the wrong man, the first sin. I... I don't know, we were talking and then we were kissing and god, she's Juggy's girl, I shouldn't have done that."
"Did you kiss her, Red? Or did she kiss you?"
"She kissed me—what difference does it make?"
"It means that you're not to blame for that. But, even so, she and Jughead broke up last night, same as you and Veronica."
"They did? Wait, how do you know that?"
"Toni told me—she overheard them. Juggy hasn't given us all of the details yet, but something about protecting her from Serpent shit? Which, I mean, after today that's pretty fair..."
"What happened today?"
"Is this you needing a distraction, genuine curiosity, or do you want to try to convince yourself that you don't have a right to be upset about what happened to you?"
Archie looked away for a moment, "The first two," he said eventually.
"You sure?" Amy asked.
"I'm sure, Ames. I know I haven't always—or ever—been on good terms with Serpents, but it's your life, and I want to know what's going on in your life."
"Okay, so, you remember Peabody?"
"Of course?"
"She's been trying to blackmail Jughead into being her permanent drug mule. FP found out, didn't retire, took Juggy's spot. Anyways we went back to the Wyrm this morning, and me and Sweets went on a run with him, then we kidnapped Peabody and brought her to Greendale and I cut off her tattoo and told her that if she ever came back I'd kill her. Nothing all that glamorous."
"You—you called him Juggy?"
Amy blushed, "Yeah, I did."
"Since when do you call him Juggy?"
"Since I sucked him off, like, a month ago."
"You gave him a blowjob?" Archie asked, looking at her in shock.
"I also fucked him last night," Amy shrugged.
"You... you fucked my best friend?"
"I literally offered to suck you off last night, Red, fucking your best friend doesn't even make the Top Ten list of fucked up shit you know I've done."
Archie laughed, hysterical, and soon Amy joined him, until they tired themselves out and fell asleep.
When Fred went to check on them, later that night, he found them curled up together in the same way they did when she first moved in at nine years of age, and the only way to prevent her nightmares about the Sisters was for her to share a bed with someone.
They woke up the next morning to the smell of pancakes. They looked at each other in confusion before padding downstairs, finding Fred at the kitchen counter.
"Merry Christmas," he grinned, piling pancakes onto a plate.
"It's... Christmas?" Amy asked.
"It's Christmas. Now eat up and I'll drop you back at FP's, alright?"
Amy nodded, smiling up at him. She and Archie sat down at the counter, digging into their pancakes, and Fred joined them shortly.
"Are you coming for Christmas dinner?" Archie asked.
"I... I don't think so. I love you guys, and I love spending Christmas here, but after that one Christmas? Sweets and I don't handle separation and Christmas very well."
"Bring him," Fred said, "Toni and Fangs too, if you want. I already invited FP and Jug, we can make it into a proper family Christmas."
Amy's eyes widened. "You mean that?"
"Of course I mean that, sweetheart."
Amy immediately pulled out her phone, sending them a message.
"Everyone's in," She reported. "We've got some of our own traditions first, but we'll come over with FP and Juggy?"
"Alright," Fred smiled. "Now finish up so that I can get you to FP before he accuses me of hogging you."
Amy giggled, finishing her plate. She put it in the sink, grabbing her jacket and boots and climbing into the truck. Fred joined her a moment later, driving her to Sunnyside.
"I'll see you tonight, sweetheart. Love you."
"Love you too," Amy said, before climbing out of the car.
"Just in time," FP greeted from behind the stove, "Hot chocolate is almost ready."
"Fred told you when we were leaving, didn't he?" Amy asked, kicking off her shoes and hanging up her jacket.
"He did," FP admitted, "now why don't you go wake the sleepyheads up?"
Amy smirked, "Don't mind if I do."
FP laughed, watching her run into the bedroom. A moment later he heard a crash, followed by an "It's Christmas!" which he knew meant that Amy must have jumped on the bed.
He heard more voices, and smiled. He missed Gladys, and Jellybean, but the sound of laughter in his trailer was something he'd missed since long before he was arrested.
It had been a couple of minutes since he heard them wake up, and no one had left the bedroom.
"Hey, no funny business while I'm here!" He reminded them.
"No funny business!" Amy called back.
It was another minute before they emerged, and FP saw what had caused the delay. All five of them were wearing the green flannel pajamas that he had gotten them for Christmas a couple of years previous. He had been getting them for Jughead, but there was a sale and he wanted to do something nice for his Serpent kids. While Amy's were still too big on her, Sweet Pea and Jughead's pants both rose well above their ankles, and Sweet Pea had broadened enough that he had left the shirt open, wearing a white tank top underneath. He passed out mugs of hot chocolate—the good kind, cooked over the stove with milk and vanilla—and joined them in sitting in a circle on the floor.
Once the mugs were emptied, Amy bounced to her feet.
"Snowball fight!" She reminded everyone.
"I think I'll sit this one out," Jughead tried to say, but Amy rounded on him quickly.
"It's our tradition, Juggy," she insisted, "and you're one of us now. Come on, it'll be fun!"
"I'm not really a snowball fight kind of guy."
Amy jutted out her lower lip, eyes widening slightly in the pout she had perfected back when she was a little girl, running around the Wyrm when her father would dump her there because he couldn't be bothered to look after her.
"Please, Juggy?" She asked, and FP watched Jughead's resolve fade.
"Okay, fine," he agreed.
The teenagers piled into the bedroom, and returned a while later in more weather appropriate clothing. Amy even traded her usual heels for Toni's spare combat boots, much less dangerous with ice and snow. FP waved goodbye as they set off to the riverbanks, smiling fondly as he heard their laughter echo throughout the trailer park.
They returned hours later, faces flushed but smiles bright, and gladly accepted more hot chocolate.
"Okay, get changed and we'll head over to Freddy's."
He was glad that they had removed their jackets and boots at the door, rather than traipse snow across the trailer.
The boys didn't look any different than usual, in jeans and t-shirts, and Toni had only softened her look slightly, with black leggings instead of jeans, and one of Sweet Pea's hoodies rather than her usual mesh numbers. Amy clearly didn't feel like she had to impress anyone, which was a nice change in FP's mind. She wore black leggings and fuzzy socks, and a sweater that had once belonged to either Fred of himself. It came down to her knees, swallowing her whole, with 'Fred Heads' printed on.
The teens piled into the Jeep, but for once Sweet Pea handed the keys to Fred, instead sitting in the back with Amy, who was more in his lap than on her seat.
They pulled up to the Andrews' house, and Fred opened the door. For just a moment, Fred and FP could only stare at each other, before Amy pushed past FP to hug Fred.
The evening was one of the most pleasant that FP could remember having, possibly ever. With Christmas music playing in the background, occasionally interrupted by Archie playing something of his own, and once by Amy insisting that Fred and FP bring back the Fred Heads, delicious food, several Christmas movies, and laughter echoing throughout the house, FP realized that while his wife and daughter were absent—and of course he missed them, he always missed them—he had his family together for Christmas. Amy was the first to tire, having spent half of the night forcing everyone to dance with her, and yawned loudly.
"What do you say, Freddy, time to put the kids to bed?"
Fred laughed, while six identical protests arose.
"You kids can take the guest room," Fred offered.
"And you two?" Amy asked, with a raised eyebrow and knowing smirk, and sometimes FP hated just how much she took after the two of them.
"We shared a bed or two in high school, we'll be fine," he teased.
"Jug can stay with me," Archie offered—he knew that his friend had slept with the other Serpents, but Amy never specified what their relationship was.
"I was actually thinking that he could stay with us?" Amy asked, voice soft.
"You know, if we push the coffee table out of the way and push the air mattresses together, I bet you could all fit down here," Fred offered, knowing how clingy Amy tended to be at Christmas, when her memories of the Sisters were usually at their worst.
Amy looked at him hopefully, and Fred resolved to do whatever it took to make it work. He quickly set about instructing everyone on what to do, and before long they had the air mattresses pressed together and ready to be slept in.
"We'll let you kids get settled in," FP said, as the two men moved to the kitchen.
It was awkward, for just a moment, before they sorted themselves out. Toni and Amy took the middle, with Fangs and Jughead beside them, Sweet Pea and Archie on the outsides.
It was a strange feeling for Archie, whose sleepovers with Jughead typically involved separate mattresses, but he was as familiar with Amy's clinginess as Fred was, and couldn't bring himself to deny her anything. Amy leaned her head on Jughead's chest, tapping at him.
"What are you reading, Juggy?" She asked.
Jughead was struck for a moment by just how young she looked in that moment, feeling his heart swell with affection.
"A Christmas Carol," he told her.
"Can you—can you read it to me?" She asked.
Jughead's eyes drifted to where her hearing aids were visible on the coffee table, but one look at her hopeful face was all it took for him to agree. They shifted for a moment, until her head was resting on his sternum, with his arms around her, lifting the book so that he could still read it.
That was how Amy fell asleep, soon after, and the others followed suit. It wasn't long until Jughead was the only teenager left awake, still reading softly, while the two fathers watched fondly from the kitchen.
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Okay honestly so much happened in this chapter, and I wrote it between the hours of 12 and 6 am, but technically speaking this counts as six chapters in six days because it's still Saturday somewhere!
As always, I really hope that you guys enjoyed it, and feel free to visit me on tumblr (randomestfandoms-ocs) if you want to talk, because I never want to shut up about this project
Also I will be writing a side fic about That Christmas, aka 8 year old Amy's christmas with the Sisters, which will mostly be focused on baby amy and sweet pea!