Off to attend to my loyal minions-er, I mean reviewers:

To moonjava: Thanks.

To Shadowhawk: That's okay. Just write what comes naturally.

To LadyKayoss: Yes it is. My own high school's grade policies were very strict, however, the coach or even the principal would er, persuade the teacher to inflate the athletes' grades.

To Agent Silver: Maybe...

To evillittlegurlie: Here's where Beth shows up. Sorry it took so long!

Chapter 9: How to Blackmail the Teacher

"So, Doc…so I ain't going to be in football, basketball, the newspaper, or the Winter Dance."

"That's right, Reggie. And 'ain't' is not a proper word in the English language."

"It's in the dictionary, Doctor Octavius," Reggie waved the manila envelope around and wickedly grinned. "Or shall I call you…Doctor Octopus?"

This statement earned him exactly the reaction Reggie expected: anger, and indignation. "What did you just call me, Reginald Mantle! Well since you seem to know about my past, then you wouldn't mind if I showed you these."

Octavius jerked off his coat, releasing the four steel tentacles that hissed at Reggie and curved over their master's shoulders.

Reggie knew not to push the Mad Doctor too far. He'd been pummeled to a pulp several times before by Moose Mason for flirting with his steady, Midge, and it was very unpleasant. And each of those arms must be as strong as five Moose.

"Well, look, Doctor, I can understand wanting a second chance…wanting a legitimate life instead of a criminal one…going straight, you know…"

Octavius put the tentacles down and put his coat back on.

"So I thought, you give me a B in Chemistry, which will put me above the line for athletics and school activities eligibility, and get me my Winter Dance tickets back, and I don't show Mr. Weatherbee the contents of this envelope. 'Cause face it, your rap sheet is longer than those metal arms you have."

A tentacle shot out towards Reggie, its blade popped out. "Well why don't you take responsibility for your actions instead of whining to your father or blackmailing me, and you stay healthy."

Reggie ran out of the office. In his fright he never noticed the envelope was gone. The damned doctor must have taken it.

As he was going down the hall, he passed Archie and Veronica. "Have a nice time with Veronica at the dance, you creep!" he spat at Archie.

"What is wrong with him?" Archie asked.

"I heard Dr. Octavius was failing him—and refusing his Winter Dance tickets for cheating on the exam."

Archie knew what that would mean—he would be going with Ronnie to the dance now, instead of Reggie the Rat. He grinned.

"You know, I think that ole Doctor is growing on me!"

After school, Archie, Betty, Jughead, and Ronnie made their way to Pop Tate's, their customary soda shop hangout. Jughead, of course, ordered more food for himself than the other three put together.

Just then, a young green-eyed redhead passed their table. She was Elizabeth, also known as Reggie's latest main squeeze. She was extremely pretty, though no Veronica Lodge.

"Archie!" Beth ran up to him. "Archie, you're friends with Dilton Doiley, right?"

"Uh…sort of. We don't exactly hang out in the same places."

"I can't find him, but are you in any of Dr. Octavius' classes? Do you know him?"

"I'm in his first period chemistry class."

"Same as Reggie." Beth breathed a sigh of relief. "He's really mad at Octavius for failing him and refusing his dance tickets. I think he's planning something."

"Scheming is what Reggie does best," Archie sighed.

"No, it's worse than that," Beth said. "And even I don't know what it is."

Reggie walked up and grabbed Beth by the arm, pulling her away. However, he paused to look at Jughead. "What's the bottomless pit eating now?" he inquired.

"Pop asked me to try out some new dishes," Jughead replied. "It's breaded deep-fried calamari." He stabbed a morsel with his fork. It was kind of wiggly.

Reggie burst out laughing. "Needle-nose, you're eating your science teacher!"

And he walked away with Beth, not bothering to tell them what he meant.