"This is getting ridiculous."

Betty tore her eyes away from the face of her three month old daughter to look at Jellybean. The little baby was snuggled comfortably against Betty's chest, swaddled inside her baby wrap carrier. "What is?" She asked curiously.

Jellybean groaned and indicated to the children playing. "This. Look how many kids are in your yard right now, Betty."

Betty took a moment to assess her outdoor area. She and Jellybean were seated on the porch chairs, facing the other occupants of the yard. Juniper and Dagwood were leading an elaborate game of two-a-side soccer, with Chandler and Jordan enthusiastically following the teenagers' instructions - though most of those instructions seemed to come from Dagwood, who desperately pleaded with Jordan to leave the ball on the ground. Azalea and Emma sat beside each other in the sand pit, looking the opposite directions as they scooped sand with plastic shovels. Alice hovered beside them, and rescued Emma before she shoved a helping of sand into her mouth. Nearby, Polly sat on a lawn chair holding Ivy, talking enthusiastically to Britta who had Ivy's twin brother Sage standing up on her lap.

"Eight kids isn't that many kids." Betty pointed out. Admittedly, there were a lot of people in her yard - though FP, Sweet Pea and Charles didn't necessarily take up much room as they watched Jughead attempt to grill hamburgers.

Jellybean shook her head furiously. "Eight kids isn't that many - do you hear yourself right now? This is… insane. And there isn't eight - there's nine, or did you forget about the little blonde being attached to your chest?"

Betty laughed, but before she could respond, the door opened behind her and she looked up to see Cheryl walking through the doorway, carrying one of her babies in her arms, an eyebrow perched in amusement. "Well, I hope you're not opposed to having more children in your yard Betty, because four more are about to walk through your back door."

Betty stood up, supporting Bethany's back with her hand. "You came! I thought you weren't going to make it… shouldn't you still be with Toni's family?"

Cheryl glanced backwards nervously. "Um… well, those plans fell through… and the girls were unbelievably wound up on the drive home…" she shook her head quickly and forced a smile onto her face. "Besides, I'd hate to miss out on Jughead's cooking. I hope it's still okay that we came…"

"Of course it's okay! Come in, come in." Betty said. She smiled down at the baby in Cheryl's arms, and resisted the urge to pinch her chubby cheeks as Cheryl moved to stand beside her. "Hey there Maya, are you being good for Mommy?" She asked the baby in an uncharacteristically high-pitched voice.

Jellybean groaned as she stood up. "God, Betty, you're an FBI Agent, have some self respect." Despite this, she smiled as she wound an arm around Cheryl's shoulders. "Please, tell me you're drinking tonight, Cher. I spent all night brewing Jellybean flavoured Vodka - oh, don't give me that look, Betty, I had to sort out all the red colors before I dumped them in the bottle, it was a process - but none of the women in this family want to drink it! And no, I'm not counting the single cocktails Britta and Alice have been nursing all afternoon." She lowered her voice and whispered to the red headed woman. "We can't let the boys out-drink us."

Cheryl sighed. "Sorry to disappoint, my sweet confectionery. But I'm still breastfeeding."

"You too?! Have you ladies not heard of bottles?" Jellybean gave Cheryl a genuinely concerned look.

Toni's disheveled face appeared in the doorway. "Did somebody say Vodka?" Her eyes were puffy, and she held Marjorie close to her chest. The infant was sleeping, and Toni was clutching her daughter like she was a high-tech safety device.

Jellybean squealed. "Thank God. My muse!" She said as she took a step closer to the door. "Kindly step into the kitchen and I can hook you up."

Toni smirked, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "Sounds great. You have no idea…" she turned to face Betty for a moment, and a nervous grimace slid onto her features. "Do you mind if I put Marjorie down in Beth's stroller? We really weren't planning to leave my… well, I forgot to pack the girls' travel bassinet…"

Betty waved her arm. "Yeah, don't stress. It's in our bedroom."

"Thanks Betty." She smiled, then turned her face back towards the kitchen. "Hey, girls, why are you still inside? Come on, you're allowed to play with the other kids."

River and Blossom's little faces appeared at Toni's waist. Both girls were looking particularly adorable; River's dark brown hair hung in long and silky waves, and Blossom's usual red curls were parted in the middle and kept neat in two long braids. Both girls were donning face paint - two rows of white finger-printed dots along their cheeks, and two longer lines running straight above their eyebrows.

"You girls both look so pretty." Jellybean commented kindly. They smiled up at her, but were surprisingly quiet as they hurried out into the yard.

Betty watched as River excitedly ran over to Jordan, and smiled as her son paused the soccer game to pull her into a hug. Blossom was hot on her older sister's heels, and Jordan grinned as he tickled her side.

When Betty turned her head back towards the door, Jellybean and Toni had already gone inside, leaving only Cheryl beside Betty. Cheryl let out a long, deep sigh as she sat down in one of the porch chairs and readjusted Maya into a lying position. Betty gave her a concerned look as she sat beside her.

"Is Toni alright, Cheryl?" Betty asked earnestly. "She seems…"

"Upset?" Cheryl deadpanned. She patted Maya on the back and snuggled her closer. "Oh cousin… World War Three could erupt and it wouldn't even come close to the worst thing that's happened today."

Betty let out a long gust of air. "Jeez… things are still that bad with the Topaz family? I thought they'd become more accepting of you…"

"They have - well, Toni's grandfather has." Cheryl said sadly. Her eyes followed the children playing soccer, and Betty watched her throat moving as she swallowed. "But her grandmother had some… opinions about Toni's parenting that didn't land well…"

Betty's eyebrows furrowed. "Toni's parenting? That's a new one."

"Yes, well." Cheryl frowned and looked down at Maya. The baby had closed her eyes, and Cheryl began to gently rock her side to side. "It was an… explosive argument that was truly years in the making. First, they didn't agree with her giving River my surname, then they were offended that I gave Blossom their surname because she's not a 'real Topaz'… now they're angry that I'm home with the kids while Toni works…"

Betty raised her eyebrows, her chest aching. "That must be hard to deal with, Cher."

"I can manage. We haven't seen them much since we got married, but Toni's been trying to keep them in the kids' lives…" Cheryl nonchalantly wiped her eye. "I understand where they're coming from… they're still living through the consequences of the destruction my ancestors caused their tribe… Toni's one of the last surviving Uktena… and they don't love that our families are… mixing."

The words left a bad taste in Betty's mouth. "Surely they could…" Betty started - but what could she say? She had no idea what the Topaz family, and the rest of the Uktena, had been through. "Is that why you guys left early? They were giving you a hard time cause you're… a Blossom?"

Cheryl made a mournful noise. "If only it were that simple, cousin. They can hate me all they want, it's no polish off my manicure." She said. But there was a wistful expression on her face that suggested it did, in fact, bother her that her wife's family didn't accept her.

Betty chose not to call her out. "So… what exactly set them off this time?"

Cheryl looked back over towards the kids, closed her eyes, and when she opened them again her expression was dim. "Blossom."

Betty tilted her head to the side. "You mean…" she nodded towards the little girl, who'd picked up the soccer ball and was giggling as she ran away from Juniper.

"Yes." Cheryl said sadly. "We went over to see Toni's family for their tribal ceremony… it's not exactly the Fourth of July celebrations we're used to - the Uktena have an annual remembrance of their ancestors, complete with a riverside fire and snake skin hair pieces… it's really quite beautiful, and it means a lot to Toni…" Maya made a whimpering noise so Cheryl paused her explanation in order to settle her, and when the baby fell quiet she looked back towards Betty. "When a child turns four they start learning about the Uktena's customs and traditions, so Toni has been preparing Blossom the last few months to understand the importance of the Uktena - and by that, I mean the actual Water Serpent - to her tribe… the dots on the girls' faces symbolise snake scales, and the lines on their foreheads represent the Uktena's horns… Toni and her cousin were painting all the kids' faces while their grandfather explained some of their histories… and I honestly thought everything was going well…"

Betty waited patiently as Cheryl steeled herself.

"But… then her grandmother got angry when Toni painted Blossom's face because she's… white."

Betty bit her lip. "Cheryl…"

"I understand the importance of respecting the Uktena's traditions and customs. I'm not about to delve into any cultural appropriation denial - it's not even up for discussion." Cheryl looked down, and her voice was thick. "But as far as Blossom understands, Toni is her mother. Toni is raising Blossom the same way she raises River, the girls are sisters both legally and biologically - but Toni and her grandmother started arguing about how 'inappropriate' it is that we're treating Blossom as though she's part of the Uktena tribe… River has never been subjected to the same kinds of heartless comments about her validity in the Topaz family. It hurt deeply to hear my daughter be completely rejected by her family… but it broke Toni's heart."

Nausea rolled in Betty's stomach. "That's… awful, Cheryl. Honestly. I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault, B. In any case, we left before the fight could could properly break out - I'm not sure whether the rest of the family even realises why we left… though some of them definitely heard their yelling. Toni needs space from her grandmother, and when that woman inevitably realises how out of line she is, neither of us want Blossom's relationship with her grandmother to be completely ruined." She paused, and looked like she was restling with an internal dilemma. "The irony is…" Cheryl looked towards the entrance to the house. The door was closed, but she still lowered her voice. "Blossom is Uktena. All the kids… their donor dad is very much a part of the Uktena tribe. But, of course, that's not exactly public knowledge."

Betty couldn't hold back her gasp. "What? Cheryl, you've never told me that before…" Toni and Cheryl had been particularly tight-lipped about their children's sperm donor. He wasn't listed on the girls' birth certificates, and Betty only knew that he was 'anonymous'. Truthfully, she always assumed they'd gone to a sperm bank and selected him based on his desirable genetics.

Cheryl huffed. "Because it doesn't matter. It shouldn't matter to anyone. All four of our girls are our girls, and if Toni's family can't accept Blossom, then I can't blame her for her… rather passionate outburst."

"Agreed." Betty condeeded, then reached her hand out to squeeze Cheryl's wrist. "I'm sure they'll come around… especially once they find out Blossom's more Uktena than they realise…"

"Oh, they know now, since Toni admitted it in a fit of rage, but… she's not exactly racing to forgive her grandmother any time soon."

Betty sighed. "Can't say I blame her."

The door opened beside them, and Toni stepped out holding a tall glass with fizzing red liquid, looking marginally more cheerful than she had before.

Jellybean had that effect on people.

…

With the Fourth of July celebrations out of the way, Betty set her focus on organising a small seventh birthday party for Jordan. He had several school and family friends he wanted to invite, and had requested that Betty make him a 'train cake', but other than those specifications, the young boy was happy to let his mother had free reign over it all.

There was just one problem…

"Can Kelly, Kaine and Kristal come too?" He asked innocently as he looked over Betty's shoulder.

Betty's hands froze above the keyboard of her MacBook, her eyes glued to the screen wherein Jordan's Guestlist glowed ominously. "Kelly, Kaine and Kristal… Carter?" She forced the names out of her lips.

Jordan nodded, but Betty still couldn't face him. "Yes! All my other cousins are coming, I don't want them to feel left out."

Betty contemplated pointing out that he had several more cousins in Toledo he hadn't seen in years, but she was still stewing on the Carter family. "Jordan, honey… I think they might be busy that weekend." She swallowed and tried to keep the nerves out of her voice.

Jordan frowned, and Betty was forced to look at him. "How do you know? You didn't call them yet."

Betty chewed on her lip. "I know, but… I'm sure I heard Maria saying something about it last time…"

Jordan sighed and made a show of dramatically rolling his eyes. "Mom, you're just making that up." He crossed his arms over his chest. "Pleeeeease, Mommy?" He asked, his eyes sparkling up at her, begging…

Betty swallowed. "I'll talk to Dad."

"Yay!" He squealed, then leaned forward to hug Betty's knees.

Betty smirked. "That wasn't a yes."

But Jordan merely turned around and strutted towards his bedroom, leaving Betty nervous and dumbfounded at the kitchen table.

It was where she was still sitting when Jughead returned from Little Cicceros; two boxes of pizza in one hand and Emma's hand in the other. The little girl dragged him into the kitchen with the enthusiasm of a Golden Retriever, her black pigtails swinging by her ears with the motion.

"Daddy gotted cheesey pizza Mommy!" She announced, a little grin forming on her face.

"And veggie." Jughead added weakly. Emma let go of his hand and scurried out of the kitchen, and Jughead smiled as he placed the boxes on the dinner table. "With shrimp, as per Mom's request." He winked as he kissed the side of her forehead, and she smiled up at him.

"Best husband ever." She mused. Her eyes followed him as he moved towards the cabinets to pull plates out of the drawers. "Can we use those recycled paper plates? I'm sure neither of us are in the mood to wash up tonight."

"Oooo, someone's trying to get me out of my panties." He looked back at her over his shoulder and grinned. "You knowthat renewable resources get me going."

Betty couldn't hold back the snort. "Well, I did put Bethany down early…" she raised her eyebrows and watched as a smirk slid onto Jughead's face before he turned around to retrieve the plates.

Jordan interrupted any further attempts at casual flirting by sprinting into the kitchen. He slid towards Betty - his socks providing enough slip to achieve his theatric goal. "Did you ask him yet?"

"Ask me what?" Jughead asked curiously, idly placing the paper plates on the table.

Betty opened her mouth to deflect Jordan's question, but he beat her to it. "I want Kelly, Kaine and Kristal to come to my birthday party!"

Jughead stiffened, a grimace forming on his face. "No."

Jordan's mouth tilted down. "Please?"

Jughead took in a sharp breath of air. "It's not up for discussion." He said with firm finality.

A look of mild fury shone through Jordan's eyes. "That's not fair."

"Life's not fair, Jordan." Jughead was still frowning, and Betty felt guilt welling up in her chest.

Hours later, Jordan had apparently dropped the topic, but Jughead still seemed tense when he joined Betty in the bedroom after reading to the kids. She gnawed on the end of her thumbnail as he unbuttoned his shirt - he dumped it in the clothes basket with just a little more force than usual.

"Can we talk?" Betty asked quietly. Jughead didn't meet her gaze as he made quick work of his jeans.

"About what?" He huffed.

Betty sighed as he pulled back the blanket and slid in beside her. "You know what."

Jughead leaned back against the pillows, and ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "I don't know what you want me to say, Betty. I'm not having him around Cora's family."

Betty sighed and rolled on her side to face him. "Caleb seems… okay enough. And Jordan seems like he really wants to spend time with his cousins. He couldn't even wait long enough for me to bring it up to you in a sensitive manner."

"You should have just said 'no', Betty."

"I tried!" Betty said defensively. "He gave me the eyes."

Jughead gave her a side glance. "If that's all it takes, its a good thing we don't have a dog."

"Jug." Betty sighed. She reached over and moved his hand away from his face, then linked their fingers together between them. "Cora's mom hasn't tried anything since the school banned her from the premises… I know the Carters are a sensitive topic, and that's fair enough. But… they're not all bad." She untangled their fingers to brush her palm across his cheek; he turned to face her. "Look, its up to you. But, if they're in our house then we will have the power. Anything untoward happens and they're out. No more chances."

Jughead looked into Betty's eyes for a long moment before he sighed and closed his eyes. "One more chance. If Caleb can't keep his mother away from Jordan then I'm not letting him see them again. They have a problem with that then they can wait until he's eighteen and can decide for himself."

Betty smiled and kissed his cheek. "I think this could be good for Jordan. I don't want to cut him off from the Carter's so much that we demonise that side of his genetics…"

Jughead made a grumble that sounded suspiciously like: "Well, if the shoe fits."

Betty shifted closer to lean against Jughead's side. "It's going to be okay, Juggie." She whispered into his neck.

Jughead breathed out an audible exhale. "I know." He said softly, and wrapped his arm around Betty to pull her closer. "We're not having his party here. I don't care how trustworthy they may be - it's going to be a long time before that family knows where Jordan lives."

"Done." Betty agreed. "Maybe we can do it at Pop's? Or Pickens Park… he really likes the new maze board…" Jughead nodded, and the pair fell quiet for a few minutes. Then Betty tilted her head back to look up at Jughead's face. "You know… Bethany isn't due to wake up for another hour or so…"

Jughead wasted no time in rolling her over and silencing her with his lips.

…..

Caleb and Maria Carter seemed entirely out of place in Pop's diner. Tabitha had raised her eyebrows at Jughead when she saw the couple coming in - she'd had her own share of experiences with the Carter family, and gave Jughead an incredulous look as he shrugged and moved to awkwardly greet them.

Things would have been more tense had Betty and Maria not started a conversation about New York's elementary schools. Caleb didn't remain completely silent, but his contributions to the conversation were one worded and curt. Jughead, however, lent his focus to Caleb's children…

The three kids were unperturbed by their parents' obvious stress. Jordan ensured Kristal and Kaine tried the array of chilli fries and kid-sized milkshakes that were part of the catering, and Kelly was social enough that she struck up a conversation with Chandler that didn't appear entirely awkward. The only kids who seemed weirded out by the Carter's presence were Juniper and Dagwood, though they were doing a fantastic job of keeping their opinions to themselves.

FP joined Jughead's booth and tried to keep up with the educational jargon Betty and Maria spouted, and Jughead was glad that he had his moral support.

Truly, Jughead was just happy that his son wasn't going to look back on his seventh birthday with anything other than fond memories.

It was nearing late afternoon when Maria meandered through the diner to round up her blonde-haired progenies, and Caleb pulled Jughead aside to talk to him without the listening ears of any of their children.

"Thank you for inviting us." He said gruffly, and only now did Jughead notice the vulnerability in his features. "I know it would have been… difficult for you."

Jughead scratched the back of his head nervously. "It's okay. Jordan really wanted the kids here, and… I don't want him to grow up having no idea who you all are."

Caleb nodded, and paused for a brief moment before he continued. "You know, it's Kaine's tenth birthday in September. We're not doing anything fancy, just taking him to a trampoline place. We'd really like it if Jordan could come. Your other kids, too."

Jughead almost agreed, but… "Will the rest of your family be there?" He asked slowly. Caleb nodded, and Jughead continued. "Look, I do appreciate the invite, but—"

"My mom won't be there." Caleb said confidently. "I have it on good authority that she'll be visiting… my sister during the day time. It's her birthday that weekend, too. Not sure if you recall…"

Jughead did recall that date. He recalled so much about his ex-wife, even more than he ever wanted to. Even when he wished he couldn't. "Even so, your brothers…"

"I know they can be… difficult." Caleb said solemnly. "But they really do just want to see Jordan. If you want to bring the family to New York for the weekend, I'll make sure they lay off on you. You won't hear a word from them while I'm around, that I can promise you." He swallowed. "Just… think about it. No pressure."

Jughead nodded. "I will. Consider it, that is."

Caleb nodded and reached out to shake Jughead's hand.

…

A week later, Jordan was trying to convince Jughead to let him download a social media app for kids onto his tablet. He pulled out all the convincing arguments in his arsenal - everything from "but River has it" to "I can use it to talk to Chandler - you won't have to call grandma every time then".

His latest point of argument was: "I'm seven now! Everyone in my grade has SpaceChat. I'll be the only one who doesn't."

"You don't need an app to talk to your friends, Jordan. It's ridiculous - if you want to talk to them they can come over and play with you."

"But Dad…"

"No buts." Jughead said firmly. "Kids don't need social media, I'm not having you fry your brain by spending more time on that tablet. You're lucky you even have it, some kids can't even afford new clothes let alone technology. Besides, social media is dangerous - there's a lot of creepy people on the internet."

Jordan gave up and turned his pleading eyes on Betty. "Mommy…"

But Betty merely shook her head. "Dad said no Jordan. That's final."

Jordan rolled his eyes and turned around. "You guys suck."

"You can spend a week without any technology if you keep up that attitude." Jughead said in warning.

Jordan huffed and made his way back towards his bedroom. Betty manoeuvred Bethany out of her wrap carrier and held her against her hip. She sat down beside Jughead on the couch, and settled Bethany onto her lap.

Jughead sighed. "Am I being too harsh?"

Betty shook her head. "Of course not. You're right - seven year olds don't need social media. Besides… you can't trust that there aren't… certain people that might try to contact him. It's better that we have access to all the people he talks to."

Jughead nodded. "Thanks."

Betty smiled. "It's nothing. I get it."

Jughead tilted his face down to look at the baby in Betty's lap. She grinned up at him, her blue eyes glowing like sapphires in the bright living room light. She reached her hands out towards Jughead, and he placed his hands under her arms. "She's getting so big." He mused as he lifted the baby towards him.

"I know." Betty said mournfully. "I need to think about what to do about childcare… Mom already offered to watch her when I go back to work, but I feel bad just leaving her and Emma with her all day."

Jughead sighed. "You don't have to worry about that for a couple more months. I'm home until the end of August."

"But what about after? Three days a week is a lot."

Jughead looked at her curiously. "We can give Alice a raise? We've got the money…"

"I know, it's not about that. And you know Mom already hates that we pay her to watch Emma. She fully believes she makes enough working with Charles in his PI business, but she's been busy on her days off with Polly and the kids." Betty pushed a stray blonde curl away from Bethany's forehead, and the baby giggled.

Jughead looked at Betty curiously. "Do you not want to go back to work?"

Betty sighed and leaned back against the couch. "Maybe."

Jughead held Bethany closer to his chest with his right arm, and with his left he drew Betty into his side. "You don't have to go back… but I know how much the FBI means to you, Betts…"

"Yeah." Betty said, leaning her head against his shoulder. "It's just… some things mean a lot more. And I don't want to miss out on Emma and Bethany… I was always working when Jordan was younger, and now he's seven and learning how to sweet talk us into getting his way and before we know it he'll be off to college and moving away… even Emma is getting older now, I just…" She sighed. "I like knowing that if our kids need me I'm here. Maybe I'm just getting too comfortable being on maternity leave… the thought of going back and not having Bethany and Emma with me all day is making me a little sad."

Jughead rubbed the side of her arm. "Whatever you want to do, Betty, you know I support you."

She smiled up at him. "Thanks." She said, and kissed his cheek. "I think I will have to go back, for at least a while. We're close to putting Hiram away… I've already agreed to look into a few leads next week…"

"Special Agent Jones is getting back out in the field." Jughead smirked.

She laughed. "Sort of. No undercover work, though. I'm firm on that - it's too risky. Maybe when the kids are older…"

"We have plenty of time to figure it out, Betty." Jughead said softly. And she smiled, finding comfort in the fact that whatever the future held, at least she knew it would involve her husband and children.

…

Betty wasn't prepared, however, for her immediate future to take such a dark turn.

She was pushing her double stroller through the grocery store; Bethany slept soundly in front of her, and in the level beneath Emma sat facing outwards, squeezing a squishy watermelon toy and rhythmically kicking her little legs in excitement when they passed colourful looking fruit. Jughead normally joined her at the grocery store, but Jordan was excited to play a new game he'd received from Charles for his birthday, and Jughead was more than happy to play it with him.

Betty wasn't too distressed without her husband's company - whenever he came with her, she usually ended up buying an unnecessarily large amount of snack foods.

Betty's phone buzzed in her handbag, and she hurried to pull it out before she missed the call. She frowned as she noted the private number - only one place every called her with their number blocked…

She sighed before she answered the call. "Jones."

"Betty." It was Director Lincoln, the nerves in his voice evident. "I have a… situation that I need to talk to you about…"

Betty groaned. "Lincoln, I'm on maternity leave. Can this not wait until next week?"

"It's not technically urgent, but no, it can't wait."

Betty stopped pushing the stroller and reached out to grab a bag of apples. "What happened? Did you get something new on Lodge?"

"No, no… I wish…" Lincoln said slowly. "This situation is more of a… personal matter. Honestly, I'm not obligated to tell you this, but I felt that informing you before the media catches wind of it was the least I could do."

Betty felt anxiety rearing it's head. "What… is it?" She forced out, abandoning her search for fruit.

"It's about… the Trash Bag Killer…"

Betty listened with the most intent concentration possible. She understood and comprehended the meaning of his words, but the sheer magnitude of what was about to happen was so daunting that Betty couldn't let herself think about it. Her voice was even as she said: "Thankyou for letting me know." She ended the call with Director Lincoln, and stared ahead in the direction of the rows of bread and pastries in the bakery section.

She swallowed, and looked down at her phone to scroll through her contacts to find Jughead's number. She tapped the contact, and her hands shook as she lifted it up to her face.

"Hey." He said cheerfully as he answered her call. "How's the grocery expedition? Is Emma still obsessed with the fruit aisle?"

Betty swallowed. "Jug…" she breathed out, her head spinning in a flurry of confusion.

"Betts, what's wrong? Are you okay?" He asked, worried. "Are the girls okay? What happened?"

Betty opened her mouth to answer, but no air would flow in or out of her lungs. She tried to breathe, but suddenly the spinning in her head became a rush of blood and dizziness.

The sound of her phone crashing to the linoleum floor echoed throughout fruit aisle only moments before Betty herself landed on the ground with a hard thud.