The next week came and Sapphire still hadn't returned to school. Sure, she forced Sweet Pea to go but she'd rather not face anyone now. Instead, she pulled on a light blue wig and made her way down to the precinct to see FP.
Her eyes teared up as she sat across from him on the other side of the glass. All she wanted to do was to reach out and touch her father figure, but she couldn't. And that was hurting her.
"Ria?" FP whispered softly as the tears followed deeply from her eyes.
"Papá, te extraño," she cried out brokenly.
"I miss you too, Ria," FP replied seriously. His heart breaking at seeing one his girls crying in front of him and there was nothing he could do about it. "But it's going to be okay."
"How? Quin's gone and they're sending you to prison," she nearly yelled but she could never yell at FP. The guilt always hit her, and she never liked being on the end of his looks of disappointment.
"Sapphires are among the most durable naturally occurring elements in the world."
Sapphire blinked momentarily taken back. Because only FP would google references to her name and spout them out for comfort and reassurance.
"FP, what?"
"I'm telling you this because Ria, you're strong and you're going to be able to get past this," FP told her seriously. "And I need you to be strong and focus on The Plan."
Sapphire sat up straighter. FP hardly ever brought The Plan up. It was just for a contingency.
"From what, Jughead tells me, things have gotten pretty serious out there. Something about a Black Hood?"
Sapphire nodded her head. She read about that. The Riverdale Register was trying to pin it on the Southside and especially the Serpents. But as of now, the Serpents moves have been put on hold. They don't really take action because FP wasn't there to give approval. Tall Boy was too busy watching over FP's son to take the lead.
"I'm betting that they're blaming it on the Serpents. We gotta be ready for anything they pull at us."
Sapphire leaned forward just a little. "Do you think it'd get to that point?"
FP nodded, "I know it will. And I want you to be on top of everything. The Serpents integrity depends on this."
No pressure or anything, FP.
"Is there anything I can do to help you? Pay off people or anything?"
FP shook his head quickly, frowning just a little, "No, Ria. I plan on doing all of my time unless they can come up with a better deal for me."
"Five minutes," the cop behind FP called out. Sapphire's flicked her gaze to his and glared death into his soul. FP chuckled at the anger in her eyes. He always thought when she got angry she was adorable. Like a little baby showing off their mad face.
"Sapphire," FP stated, and she turned back to him but this time with tears building in her eyes. "Saph, I love you like my own child. And I'm so proud of you. Don't close in on yourself this time. You have more people that love and cherish you. Don't push them away."
Sapphire closed her eyes as tears rolled down her cheeks. As if she was in a movie, she put her hand onto the window and smiled softly when FP did the same. "Te amo, papá."
"Yo también te amo, hija mía."
The two smiled at each other as the guarded called out, "Time's up". Sapphire sat and watched her father figure be led away from her and she felt a small and almost atom like piece of her heart healed itself slowly.
Sapphire had been at home watching My Babysitter's A Vampire when she heard knocking at her door. She pouted and grumbled as she moved from her comfy place at her door to see Sweet Pea standing outside breathing hard with Fangs right beside him.
"What the hell you two? Get in here before you freeze!"
She grabbed each boy by their arm to pull them in and hurriedly closed and locked the door behind them once more. "Why do you two look like you just tried to race the Flash and got left in the dust?"
Sweet Pea took another deep breath before straightening up. She was caught off guard by the anger in his eyes and watched as he nearly turned around to put the hole she just got fixed back in her wall before stopping himself. Toni came in from the guest room in the back and rose a brow at the boys.
"You know the Northsider from that video I sent you?" Sweet Pea started, and Sapphire nodded her head. She had done her research before realizing that it was the same boy who had called himself interrogating her brother so long ago. "We just saw him. He tagged my ma's shop. He just sprayed a big ass red circle onto the wall. When we confronted him about, you know telling him that he needed to leave. Well trying to intimidate him to leave. He pulled a gun out in our faces."
"HE DID WHAT!" Sapphire screeched anger lancing her words. "I'll kill that son of a bitch."
She growled as she moved further into her house determined to go and get her boots, so she could go find that Northsider. Fangs grabbed her arm and shook his head. "Don't worry about it, Saph. We'll handle it."
Sapphire narrowed her eyes at him before turning towards Sweet Pea. His eyes were cast down, but she could see from how tensed he was that he was pissed. "Fine. I'll let you handle him, but I still need to make a call."
The three watched her as she moved back towards her couch before shuffling through her blankets to find her phone. She dialed a number and waited a minute before whoever picked up on their end.
"Punzie," she started, and Toni let a smile creep onto her face. She knew what was going on. "Apparently, there are some walls around the Southside that've been tagged with a red circle. I need them covered up."
Sweet Pea's head snapped over to hers and he watched her intently even as she turned to look him in the eyes. "You can do the usual but the one by Hastings Street. Yeah, Sweet Pea's family store. Make it a serpent squeezing a bulldog. Thank you, love. You'll find the money in your account by morning."
Her friends watched her with shock faces, but she just shrugged and sat back down in her seat. "Look T, Sarah kind of looks like you."
Sapphire was pissed as she walked through the medic's house as all the boys were getting bandaged up. The sound of her heel boots catching everyone's attention as she came into view.
Her hair was pulled into a ponytail as she moved around the bodies all sporting cuts from rocks, small bruises, and broken wrists from being dumb enough to fight in the rain. She cast a glare over to her snake's den and the young boys immediately flickered their eyes away in guilt. She'd deal with them later. A detailed analysis on Othello should work as a suitable punishment. She knows how much they hate reading plays.
She continued forward through the house until she came to the last door on the right. Sitting inside was Sweet Pea and Fangs. Sweet Pea was holding a pack of frozen carrots onto his eye and Fangs was getting his ankle wrapped up. Sapphire cleared her throat and watched with delight as the two boys pale at seeing her standing before them.
"Saph- "
"Don't 'Saph' me, Fangs. What the hell were you all thinking fighting in the fucking rain?"
"I wasn't just going to let some pussy from the Northside come to my side of town and thinking he's running something," Sweet Pea exclaimed.
"And what if that Northie had a gun, Sweet Pea? Huh, tell me that," she snapped as she clenched her fists.
"He didn't. He gave it to the little rich bitch," Fangs mumbled, and her head whipped towards him.
"I want you to repeat that carefully," Sapphire hissed as she moved further into the room and closing the door behind her. "Say it again or I swear I'm going to knock both of you idiots out."
Both boys flinched before Fangs repeated his sentence, "The girl. From New York. The Northsider gave the gun to her."
Sapphire nodded her head and spins on her feet to leave. She just found something new to do with her schedule.
If there was one thing that Sapphire loved about being the unseen heiress of Stone Enterprises, it was that all eyes were on her when she finally did make her appearance. After she left her boys at the medic house, Sapphire went home and dug through the closet in the guest room that Toni usually stays in. She searched deeply for the outfit that she had been waiting for this exact moment to wear. That next morning, she called up her publicist to make sure that her name was added onto to the guest list.
Sapphire had been sitting her Bentley and watched as former serpent Alice Cooper walked into the building wearing a gorgeous red snake-print dress. She turned towards her publicist, "Make sure you find out where she got that dress. I want it in black."
And then she snapped her fingers for her driver to get out and open her door. Sapphire watched as everyone's eyes turned towards her and a smirk pulled at her lips. Her driver helped her out and she looked up at him with a smile, "Thanks, Jacob. Tell the wife and kids I said hello."
He nodded his head and handed Sapphire her clutch. She took a deep breath before walking towards the entrance aware of everyone who turned to look at her much like they did Mrs. Cooper.
Sapphire smiled sharply as she continued forward in her short sapphire blue romper. Her dark brown hair had been pulled into some fancy braided up do that she paid no attention to that her hair stylist had named. Her grandmother's sapphire diamond necklace rested delicately around her neck and fell right above her boobs. But Sapphire knew what really had everyone's attention was her Serpent tattoo on her thigh.
She watched with an amused smile as Hiram and Hermione Lodge scrambled up to her. As if she would spend a dime on anything to get rid of her school.
"Sapphire, how wonderful it is to see you," Hiram stated as if they were old friends. She raised a delicate and freshly plucked eyebrow at him before casting a glance around them.
"Mr. Lodge, a pleasure it is to finally meet you," she replied respectfully.
"I must say it was a surprise when we received word that you were going to be attendance, but I wish it be no other way," he continued laying the charm on thick. She nodded her head though.
"Yes, my schedule cleared up and I was… in the area," Sapphire told him.
"Well we do hope you donate for the betterment of Riverdale," his wife cut in and Sapphire's gaze cut to her. She had a charming smile on her face that if Sapphire was anyone else would've won her over. But Sapphire worked with the likes Penny Peabody. She knew a snake charmer when she saw one.
"I just might. Though you'll have to convince me," Sapphire smirked at the couple. "If you'll excuse me, I do believe that you all have chocolate covered strawberries at the desert table and those are my favorite."
She moved around the couple and headed right for the table, but before she could reach it, she was intercepted by both the Lodges' daughter and Alice Cooper.
"What's a serpent doing here," Alice hissed. Her hand tightening around her glass of champagne. She said it at the same time Veronica whispered harshly, "What are you doing here?"
Sapphire laughed lightly, "I'd watch how you talk to me, Mrs. Cooper. I have a friend interested in journalism and it wouldn't even make a dent in my bank account to buy your little newspaper."
The two of them froze before her. The implication staring them right in their faces. Sapphire watched with delight before she cleared her throat and held a hand out to Veronica. "It's nice to meet you, Veronica. I've heard many interesting things about you. I'm Sapphire Stone of Stone Enterprises."
She paid close attention as the recognition entered both their eyes. For Alice, she was realized that this serpent wasn't just rich. She was The Sapphire Stone whose parents died when she was younger, and her adoption was kept under the tightest wraps that no amount of money you threw at her lawyers were getting them to spill. Hell, even her records went private to keep her adoption a secret. Alice's eyes dropped down to the tattoo on Sapphire's thighs and she couldn't help but to wonder if the Southside of all places was where the young heiress had been living for so long.
And for Veronica, she realized that Joaquin's mysterious sister was the other teenager with big pockets needed for the SoDale project that her parents tasked her to charm. A Southside Serpent that as far as Veronica knew really disliked anyone from the Northside.
Oh, shit.
Sapphire smiled brightly as she moved around the two. "if you ladies will excuse me, there are some strawberries calling my name."
Nearly twenty minutes later, Sapphire stood along the other guest as Hiram Lodge and his wife made their way onto the stage.
"Ladies and gentlemen. A new story begins in Riverdale tonight. A story about reinvention and aspiration. This building will be the first chapter of that story. Luxury apartments, shopping, and even a golf course. The Southside as we know it will be gone, replaced with a new Eden. So, let us raise our glasses to a brighter tomorrow. Today, let's celebrate with a little music."
I think the fuck not, you trick ass bitch.
Sapphire watched with an unimpressed brow at the Lodge's little speech. She pulled her phone out of her clutch as the couple descended the stage and the Mayor's daughter and her little band ascended.
She sent a quick message off to her publicist. Buy me Southside High and the Whyte Worm. I don't care how you do it. Get me both. And throw in a little something nice too for yourself for your troubles.
Sapphire smiled when she received the confirmation text then blinked at the sight of the poster boy for fuckboys made his way over to her.
"Sapphire, how lovely it is to see you again," Nick smiled. Sapphire wanted to stick her heels into his eye sockets and rip them out from his mouth, but she smiled back falsely and said, "A pleasure as always Nicholas."
He turned towards the one of the waitress and grab two drinks before handing her one. She immediately narrowed her eyes. Despite his gentleman act, Nick never offered her a drink unless he planned on making some idiotic deal with her on his family's behalf.
"What do you want, Nicholas? This an old dance now. You don't have to offer me food and drinks anytime you want something," Sapphire told him. Nick only shook his head lightly.
"Ah, you're right. I don't, but this isn't for a deal this time. This is a drink to a brighter tomorrow," he replied repeating Hiram's words.
Sapphire hummed before clinking their glasses together and she drank. Nick offered her his arm and to keep up with appearances, she took it and followed him onto the dance floor.
Nearly ten minutes passed, and Sapphire thought she was going to pass out. She clutched tightly onto Nick's arm to keep her balance.
"Are you alright, Sapphire?"
Sapphire's thoughts slowed and moved to gentle hum. A feeling she usually only gets when she was high except it was more intense and her thoughts were much murkier. What's wrong with her?
"I just need some air," she muttered as she tried to find her footing to leave. She paid no mind to Nick holding up most of her strength and leading her away. She just remembered the way his arm wrapped tightly around her waist and the other planted near the top of her thigh and moving lower before she faded out of reality.
When she came to, the first thing Sapphire noticed was the face of Veronica Lodge in front of her and the sounds of someone getting their ass kicked not too far away. She blinked in confusion as she noticed she was lying on a bed with her dress halfway unzipped.
"Whaa?" She mumbled as she tried to figure out what the hell was going on. Veronica wrapped an arm around her and if Sapphire was in her right state of mind, she would've damn well broke it. But instead she leaned closer into her embrace.
"Nick drugged you and tried to- "
Sapphire raised a hand because she didn't want to hear the rest of that sentence. She felt dirty. She had never wanted this to happen to her. Hell, she would have never wished that onto anyone. "He didn't. He didn- "
Veronica shook her head quickly, "We stopped him before he could do anything more than unzip your dress."
Sapphire nodded slowly as the people from the other room walked in. The mayor's daughter and her bandmates. Even Cheryl Blossom. Honesty, Sapphire's mind was way too cloudy to give a damn. They all crowded around her and led her out of the room. But even if Sapphire's mind was murky, it didn't stop her from turning around and stomping her foot into Nick's balls as he laid their unconscious.
You don't know what the hell you've just done, fucker.
The girls walked with her back to Veronica's home and helped her to Veronica's room. She sat on the bed and she started to feel the tiniest bit better. Not a lot, but it was there.
"Someone call SP. My phone," she muttered as the mayor's daughter handed her a glass of water from the bathroom. Once she drank some of it, the fog started to clear up even more. Enough for her to glare at the boy, Archie, as he made his way to the room with them followed by Jughead's girlfriend, Betty, and ex-lover boy Kevin. And a quite nice to look at male wearing a leather jacket.
Veronica turned a little to grab Sapphire's clutch and went through Sapphire's phone scrolling through her contacts until she got to the one named SP with a blue heart and crown emoji. The phone rang twice before the other end answer.
"Thought you were out with your rich friends, Saph," the voice on the other end stated the second they picked up. Veronica could hear loud music in the backroom, a bad rendition of John Legend's All of Me, and the sound of pool sticks hitting pool balls.
"This isn't Sapphire. This is Veronica Lodge. We're at Pembrooke Suites. There was an incident."
A beat before, "We're on our way," was stated and Veronica was listening to the dial tone.
A few minutes passed with Sapphire staring blankly ahead with tears rolling down her cheeks before a loud rumbling sound was heard. She lifted her head with and the others could see a light flicker in her eyes.
Veronica moved from the bed to go let the people in and got the shock of her life when she saw nearly the whole gang of Serpents outside of her door. "Where's Sapphire," the boy in front of her demanded. The same boy who Archie had got into a fight with a few days prior. A bit numbly Veronica moved to the side and allowed them in. Even more surprised to see Jughead with them.
She led the group back to her bedroom and held a hand out to stop Archie and Reggie from flying towards them. The tallest one, who Veronica guessed was SP, immediately moved to Sapphire's right side.
They watched as Josie moved from her spot and the girl with the pink highlights moved in her left and the smaller and slightly buffer boy stood behind the pink haired girl in a show of comfort.
"Sapphire," another man with long blonde hair stated as he moved into the room. Sapphire looked up to him and all the Serpents that were in the room and surrounding the doorway were shocked and quite honestly horrified to see the heartbroken look in her eyes as more tears spilled on her cheeks.
"What happened," Jughead questioned looking at the girl in Sweet Pea's arm. The legendary Sapphire that all the Serpents said he just had to meet. The one who usually trains new recruits but had been extremely busy, so she gave the job to Toni temporarily. Sweet Pea tucked her head into his shoulder and let her cry as Toni ran a comforting hand on her back. Fangs glared at him pointedly before he sighed and motioned for everyone to give the three privacy.
Everyone walked out of the room and it was an awkward moment for the Northsiders to be faced with the small army of Southsiders.
"A boy named Nick St. Clair drugged her drink. He tried to... He tried to rape her," Veronica told him. Jughead watched as Tall Boy spun around and punched one of the older Serpents in the stomach and the man barely flinched besides the grunt of pain.
"You got a picture," Tall Boy, asked and Veronica nodded numbly as she pulled her phone out to show them. The phone got passed around for a few minutes to each Serpent as they all took in the boy before it made its way back to Veronica.
"We'll see what Sapphire wants to do and we'll handle it," Tall Boy stated as the door to Veronica's room opened and Sweet Pea walked out carrying Sapphire in a princess hold. Toni was carrying her heels and clutch and Fangs' jacket had been laid across her.
"She wants to press charges," Toni stated as Sweet Pea hurriedly exited the room with Sapphire. "She wants to ruin him like he tried to do her and give it public attention in case anyone wants to speak up and a warning for anyone in the future in case he gets off."
Tall Boy nodded before leaving the room with the other Serpents following. Toni and Fangs went to Jughead's side before turning to the Northsiders.
"Saph doesn't like you. None of you, but she thanks you for your help and we thank you for helping her," Toni stated before she motions her head to leave. Jughead avoided the eyes of his former friends and exited the room with her and Fangs.
"Come on, Pea was taking her to the police station," Fangs muttered before the three of them jumped back into Fangs' car and sped off into the night.
"He did what," FP snarled from his end of the phone line. Sapphire flinched away from the anger in his voice and FP visibly reigned himself in. She needed him to be cool and collected and not bite anyone's head off.
"Can you tell me what happened again, Ria," FP stated softly. Her lawyer sat on the other side of her while Sheriff Keller pulled up a chair and sat to her side. She hadn't want to talk about what happened without her lawyer present, but when it came down to it, she froze up. Fangs, who had been with her, had asked if talking to FP could help. Like she usually did whenever she was having a crisis and her world went for a loop. She had nodded slowly before Sheriff Keller had led them down to the visiting room and FP had been summoned.
And he was not taking the news well.
Sapphire sniffled, "I had gone to the SoDale event because I knew that when you were working with Mr. Andrews that you were excited to complete it. So, I told myself that I was only coming out of hiding and going in your honor. I had spoken with the Lodges and their daughter and even Alice Cooper came to compliment my outfit. After Mr. Lodge's speech, I had moved off to the side back by the food table when Nick St. Clair approached me. We exchanged greetings before he offered me a glass of ginger ale. After we drank, he asked for a dance and I went with him. About five-ten minutes later, I had felt hot and stuffy and I had need some air. I remember Nick holding and helping me but after that its blank. When I came to, Veronica Lodge was helping me up and the other girls… the mayor's daughter, her friends, and Cheryl Blossom had come in from holding off Nick. They took me to Veronica's house and called Fangs and SP to come get me and brought me here."
More tears spilled out of her eyes and Sapphire was just so thankful that she had managed to be saved before anything worse than being drugged could happen.
"No llores, hija. It's alright. Papá here."
FP glanced up at Fangs who walked forward and wrapped his arms around the girl he saw as his little sister. "Sssh, let it out, Saph. Come on its okay."
FP then turned towards Sheriff Keller and motioned for him to take the phone. When Keller picked it up, FP snapped, "Is that all you need from her, so she can go?"
Sheriff Keller sighed and motioned for the guard to come forward and lead FP off. "No, give her back the phone before I go."
Keller rose a brow before he gave Sapphire back the phone who had raised her head to stare brokenly at FP. "Te quiero, hija mía. No lo olvides."
Sapphire choked back a sob before she replied, "Yo también te quiero, papá."
FP hung up the phone and stood and let the guard lead him out with his two in everything, but blood children watched him.
Sapphire nodded her head before standing up from her chair. Keller turned to her and lead them out while saying, "We got the reports back from the labs and there was an unidentified drug in your system and though faint as it may be, Nick's DNA was found on your clothes."
He moved back to his office and held up an evidence bag, "We also searched his hotel room and found this necklace, that I'm presuming belongs to you?"
Fangs nodded his head for her, "It was her grandmother's."
Keller and the lawyer flinched at the information. "We'll, uh, we'll make sure to return it to you as soon as possible. You can go now."
Sapphire's lawyer turned to her. "We've gotten everything we need to for the case. You just rest up and I'll call you about the rest of the details."
Fangs mumbled thanks before leading the girl out of the room and back to his car and back to the Southside.
"Fangs, you all can go kick his fucking ass now. But leave him alive. I need him for court."