Woo-hoo, chapter fifteen! I've been very wheel-spinny this week, but as always the story is riiiight where I left it, in such a nice way. :)

Thank you so much for the lovely reviews! They were incredibly encouraging and definitely got the wheels spinning more productively...

Vorlesebuch, it is great to hear that you're still reading and enjoying. :-D I hope you enjoy this chapter too, as we start seeing the threads entwine!

Skyrider45, I hadn't thought much about it being a 'last meal,' and your comment made me so sad for Jug and Brand. I've got strong sympathy pangs for them. And yeah, literally everyone is in danger... because I can't help myself... :-D I have also thought a bit this week about your comment regarding what Jughead might have done if he were still hiding the contact with Rose. I think that would be quite the story too! (note to self: do not write a choose your own adventure version of story that is 18 times as long as original plot...) And yay for Toronto! I am not sure how much truth is going to how many people, but I agree with you that they've got some resources and should be able to use them. We shall see! Also, you are more than welcome; I think it's very true about your insights, and I'll enjoy hearing your thoughts about this chapter!

Living Lucid Dream, oh man, killing Brand? It's not off the table (I mean, didn't FP foreshadow that in YCHT after they caught Jug sneaking out of the house to find Trigger?), but I would cry too. (Jug is more likely safe than Brand, but never say never...?) I loved that you took comfort in Trig's inclusion - he will no doubt save the day in some fashion. He's been there, just waiting to shine again when we least expect it... :) I was glad the backpack swap made sense, too. I've been laying groundwork for it and I wasn't sure if anyone was seeing a potential collision course, but once they were switching them out at night I'm glad it very clearly signaled where things were headed. Sorry about the gut punches, too! I was considering how far they should get down the 'we need to disappear again' track before they considered other options, and... well... yeah. No excuses; I wanted to play some of that out and see what they would do/say/think. And now... here they go!

Enjoy!

-Button

00000

Betty caught up with Archie and Gunnar in the hallway. "Did Jughead come to school today?"

"I don't know." Archie gave a half shrug. "I haven't seen him, but I don't always see him before lunch."

"Is skipping class all that weird for him?" Gunnar asked, gesturing defensively to indicate that it was a sincere question when both Betty and Archie gave him looks. "The Serpents do tend to-,"

"He's not a Serpent, man," Archie cut him off. "Jughead works really hard to be in class and keep his grades up, especially since he missed a lot of school last year. Maybe he's sick, or maybe his car broke down or something. I can text him."

"I already did. I just haven't heard back yet and so I thought I'd ask you," Betty said. "Let me know if you hear anything?"

"Yeah. Same." Archie nodded and Betty moved away in the hall.

"Hey. Sorry about that, Archie," Gunnar said once Betty had left. "I know that you're best friends with Jughead and that you work with FP. I've also gotten the memo - in triplicate - about things being very different with them since last year. It probably seems like I'm looking for them to screw up-,"

"Yeah. It kind of does seem like that." Archie's tone was not harsh, but he was more than ready to have this conversation now that Gunnar was bringing it up.

"I'm not. Honestly, I'm not. But the truth is, things are not normal in that household. For that matter, having meetings in the hallway when Jughead's an hour late to school is not normal." Gunnar thought for a moment. "I guess I'm just saying that I'm calling this a zebra because I'm actually seeing some stripes. If you already know this, then you get it, and I'll shut up about it. But it's not normal, and typically I'm someone who points that sort of thing out to my friends."

"Well, you don't have to." Archie sighed. "It is weird, but by now it's normal-weird. Things are better than they were, but we're all on something of a hair trigger. Which is - dare I say it - normal after everything that happened."

"You ever going to fill me in on what we're singing about? I mean... seriously fill me in?"

"Alice never…?"

"Oh, hell no." Gunnar was appalled. "We are clean slating it right now. Fun new experiences, no pressure - and absolutely no Jughead-related, parental, or Southside drama. It's a break for us both; it's been kind of amazing."

Gunnar's expression had softened into a pleased smile as he talked about Alice. "It does leave me out of things. That's cool, and it's a relief most of the time. But then something like this happens, or everyone gets into some light lunchtime conversation about the FBI attacking Jughead and FP in their own home, and I kind of wonder whether you all took the red pill or I did."

Archie grimaced. "Yeah, that makes sense. Sorry. I probably should have filled you in on some of this ages ago. It's just, it's mostly Jughead's story, and I've tried for ages to stay out of it and not spill details or whatever when the press was out for his blood. But I can catch you up on the basics."

"That would help. Once I've gotten a better read on the zebras, it probably won't be so weird."

"Um, it will probably still be weird." Archie smiled. "But yeah, at least you'll understand where we're coming from a whole lot better when we have these 'red pill' conversations."

"Cool."

"And you should talk to Jughead sometime, too. I'm still not convinced you two couldn't be friends."

"Don't push it. I'm enjoying staying out of things." Gunnar and Archie had discussed this more than once. "But sure; who knows? Maybe we could start talking."

"That's all I'm saying."

"Unless of course he's late to school because the FBI dropped him in the Canadian wilderness to see if he could survive for six months with only his wits and a hatchet."

Archie laughed heartily. "Do not give Brand any ideas, Gunnar."

00000

Twenty minutes later, Brand had completed the initial round of calls as satisfactorily as he was going to be able to manage at this point. He rejoined Jughead to help him haul the full suitcase and duffel bag to the car. The kid had both of his backpacks loaded down as well.

"We can get more dog food later, so one bag of that should be fine for now. You should find Trigger's car harness," Brand said as he lifted the suitcase and shouldered his own duffel bag. "Bring extra bedding too, in case one or more of us is on the floor."

"Yeah, I know - if the townhouse isn't an option, we might have to make do. And I've already got both of Trigger's harnesses, just in case-," Jughead was holding up the harnesses to show Brand, but he stopped short when he opened the front door.

FP was striding up their walkway, toward the door. He looked violently angry.

"Uh, hi, FP-," Brand's mind raced as he tried to figure out what had brought the man home.

And then a fist connected with his abdomen.

"Dad!" Jughead was dropping everything and leaping onto his father, but not apparently to restrain him so much as hug him. "Dad, you're home. You're here. Everything is all- I mean, I was- well, Brand and I were-,"

And Jones was tearing up again, apparently unable to get enough words out at the moment for any sort of explanation, and FP was sheltering him in his arms and placing his own body between the kid and Brand, which suggested that somehow-

"Do you have any idea what Clark is doing right now?" FP growled at Brand. "Because I think he's in possession of the keys to Jughead's car - to keep you two from leaving -, and he's terrified that you're going to either hurt or abduct Jughead. He said something about the trunk."

Oh. Oh, no.

"He has bad information. Plans changed, FP-,"

"You bet your worthless life they did." FP pulled Jones tighter to himself, frowning at his son's emotional state. "Jughead, you're safe. I'm here now, and you're not going anywhere with this lunatic."

"Come on, hear me out-,"

FP gave him a scathing look. "Hear what out? I am never leaving you alone with my son again."

"Hold on; not this again. First of all, this is exactly what we discussed me doing if a problem like this came up, back when-,"

"Do you mean the plan in case I was dead?" FP's eyes went wide with incredulity, and now Jones was giving Brand a scared look as well, so Brand halted and tried a different tack.

"FP, I'm going to the FBI. Look in the suitcase; you're packed and ready to go with us if we get the green light. You can see for yourself. We're not running."

"That is correct. You are sitting down and we're having a conversation before you do a blessed thing," FP's tone was dangerously level all of a sudden. "And you have lost your mind if you think I'm letting Jughead get into a car with you. Jug, have you taken anything - any drugs? Did he give you something to put you under, or to make it harder for you to run away?"

Jughead quickly shook his head and sniffled loudly before clearing his throat. "I'm fine, Dad. Brand's not abducting me. We really are going to the FBI."

"You have no way of knowing that for sure. Once he had you in the car, anything could have happened." FP shook his head sadly.

Jughead looked up at him sharply - and then looked over at Brand with a worried expression. "No, Dad. This is all my fault; Brand was only-,"

"Perfect. You've got him convinced that whatever you're pulling is his fault. Of course you do." Then FP noticed something else, and his expression became even more upset. "Did he tell you to bring the dog harnesses, Jughead? You are a dead man, Davies."

"I wasn't kidnapping him. And a conversation is fine," Brand interjected. "That would be good, even. We have to find Clark first, though, because he's not a part of all this and I'd like to keep it that way."

"I'll text him." FP's left arm tightened around Jughead as he released his right arm from his son's shoulders and pulled out his phone.

Moments later Clark appeared in the living room. He skirted his way carefully toward FP and Jughead while avoiding eye contact with Brand.

"Clark? Hey, buddy, you did the right thing." Brand was pretty sure that this was the end of their friendship, but he could see in a glance that the intern felt horribly conflicted. "You didn't hear everything, or maybe you didn't hear correctly, but you were right to act quickly and protect Jones."

"I-I called the RA and said I'd be in late. So that I could give you a ride." Clark still wasn't meeting Brand's eyes, and he seemed not to know what else to say.

"Thank you, Clark," FP said, the words coming out more as a rebuke of Brand than gratitude toward the intern. "The three of us need to talk privately, but can you go to Agent Quinn's office and tell her we need her? If we're not here when you get back, call the cops and have Quinn call the FBI to report that Jughead and I are missing and that our lives are in danger."

Clark nodded firmly, his expression somewhere between terrified and grimly determined.

Brand made a noise of protest in his throat.

"You just said that you were going to the FBI, Brandon."

"Yeah, but I meant SAC Wilson, not Agent Quinn."

Everyone turned to stare at Brand.

"We're going to need a whole lot of authorization, and probably some serious resources as well, in order to do what I have in mind."

FP was giving him the look that had no doubt made him Serpent King.

"Please, Dad. You always say that Brand panics first and thinks later. I think that Clark just heard the first part-,"

That lovely contribution did not help anything. Brand winced when both FP and Clark visibly realized that Jones was confirming that their worst fears had been founded - even if what Jones intended was to say that those fears were now defunct.

"Look, I'm handing the kid my service weapon. Okay? Truce." Brand raised his hands placatingly.

"You're only doing that because you know he won't shoot you," FP retorted, though he did not interfere when Brand pressed the gun into Jones' hand.

"Actually, I thought you might want possession of your shotgun for this conversation, FP."

"Well. You might be right about that. Go get SAC Wilson, Clark."

"Uh, tell her that you're not sure what's going on, but that I left her a phone message this morning. We'll come to the field office and talk to her directly," Brand corrected. "Have her call FP to arrange a meeting for any time that she's free today. We'll all come in together."

"Fine." FP glared, but seemed to realize that was the only reasonable arrangement.

"I'll have my cell phone with me." Clark gave everyone one last pained look, passed what looked like the kid's car keys to FP, and then hurried toward his car.

FP didn't loosen his grip on Jughead as he moved toward his room, presumably to retrieve the shotgun. When Jughead had to scramble awkwardly to keep up and nearly fell over his own feet, FP did not slow down.

"Don't yank him like that-," Brand shut up when FP gave him an even scarier look than before. "Never mind. He's your son; you do what you want. I'll just be right here, waiting for more guns to be pointed at me so that we can talk more comfortably."

"Way to stand up for me, Brand," Jughead objected, but he shrank back in his father's grip when the look was turned on him next. "Uh, sorry. I'm good with being dragged around."

"Good. Because I'm not letting go of you until your next birthday, or until you demonstrate that you have some common sense - whichever comes first," FP growled at him.

Jughead gave Brand a wide-eyed look.

Brand shook his head emphatically. "Do not look at me. That sounds entirely sane and not in any way unreasonable, kid."

"Nobody asked you." FP somehow made it up the stairs and disappeared into his room with Jughead.

Brand watched through the window as Clark drove away to talk to SAC Wilson, and then he sank down onto the couch to wait.

This was actually heartening, all things considered. Apparently he didn't need to worry about whether FP would be willing to take extreme action to deal with the situation.

Brand took care not to look in any way pleased when FP reappeared with the shotgun, though, with Jughead still skittering along in his death grip and trying not to drop Brand's service weapon - or aim it at anyone or anything.

"The safety's on, kid."

If FP's twitching reaction when Brand spoke was any indication, the older man was not a whole lot more relaxed with the shotgun in hand.

Nope; he'd keep this to himself. If FP caught any hint that Brand was happy about his violent response to a threat against Jones' safety and wellbeing, that would not enhance anyone's life.

FP sat down across from Brand, settling the shotgun onto his lap and pushing Jughead into a dining room chair right next to him.

"All right. Talk. What in God's name did Clark overhear, and why are our bags packed pending authorization from the SAC?"

Brand took a deep breath and, with a flick of his eyebrows at Jones, he began to explain.

"The kid decided to grow up in a hurry without telling anyone, and now we've got a situation. He's in a dead heat with you for which Jones is going to be murdered first, and I've got exactly one decent idea for maybe keeping the wolf pack together." Brand took a deep breath and gave the kid a weak smile.

"It was Jones' idea, actually. I was just going to do whatever I needed to in order to keep him alive - and that's probably what Clark overheard -, but the kid really wanted to stay here with you, FP. And with Betty and everyone, but you should know that you got honorable mention."

"If you talk in circles, so help me-,"

"I think I have to tell you everything. Everything, everything."

"That would be a start." FP was fingering the shotgun with one hand while he used the other to grip Jones's shoulder tightly enough that the kid was wincing.

"So, back in Toronto, we cut a deal to get out alive. Jones and I have been more or less - me more, and him less - on payroll with, uh, Dominic Rose."

FP's jaw dropped. "Why do you insist on lying to me, Brandon? I will shoot you right now if you don't tell me-,"

"That's the truth! I swear!" Brand looked over at Jones, as if the kid would have any clue why his father wasn't buying this.

"No. It's not."

"Look, maybe you need a few minutes to process, or maybe I should explain who Rose is-,"

"It can't be the truth because I know Dom, you idiot. Jug's been off limits since he was born."

Brand felt his expression shift more than once as his mind raced to translate FP's words into something that made sense. "What?"

"Technically it's the Serpents, but family members go without saying." FP must have tightened his grip still further, because Jones was starting to twist uncomfortably toward his father to ease the strain on his shoulder.

"Uh." Brand wondered how well FP could possibly know Rose if that was his line. "What do you mean, 'technically'?"

"It's a long story, but when local territory was up for grabs I got what I wanted and Dom didn't. It wasn't entirely amicable for a while, but we eventually hammered out an arrangement. So now he steers clear of the Serpents. You didn't wonder why literally none of them were hurt or killed in Montreal when the splinter faction started making moves in Rose's territory?"

"Wait... you knew that was Rose? I mean... never mind. That's classified." Brand felt like he was about to start stuttering. He took a moment to clear his head before continuing. "So, if all of that's true, then why doesn't the kid have a tattoo and a jacket if that's what would protect him under this… arrangement?"

"We've been over and over this, Brandon. I don't want Jughead involved with the Serpents." FP glowered. "And again, my son shouldn't need to be a Serpent to be off limits to-,"

"I'm going to tell you what happened in Toronto, and then you're going to tell me exactly what a loophole you could drive a truck through might mean for Rose if he thought he could get a foothold with you through your - astonishingly - non-Serpent-affiliated son. Okay?" Brand felt like he was speaking slowly, as if to a particularly stupid child, but at least FP seemed to be considering his words.

"Wait."

Of course Jones would interrupt right at this moment.

"Rose knows you, Dad? And he agreed to stay away from the Serpents?"

FP finally seemed to notice that he was hurting Jones, and he loosened his grip on the kid's shoulder. "Yes, Jughead. I'm guessing you never saw or met anyone, and you've been operating on Brandon's say-so this whole time?"

"No. I met Rose before Brand did. And he was interested in Riverdale. He asked me about Clifford Blossom but never explained how he knew who I was." Jones' eyes were huge. "Brand's right. Rose is using me, and maybe he has a lot of different plans, but I think one of them must be about Riverdale. Which could definitely include getting back at you and the Serpents if you beat him at something-,"

"Damn straight I did." FP's brow was furrowed with concentration. "You actually met him?"

"I, uh-," Jones shot Brand a look for permission to say more. Brand nodded wearily. "I delivered a car and a message to him for Jameson."

Brand leaned back on the couch and waited for FP to realize what that meant.

There was a long moment of hesitation before FP doubled over and began wheezing for air as if he'd abruptly contracted asthma.

"Yeah. Yeah, FP." Brand got up cautiously and walked over to the older man. FP leaned forward and grasped at his knees as he continued to fight for oxygen. "It was… all kinds of bad in Toronto. We ran out of options, or I never would have considered-,"

"Oh God." FP found his voice again. "You put my son in bed with Dominic Rose. You let Jameson feed him into a meat grinder, and the only way you could figure out to keep Jughead alive was by-,"

"Well, there was actually one more piece." Brand figured they were probably just going to have to bite the bullet. "Remember that whole 'secret agent capture' thing?"

FP raked a hand through his hair, clearly sensing that he wasn't going to like the rest of this story.

"I ran away from Brand, Dad. I got kidnapped by Jameson because I pulled a boner move." Jones didn't seem able to keep his mouth shut. "And Brand had to cut the deal with Rose to get me back alive."

FP had managed a few deep breaths, but at Jughead's words the wheezing came back in full force.

"That's how I, uh, got a job with the agency, and-," Brand stopped when FP began speaking again.

"This house. Jughead's college fund. That's why you flipped out over Alice's article; that literally almost got you both killed until we saved face with the press. Wait, Donn too? Is that why he shot Russell - and nobody so much as blinked?" FP looked up, and the wheezing was gone as abruptly as it had started.

"Ye-es, as a matter of fact that is the leading theory." Brand was still standing right in front of FP, and when the shotgun came up he raised his hands in a gesture of submission. "If I'd had any other option, I would have-,"

"And you've been walking on eggshells ever since." FP turned on his son. "You've been held hostage by Dom for the past six months, never knowing what might cause the roof to cave in on you. Or what might give Rose an excuse to send someone after me, or a group of thugs after Clark."

"That part's still not entirely clear," Brand interjected. "But yeah, it seems likely to me that Rose was brokering the attacks through a third party - or through Donn, who used a third party - while he maneuvered Jones into somehow breaking the agreement we made in Toronto."

"Jughead broke an agreement with Rose?" FP glared into the middle distance while he processed that information. "Okay. That makes sense; it sounds like something Dom would try, and if he's making threats then I can see why your first impulse would be to disappear." FP's tone was dark, but he was nodding. "If I needed an excuse to come after you and to break faith with the Serpents, I'd probably have leaned on Jug too."

Brand winced when Jones' expression twisted in response to hearing that theory for the first time. "Uh, yeah. Exactly. That breach would put Rose in the clear for anything that came next - which is important when you're managing a paranoid criminal empire -, including allowing you to be killed, FP. He laid groundwork with Donn for both you and Clark, but it sounds like you were the prize."

Brand was just spitballing, but he thought that made some sense.

One part didn't quite fit, though.

"I'm just not sure why he's been grooming me to take over for him if that's why he brokered the deal in the first place. Maybe that was all misdirection. Unless…" Brand's eyes widened as the penny dropped. "Maybe we were the package deal from hell. You know, kid, he has been trying to split us up since day one, even though I've threatened to walk every time. I thought he just wanted to harden me, and cut away my vulnerabilities. But we've been fighting about my personal oversight of you since the very beginning."

Jones was gaping in astonished dismay. Brand wondered if this was altogether too much information for him to handle right on the heels of everything else, but it was too late to shield him: they needed all cards on the table.

Brand had to assume it was all of a piece, and FP being a long-standing target meant that motives at the very least made sense. Nevertheless, he was painfully aware that he'd made a lot of faulty assumptions over the past few weeks due to a lack of information, and that clearly needed to end.

FP massaged his eyes. "He wants you to step in when he retires? Dom sees himself in the most perverse places."

"I don't disagree." Brand shrugged.

"And all of that's why you've been…" FP's face contorted miserably as he turned back to Jones. "Jug, I didn't know. We're going to fix this. I'm going to fix this."

Aaaaand Jones was crying again.

"You're okay, kid. This isn't your fault; it was a setup from start to finish and not one of us caught on to that until now." Brand tried to sound soothing and not impatient. As badly as this day was shaping up for him, it had to be infinitely more terrifying from where the kid was sitting. "Your father might actually be right that he can help us. It's too bad a tattoo and a jacket won't mean anything now, or we'd both just pledge the Serpents, huh? And hey, you were right; that means there was help we could-,"

"If Rose thinks he can do this - get away with this-," FP sputtered before he managed a full sentence. "What exactly are we up against, Brandon, and how does SAC Wilson fit into your so-called plan?"

Brand's eyebrows went up. This was going more quickly than he'd anticipated, but he wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

"Brandon," FP repeated impatiently. "How do we end this, once and for all? And what are the odds that SAC Wilson's on the take with Rose? She's been sniffing around you two."

Jones made a noise of surprised protest.

"No, that's the right question, kid. Your father understands things a whole lot better than you do, and Wilson is literally Donn's replacement." Brand sighed. "But if Wilson is on Rose's payroll, then we're screwed. For one thing, Clark's most likely already there and that means he's a hostage at best. I'm also not sure we can do any of what I'm considering without the FBI as backup. I think we have to play this one out and hope."

"All right. What are we playing out?" FP seemed satisfied that they had no options aside from trusting Wilson.

"I have this sort of crazy plan that means we have to lie and do some stuff - and also tell some truths to the FBI that I'd never intended to tell." Brand figured he'd better get that much said. "We'd go in undercover, burn every bridge with Rose, and hopefully burn him up with them. But it's an extremely high-risk strategy."

"Then Jughead needs to leave. He's out. You and I deal with this from now on." FP's hand moved from Jones' shoulder to the back of his neck, and it looked like he clamped down hard enough to leave a bruise if the kid's facial expression was any indication. "Fred Andrews will look after him. Or Sarah Quinn can take him in for a while. Clark can go with him too, and we'll get Keller and Tim to keep eyes on-,"

"Uh, actually... we need the kid for this. If you really want him out, that means we're back to Jones and me hitting the road and disappearing." Brand made a face to indicate that he shared FP's displeasure with that fact. He had to look away from Jones, whose expression suggested that he was not sure whether he was more terrified about being left behind or brought along on this ride.

And Brand could not even begin to think about what it would be like leaving Riverdale to assume new identities now, after the kid had been offered the possibility of an alternative and had this conversation with FP. "Not ideal, I know. But if he and I aren't going to disappear - again - then he has to be a full partner. Rose is using him as the lever, so we need to do the same thing. That's the only way I see this having any chance of working."

When FP's eyebrows went up and he shook his head emphatically, Brand figured they were at the beginning of the long argument that he'd anticipated. He sat back down on the couch.

"What's plan b, Brandon?" FP's expression was intensely focused. "You're not taking Jughead away from me again. And he's not going back into this mess in any capacity, let alone to be used as a lever."

"There is no plan b."

"Make one. Jughead's out."

"But Dad, I-,"

The hand must have clamped still harder, because Jones shut up and made an even more pained face.

"Look. Let's take it from the top, FP, and then you can tell me if you see any other way." Brand rubbed his hands over his thighs. He was sweating. "And for what it's worth, I hope that you do."

"I will. Don't you worry about that." FP's face set in a mask of determination. "This ends here."

Brand began to talk.

FP's dark expression did not change, though he started glancing over at Jones more frequently as Brand spoke. Eventually Brand realized why that was.

"Hey, are you okay, kid?"

Jones had begun visibly trembling, and at Brand's words his teeth began to chatter. "Yeah. I'm okay. You can keep explaining."

"Ohhh great; he's going into shock, FP. I think the adrenaline's wearing off." Brand sighed and stood up from the couch. He wanted to pat the kid's head or maybe try to still some of the shaking, but one look at FP made it clear that would be tantamount to suicide at this moment.

It was probably a testament to their hard work learning to pull together over the past six months that Brand didn't already have holes in him; he didn't need to push his luck.

"I'm sorry, killer. This isn't the way something like this should be done. Why don't I get you something to eat, and you can wrap up in a blanket and take over the couch. Let's have your dad sit with you while we keep discussing things." Brand turned to address FP again. "He had a panic attack and passed out earlier. I'm honestly surprised that he's holding up as well as he is."

"I'm fine. I'm not hungry. We should just make a plan now, before SAC Wilson calls," Jones insisted. His hands were quaking even harder, though, and he set Brand's service weapon down on the table behind him before jamming his hands under his legs - as if that was any less conspicuous.

"You passed out? You should definitely eat something." FP frowned and he was gentler this time when he dropped a hand on the back of Jones' neck.

"It's going to take longer than five minutes to make a plan. Let me find something that'll keep you from crashing. Do you think he could handle a Coke, FP?" Brand moved toward the kitchen, whistling for Trigger as he did so. When he heard a bark in response from behind the door to the basement, he released the dog into the living room. "Hey, monster, make like a service dog and calm your owner down."

Jones leaned forward to accept the dog's muzzle in his hands and then rubbed Trigger's ruff vigorously to burn off some of his nervous energy. Trigger nuzzled up into the crook of Jones' neck and huffed once before closing his eyes to enjoy the attention.

FP began rubbing the kid's back as well, making a deeply concerned face. "I'll split a can with him and we can see how he does. Get him something with protein in it too, Brandon." FP turned back to Jones. "I'm going to take care of this, Jug. It's all going to be okay; Brandon and I will fix this, and then it will all be over."

Jughead leaned into his father while he continued petting his dog. "You're not going to shoot Brand?"

"Not today, Jughead. We're going to do what we've been trying to work together on for months: eliminate the ongoing threat to your safety." FP accepted a can of Coke and a glass from Brand.

"Months?" Jughead didn't look up, but he sounded deeply concerned by that tidbit. "You weren't supposed to know anything, Dad. Brand could have gotten you killed by telling you stuff."

"I didn't tell your father anything. We've had an unspoken pact since the spring. Your dad's been backing me up without any information, kid, and you know how hard that had to be for him. He's made some big sacrifices to make sure you stayed safe." Brand figured it was time to acknowledge that things might be a mess, but that he and FP were officially back on the same side.

"Really?" Jughead looked from one to the other, suddenly confused. "Then why do you always fight?"

FP raised his eyebrows and looked over at Brand expectantly.

"Uh, wow, that's an interesting question. Maybe because I'm still me? The pact wasn't a lobotomy. It's probably the reason your father didn't run me out of Riverdale," Brand nodded toward FP when he grunted in agreement, "but it's also the reason we were forced into close quarters. Right up until things looked better - after Michigan - I didn't want to get too far away. Not until we had some idea that you were safe."

"And now we're actually going to make that happen. Finally." FP's voice was strong - but he wasn't looking at his son any longer.

Brand met FP's worried eyes behind Jones' back, and he figured it was more or less like looking into a mirror of his own expression.

This seemed to be yet another thing that they unexpectedly had in common: they were both in the questionable habit of making promises first, and figuring out how to deliver on them later.

00000

Wow, this was very nearly a one-scene chapter, which was kind of cool (if a bit breathless!). I hope you enjoyed - everyone gets to snap into action now, but excavating some of these roots and seeing how tangled they've gotten required a bit of space.

I'll enjoy any and all notes immensely as the wolf pack hits the ground running together! :)

-Button