Chapter 3.- Bar visit.

"Anything else I can get you guys?" Robyn looked down at the table with four serpents sat around it, they had been talking quietly among themselves when she approached.

"No." The man in the corner furthest from her answered in a rude tone, making her raise her eyebrow slightly. She saw as he jumped slightly as one of his companions kicked him under the table.

"No, thanks Robyn. Sorry about-" He nodded towards his friend next to him now rubbing his leg.

"That's alright, I'm used to Red's bouts of rudeness. Give him another kick if he causes any trouble." That earned her a chuckle from the table and finally a small smile from Red in the corner. "That's better. Give us a shout if you need me." She turned and left them to their conversation then and carried on around the bar.

"Be back in a minute." The bartender nodded to her as she made her way in to the storage room behind the bar.

A quick check of her phone told her she still had just over an hour until the end of her shift, her sister had messaged her a few minutes ago letting her know she was going to bed and she would see her at breakfast the following morning. She smiled as she typed back a quick message to her but it fell from her face quickly as she heard noises from the other room. She sighed as she slipped her phone back in her pocket and hurried out to see what had caused whatever fight was going on in the bar this time.

"Whatever is going on out had better stop before I-" She stopped short as she saw one serpent pinning someone to a wall, as she got closer she saw who the other person was. "Jughead!" All heads that had been looking at the fight quickly turned to look to her.

"Jughead as in...!" She sighed heavily at the group in front of her.

"F.P's kid. You may want to back off." Mustang, the serpent with a short temper, quickly moved away from Jughead. Robyn rubbed her head softly as if to dispel the headache that was coming on. "What are you doing here?" She looked back up to see Jughead giving her a strange look. "Urgh, come with me." She didn't wait for him to answer as she grabbed his arm and pulled him back into the storage room, as soon as the door shut behind him she dropped his arm and turned to face him, still expecting an answer to her question.

"Y-you look different." He was looking her up and down with an odd look on his face.

"Yeah, I don't tend to dress like this for school." She looked down at her clothing to see a more fitted t-shirt and jeans than what he would have seen her in before, she usually opted for more baggy clothing for school. "What are you doing here?" She made eye contact with him as he reached up a hand to scratch the back of his head, knocking his beanie slightly before he put it right again.

"Came to see my dad." She gave him a questioning look and he avoided her eyes completely.

"Well, he's not here so you can go." She started to attempt to make her way back through the room.

"Where is he?" The question stopped her and brought a small smile to her lips.

"I survive here by not asking stupid questions like that. He's doing something that is wholly his business." She stepped again towards to door of the room. "Either way, he's not here."

"Ok, fine. I also came to talk to you." She saw the questions in his gaze as he made eye contact again.

"And the time at school wasn't enough?" He sighed lightly. "You shouldn't have come here Jughead, those aren't guys to mess around with."

"Yeah I got that idea. I wanted to talk to you and this was the only place I knew you might be, I didn't even know if you'd be here."

"You're lucky I was, they don't take kindly to strangers."

"Well thanks for getting me out of whatever I had got myself into out there." She couldn't help the slight chuckle that came forward.

"Mustang is a real pain, terrified of F.P though. They all know who you are now, not sure how he's going to take that, he had wanted to keep you off their radar." She shook the thoughts out of her mind, a problem for another time. "Now you're here, what exactly did you wanted to talk to me about?"

"What you were saying earlier, family trouble?" She nodded her head lightly at his words. "You know about my mum and sister then?" She hadn't been expecting that question.

"Yeah, I know. I was working the night they left, wasn't F.P's best moment." Jughead sighed at her comment and she instantly felt bad for her statement. "I just mean-"

"I know what you mean." His voice was quiet.

"It's the only part of it I saw, he was a mess. It was the first time he had mentioned a daughter, I had no idea. I only got bits and pieces of the information but I think I got the idea. I'm sorry." She reached and touched his arm softly, in what she hoped was comfort and he turned back to her with hard eyes.

"I sat at home alone that night, I waited for him to come home for hours, ended up just sat in Pop's because I didn't want to see him at all." She nodded at him. "You don't know what that's like." He pulled his arm free of her touch and she sighed heavily, she hadn't wanted to tell this story.

"My mum abandoned us, my dad, my sister and I, when I was seven, my sister was only four. She left first thing on a Sunday morning, when my dad found out she had left he walked out and we didn't see him again until Monday morning. I wanted to leave, I was so angry at him I didn't want to see him when he came back, I didn't have that option though, I had my sister to look after. I know exactly what it feels like." He was looking at her then, his eyes softening and he understood some of things she was saying earlier.

"Your mum?" His voice was quiet, as if he already knew the answer and she nodded lightly as she was expecting the question.

"Alcoholic, violent one at that." He nodded to her, she could see he felt guilty over his assumptions. "It's not the same, and I know that. But I do know kind of what you're going through. I've watched your dad not really try to get his life on track for nearly two years, but I've seen a change in him too."

"Will you tell him I came here?"

"He'll find out, they won't keep it from him." She nodded to the bar. "It's probably best it comes from me."

"And you'll tell him what we talked about?"

"I don't have to, it's not really any of his business." He nodded to her then. "I can pass along a message to him though?" Her tone was hopeful as she asked the question.

"What am I even supposed to say to him?" She shrugged her shoulders to his question, not sure of how to respond.

"When did you last talk?"

"It's been a few weeks."

"Maybe just start with 'hello' then, it might just be nice for him to hear from you. I think he needs all the support he can get right now." He nodded to her. "He should be back before I leave tonight, I'll let him know."

"When do you get off?" She looked at her phone before answering.

"Just less than an hour, I clock out at 11." He nodded to her. "I should get back out there." He had a surprised look and he shook his head lightly.

"Right, yeah."

They both made their way back out into the bar and she noticed the odd looks she was getting from multiple people around the room. She walked with him back to the door, a few serpents were stood outside smoking in the warm evening and turned to the sound of the door opening.

"See you at school." He nodded to her before turning and walking away. She watched until he was out of sight before she turned back to the serpents in the bar, all of them now looking at her. "Not a word to F.P until I talk to him." Nods came from many of the serpents before they all turned back to whatever they had been doing before Jughead walked in.