“Nancy Drew” meets “Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.”

Alright, I’m going to be putting Betty on hiatus for the foreseeable future. I have no muse for her and no desire to plot. I only have a small amount of threads that are actually being kept up with, so if you’d like to continue those, I’ll be on discord.

“ If the truth is worse, we will handle it together.” He needed to remind her that he was here for her. “ And you can always live here with me.”

“What did I do to deserve you?” She asked softly, moving to rest her head on his shoulder. “Really? And your dad wouldn’t be mad?”

FANGS NODDED AS A chuckle left him, “Hell yeah, I deserve pudding. You been here the past day and a half?” he replied. When she said she’d eat all of his pudding he frowned. “Well, I’d be real sad. But, I’d be happy that at least someone got to enjoy some pudding.”

He stayed silent for a few moments. Sure, he was glad that she was in custody and he hoped she’d actually see some consequences. However, he knew that with him being a serpent could seriously change the way things went. Her touch calmed him a little, calmed the anger. “I hope you don’t go around tellin’ people I’m a softy.” he replied. “But shit, I wish you could’ve talked to her too…I understand her being upset. She lost her kid, you know? But she almost made it so that my mom lost her kid.”

She laughed softly and shook her head. “You’re such a softy.” She said quietly as she stood and left the room for a moment to track down a nurse that could get him a few puddings. Once the nurse was on her way, she quickly returned to his side.

“Oh, don’t worry. I’m still protecting your badass image.” She replied with a soft smile. “Mrs. Klump isn’t the only one who lost Midge, just like your mom wouldn’t have been the only one who lost you. She was being selfish and wasn’t thinking. Now she’s put away and will hopefully stay there. Even if you had done something, Midge wouldn’t have wanted her mom to do that.”

The feel of her lips lingered on his and any other time, any other conversation it would have made him smile but now? Now all he could think about was how fragile they were. How close to death they had both come. She’d been sleeping under the same roof as a killer and he… well he’d gone up against Hiram Lodge and lost. It amazed him that she thought he would have been able to handle her loss. Did she think he was some kind of super hero, impervious to pain? Her arms wrapped around him and he pulled her close, rocking a little as he took in the scent of her perfume. “I’ll be here as long as you need me to be,” he said. “Penelope? What about her?” he asked. Was there something she knew that she hadn’t told him yet?

Betty couldn’t help herself. She scooted into his lap, needing to be closer to him, to feel his comfort and know that he was there. “Then you’ll be here forever, Juggie. That’s how long I’ll need you.” She replied quietly, her eyes widening when she realized she never told him about her dad and Penelope. “Yeah.. Apparently I forgot to tell you. You were busy with the Serpents and I guess in some weird way of sympathy, Cheryl called me to inform me that she caught my dad at Thistlehouse... He was um.. fornicating with Penelope. Multiple times.”

“Of course, Betty,” he said, closing his eyes to the feel of her hair on his cheek as she leaned into him. Did she really think he would have been strong enough to handle it? When had he ever given her that impression? He grinned bitterly, unable to hold the expression but for a fraction of a second. “I’m not that strong. I don’t want you to even think that I’m that strong. And yeah, he could have killed us all but for some reason he didn’t. He’s in jail now. It’s Hiram that we have to be worried about now. Sinners,” he repeated. “Funny how that’s the word he used while running around killing people and committing adultery. I guess that word doesn’t pertain to him. Fred? I don’t know. I think he was just looking for sin in people he felt threatened by.”

Betty closed her eyes for a moment before pressing her lips to his softly. How did she get so lucky to have him in her life? To have his love? “You are, Juggie. You just don’t know it. Hell, you almost died. I almost lost you. I wouldn’t have been strong enough, but you? You would have been. I can see it in you.” She replied softly, arms coming up to wrap behind his neck. “Hiram can wait for now. I just need to be here with you.” She whispered. “With Penelope Blossom, of all people.” She added, grimacing slightly. 

“You’re not crazy or weird Betty. We all have a dark side, trust me. And you’re not going to snap,” he said, his had resting on her cheek. “I know you, Betty Cooper. You’re smart and brave and you’ll do anything to protect the people you love. You won’t hurt them. You won’t hurt anyone. And as for the destruction your father left in his wake? I’m glad you weren’t a part of it. I don’t know if I could have handled that,” he said quietly. “Even if you had been, it wouldn’t have changed anything. He still would have killed people because that was his mission all along. To rid Riverdale of sin. If it wasn’t for you, he’d still be out there killing people and so many more would have been murdered.”

Betty leaned forward, pressing her forehead to his as she closed her eyes for a moment. “Will you help keep me sane, Jug?” She asked softly, flushing at the kind words he spoke. “You could have handled it, Jug. You’re strong. He would have done it when we were apart anyway, when you were mad at me.” She replied, voice just as soft. “You’re right. I wish I could say that my death would have meant something, that he would have stopped, but he wouldn’t have. And other people could have been dead too. Cheryl, V, you. In his mind, you’re all sinners. I still don’t understand why he hurt Fred and he didn’t shoot at the debate.”

“I don’t know why now. Maybe it’s been brewing under the surface all this time and he finally snapped,” he insisted. “I can’t say why he did those things, but I have an idea. When you get into an abusive relationship, they cut you off from your loved ones because it’s a mean to control you. He probably knew that you were too old and too well established to instill his beliefs in you, so he was trying by the next best means,” he explained, gripping her hand tightly. “But it was only a matter of time Betty. He was bound to lose it sooner or later. I’m just relieved that he didn’t lose it on you.”

“I wish my family wasn’t so messed up. He might not have been able to control me, but what if this is who my family is? What if we’re meant to be crazy and weird? I can’t live like this Juggie. I can’t keep worrying that one day I’ll snap and hurt people.” She sighed. “And you thought you were the weirdo here.” She mumbled, smiling slightly. “I wish he lost it on me.” She confessed softly. “I wish it was me. If it was, Midge would be alive, Fang’s wouldn’t be on the run, you wouldn’t have been in danger. I wouldn’t have had to hurt you.”

“No,” he said, a little more firmly than he meant to. “Listen,” he began, adjusting himself to face her a little more. “Your dad has a problem. One that was planted in him long before you were even thought of. The way he was, the way he is, was all put there by his parents when he was just a kid. None of that is your fault. He wanted to justify his actions so he took what you said and twisted it for his own purposes. He would have killed whether you were involved or not.” 

“But why now?” She asked softly, looking at him hopelessly. “Why did he start now, Juggie? Why did he try to alienate me from my friends, from you? He knows how much I love you. How much it hurt me to do that to you. Why would he to that to his own daughter?” She asked, knowing that Jug wouldn’t have any exact answers to her questions.

He squeezed her hand tightly, eyes focusing on hers. “ At least we will know the truth. You need to know who you live with, Betty. He is a stranger now.”

She smiled softly at his reassuring squeeze. “I know. But if the truth is worse than what we know now, I won’t be able to live there, Juggie.”