Hey all! I usually spend my writing time in the world of the 100, so please bear with me as I try to figure out the voices of Riverdale characters.
The characters in this chapter are arbitrary (except one), meant to get the story going, so you won't recognize them (except one).
Comments appreciated-enjoy!
Mason elbowed the youth standing next to him. "There's one," he muttered, nodding with his head to a scrawny teen leaving Pop's.
"One what?" Aiden growled, annoyed. He held up his lighter again, angling himself so Mason couldn't bump him again.
"A Serpent. See the jacket?"
"Him?" Lucas snorted, looking up from the design he'd been etching on his motorcycle with his knife. "Where's his mommy?"
Aiden chuckled. "Right?" he drawled, taking a drag on his cigarette.
"Easy target," Mason pointed out. "Look, you know what the boss said. Beat up any Serpents we see. They don't belong on this side of town. It belongs to the Crows."
"Sheriff Kellar—" Aiden began.
"Is their second biggest enemy at the moment. Even if the kid's stupid enough to run to Kellar, he won't care. Probably arrest him for beating himself up and crying wolf," Mason said.
"You got a point," Lucas acknowledged. "It's been a slow night anyway."
Aiden straightened, tossing his cigarette on the ground and scuffing it out with his boot. "I'm up for a little fun."
"No killing," Mason reminded them. "Close, but not dead."
"Whatever," Lucas grumbled. "Close can mean a lot of things."
"Exactly."
When Mason called, "Hey Serpent!" the kid didn't even turn, just kept walking. "Hey kid!" he tried again.
The kid turned, his face pale in the dull glow of the street lights. "Do I know you?" It was more of an annoyed snarl than an actual question.
"Girlfriend?" Aiden hissed under his breath.
"Maybe," Lucas replied skeptically. He stepped forward, brandishing his knife so the kid could see it but no one in the diner would. "I think you should come with us."
The kid's eyes flickered to the knife, then back up to Lucas' face. "Yeah, I don't think that would be good for me."
"If you don't come with us we can settle for your girlfriend," Lucas offered aimiably.
The kid grew paler, his muscles tense. His annoyed nonchalant tone remained the same. "That would be quite the challenge for you, seeing as I don't have one. Best of luck to you." He turned to go, hand clenched in a fist.
Lucas was beside him in a second, knife pressed against the kid's ribs as he slung an arm around his leather-clad shoulders.
Mason and Aiden moved closer, well aware that Lucas was muttering obscene threats against the kid's girlfriend even as he leaned in as though having a friendly chat.
The kid froze, then numbly let himself be pushed away from the lighted sidewalk.
From there, it was way too easy. He was too scrawny to fight three men, though he did give it a valiant effort. Eventually, he was on his knees spitting out blood, his subdued grunts having turned to sharp gasps long ago. A few solid kicks to his exposed absomen left the kid flat on his back, moaning semi-consciously.
Riker pulled up on his bike. "What the hell?" he demanded.
"Want some, Riker?" Mason offered. "The fight's nearly gone, but he's got enough in him to still be fun."
"You're idiots," Riker informed them. "Do you want the entire Serpent gang on us?"
"The boss said—"
"That's the kid with the hat, you idiot," Riker cut him off. "He's like their pet or something. Never does anything, but they'll all come after you for this if they find out."
Mason paled. "He's that kid?"
"Do you know of any other Serpent who wears a stupid hat like that?"
Just as quickly as they had materialized from the darkness, the Crows vanished.
The kid lay on the ground for some time, a small moan escaping him in the rare event that he moved. Eventually, he pulled a phone from his pocket. "Archie?" he croaked. "I need a ride."