I do not own Riverdale, or any of the characters owned by CW.
I'm simply exercising my creative thoughts…
The Beginning of the End
The glistening metal spikes that decorate my signature lavender leather jacket draw my peripheral away from the Addams' Family candle sticks that line the walls of the graffiti-covered trap house, dripping wax down the walls in little twinkling drops, solidifying before they get too far. He likes to call it "The House of Death", but I personally think it's a huge cliche. I find myself digging my nails into the leather, leaving behind tiny crescents across the material. As per usual, the majority of the room wore similar jackets; a bronze, dirty-looking skull, surrounded by spikes, but unlike mine, the leather was a distressed shade of black. The air smelled of whiskey and cigarettes. I sat at my perch at the top of the staircase, my legs dangling over the side of the stairwell, and I surveyed the entire room, on through to the kitchen. My name is Natalia Watson, and I am a Ghoulie. Then again, if anyone calls me Natalia, apart from Kai, things tend to get ugly. I go by Tally, especially in regards to Ghoulie dealings.
But alas, things have just gotten interesting, as a beyond-adorable Southside Serpent boy has entered the belly of the beast, demanding Malachai's first one was small-ish and had messy dark hair, partially contained by a gray beanie. He was followed closely behind by another Serpent, taller than the first, with jet black hair and a smooth caramel complexion. His broody dark eyes scanned the room. For some strange reason, I was very intrigued by the latter, although I couldn't place why.
"Well, what do we have here? Snakes in the House of the Dead?" Malachai roared to the room, we all hollered back, egging him on. The Serpents looked around skeptically.
"Keep your Jingle Jangle shit out of Southside High. Ghoulies are the reason the school was shut down in the first place, and every Serpent in sight was dragged away in cuffs." The little Serpent spits at my twin, Malachai. Behind him, the other Serpent tilted his head to look at my brother, and I quickly noticed his neck tattoo of a snake in the shape of an S. If I thought he couldn't get any more my type… He has a neck tat. God, help me.
"You come into my house, demand me to stop making capitol, and you expect me to not gut your slimy ass right here?" Malachai gets up from his seat, pulling a switchblade from his pants pocket. The testosterone dam broke just then, as every Ghoulie dude in the room stepped up to intimidate the Serpent boy and his right hand. Further surprising me, they didn't back down at all, they didn't even look fazed. The smaller one reached for the pocket of his jeans and pulled his own switch, and the handsome one followed. As entertaining as it all was, and against my brother's orders to stay out of the way if shit gets real, I grabbed the railing above my head and slid under it, swinging myself off the upper landing, with my feet landing loudly on the floor of the ground level, and I marched right in between the boys. I was lucky to have avoided landing on someone's knife.
"Okay, that's enough, gentlemen. I'm trying to have a good time, and I don't need this juvenile bullshit at the moment, so lay the fuck off, boys." I said, very loudly, pushing on their chests. "Malachai, you need to back off. How about a little compromise? They look rather delicious… Why don't you just give them to me to play with, Malachai?" I said, looking at the Serpent boys with a smirk on my lips and looked back to my infuriated brother. Those dark brown eyes stared back at me in anger. I felt my brother pressed up against me, his strong hands gripping my upper arms, and jerking me around until I was inches from his face. "I'm kidding" I addressed the whole room, with a happy grin across my face. "Just let them go. They've said their piece." I turned to face the Snakes in the den. "Now, can I get some names here?" I asked them as I jerked my arm free of my brother's grip. They looked at one another and looked back. The handsome one stepped forward first and smirked in my direction.
"Call me Sweet Pea, sweet pea. What's a pretty thing like you doing with these assholes?" he chuckled at his own half-assed pick up. Malachai stepped forward at his sentiment, but I rammed my shoulder into his chest, pushing him back. He pointed to the other Serpent beside him. "That's Jughead, and who would you be? The Ghoulie's Queen?" he asked, looking to Malachai.
"Tally, so help me God, I will lock you in the basement, never to be seen again. Sit down and shut the fuck up. As a matter of fact, go to your fucking room." he growled at me, grabbed my arm, and tossed me over to his right hand, KC, who pulled my arms behind my back.
"But I want to play, Kai… How about it, boys? I promise I'll be slightly more gentle than these guys." I said, grinning, purposely agitating my brother. The other Ghoulies in the room looked between Malachai and I, waiting to see if he would snap. They'd seen this kinda thing before. I pulled against KC's arms that were circled around me.
"Hey, is that how you treat a lady?" Sweet Pea called out Kai, but Jughead grabbed his jacket, jerking him backwards.
"That's enough, Sweet Pea. We're leaving." Jughead said ominously. Looking directly at me,with an angry look.
"You're probably right. Serpents, you do need to go… Now." I shouted at the brave, bright-eyed boys, before my brother had a chance to respond, and I kicked Malachai in the backs of his knees, sending him to the floor. The shock caused KC to momentarily let me go, and I took full advantage by hooking him right in the nose. He dropped quickly, right onto Malachai, and I cackled loudly, watching the boys. Jughead looked on in horror, but Sweet Pea simply threw his head back laughing.
"Now would be your chance to head out, gentlemen. Hope you enjoyed your evening here at the Ghoulie House. Come again soon, at least to see me." I said. Jughead nodded and headed for the door, while Sweet Pea's eyes locked with me, a flirty grin across his face. I held his gaze for a moment before he turned and followed his leader. I was staring after him when I was jerked off my feet and slammed into the wall behind me. I met Malachai's furious glare, his fingers digging into my shoulders, and his forehead pressed against mine.
"What the fuck were you doing, Tally? I should chain you down and whip you until you're screaming, you psychotic little bitch. " Malachai barked at me, as I stared into his burning eyes, breathing heavily. Two Ghoulies stood behind him, ensuring Malachai didn't fly off the handle again, I'm sure. Everyone else quickly vacated the room, disappearing to the lawn or the garage, the party clearly over.
"You can't just kill anyone you fucking please, Malachai. I can do whatever the fuck I wa-" I couldn't even finish my statement before his palm connected with my cheek, leaving me reeling, and my cheek exploding in pain. He looked back at me, relaxed, his eyes burning into mine. He closed his eyes and pressed his face against my neck and breathed heavily.
"You. Are. A. Ghoulie. That means that you obey me, and you do not go anywhere near those fucking snakes, and you especially do not embarrass me. This is my game. Got that through your thick skull?" he finally lifted his head and stared at me. I stared him down.
"I got it, Kai. Now fucking let go of me." I mumbled, as I met his gaze. His grip loosened and he pulled me into his arms, affectionately. His fingers wrapped around my chin, bringing my gaze to meet his.
"Oh, little sis… You have no idea what I do for you.. You are mine to protect, and for me to do that, you need to let me. Listen to my words carefully: I catch you getting too friendly with a Serpent, and his head will end up on a spike outside of your bedroom, Tally. Do you really want the Serpent's blood on your pretty little hands?" he murmured in my ear as he held my hands in his vice-like grip. "I know I do. So why don't you remember your loyalties, or things might get dirty." he said, leaning away and smiling, his perfectly white teeth so beautiful and so threatening. He nodded to KC and Lukas, and turned away, headed for the garage. I glared at my brother, furious at his ferocity, but mostly terrified of his rage. I love my brother more than anything, but his violent streak and possessiveness terrifies me. It's a filthy, dangerous game, one that I do well at, while steering clear of unwarranted violence. I don't step until I'm stepped on first, although rarely does anyone have the stones to fuck with the Ghoulie twins. Malachai doesn't allow it. Hell, the only boyfriend I've ever had ended up cutting off things with me after Malachai caught us in a PG-13 gropefest in my room on New Years Eve. The next night, he was in the ER with a shattered collarbone, and a busted nose. That was the last time I ever heard from him. I had no proof, but I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that Malachai and the other Ghoulies jumped the poor football player from Riverdale High. I won't put anyone else at risk like that again. Malachai's wrath knows no bounds when it comes to someone defiling his precious sister. In his mind, he's protecting me, so I can't bring myself to hate him.
"You know I love you, Malachai, but you can't always get your way by threatening me. Eventually, I will push you back. You're right, I am a Ghoulie, and Ghoulies don't back down. Goodnight, boys." I turned around on the heel of my dirty boot, and head for my bedroom. Slamming the door behind me, I fall onto my bed in exhaustion. I kicked off my boots and before I could even allow myself to picture the beautifully dark and troubled eyes of the Serpent boy I rescued from my brother, I fell into a deep slumber.