*Present Day*

"Wait, wait, wait. So...Chic is my HALF brother? And FP is his dad?" Betty's eyes widened and she stared down at the table between her mother and herself. "And Dad has been sleeping with Mrs. Blossom? And what? You and FP are getting back together?"

"Well...I don't know about that." Alice pointed out. "It was just a one night stand."

"Does HE know that?" Betty wondered, finally looking back up into her mom's eyes. "Because he made you breakfast in bed. I don't know any one night stands where the man makes breakfast in bed." She quickly looked down at her mother's blue blouse. "Not to mention, you looked awfully comfortable in his shirt this morning."

"Elizabeth...Things are just way too complicated right now. I don't know if it's the best time." Alice took another sip of her tea before feeling her headache finally disappearing.

"Mom...what are you talking about? You and Dad are getting divorced. Your LOVE child just came back into our lives. Jughead said that Mr. and Mrs. Jones' divorce just got finalized. And he just got out of prison. The timing couldn't be better for you two."

"Whoa! What? Prison?" Chic looked back and forth between his mother and sister.

"Oh yeah. Remember that little thing that we just did a couple weeks ago?" Betty asked. "With the *ahem* and the *ahem*?" Betty decided to spill.

"Yes?" Chic answered.

"Last year, FP did the same thing. He wasn't the killer...but he was the one who covered it up."

"Elizabeth." Alice put her face in her hands.

"What? I'm just-" Before she could finish, her cell phone began to ring. She sighed. "It's Jug." She looked at Chic and her mother before answering the phone. "Hello?...Yeah…..Wait, wait. Calm down…..What?!...Where?...Okay….I'll be right there." She quickly hung up, standing from her chair. "Chic, can I borrow your car?"

"Whoa, whoa!" Alice stood as well. "What's going on?"

"Something's going down at the Whyte Wyrm. He said all Serpents and Serpent allies need to be there." She walked around the table and Chic handed her his keys again. "Thanks." Soon after, Alice quickly stood. "What are you doing?"

"I'm coming with you, Elizabeth. I don't like thinking about you in that place all alone. Alright? I'm coming. And besides...I'm basically a Serpent ally."

"No, you're not." Betty said, looking to Chic who also stood.

"Well...I'm the Serpent leader's ally. Therefore, I should count as one." She couldn't help but smirk as Betty squinted at her.

"Gross." The 16 year old said under her breath before turning to head for the door.

"Can I come, too?" Chic finally asked, realizing he'd be left alone without his car.

"Might as well." Betty exclaimed as she opened the front door to leave, the other two following.

When they arrived at the Wyrm, Alice grabbed ahold of Chic's hand as Betty walked ahead of them, entering the bar. "Betty." They heard Jug's voice coming from a crowd of the Serpents. He walked through the group, making his way over to his girlfriend.

"Jughead, what's going on?" Betty wondered with worry in her voice.

"She's back again." The beanie wearing teen responded.

"What?" Elizabeth asked.

"Who is?" Alice wondered aloud from behind her daughter.

"Who, Jug?" Betty pretended Alice wasn't there.

"Penny Peabody." He practically whispered before-

"Forsythe Pendleton Jones the Second." Penny's voice came from a section of the bar where several Serpents surrounded, making it impossible to see her.

Jughead turned to see his father walking down the last step from the second floor and he headed on over to the smug blonde in the corner of the bar. Serpents parted down the middle of the crowd like the Red Sea as FP made his way to his old high school friend. "Penny...what are you doing here?"

"We've got a problem on our hands, FP." Penny stepped forward, finally visible to Jughead and the three Coopers behind him.

"What is it this time? Is it my son again?" FP's eyes searched the bar for Juggy and when he spotted him near the entrance, he internally gasped upon seeing Alice and her kids present. He ignored them for now, looking back to Peabody.

"No, FP. This is about the Ghoulies."

"What about the Ghoulies?" The Serpent leader asked, panicking in his head as he could only think about Alice.

"Word on the street is...they're planning a massive Southside takeover."

"Why does it matter to you anyway, Penny?" Jughead wondered, causing all eyes to fall on him.

"Boy!" FP started. "You stay outta this."

"But, Dad-"

"NO!" FP turned to face his son, pointing at him with frustration. "Don't make me suspend you again." He angled his body just right so he could see both his son and Penny. "You're lucky she's not helping them destroy us after what you did!" He shouted from the other side of the bar.

"What did he do?" Alice couldn't keep her mouth shut for long.

"Mom." Betty shook her head as she looked over her shoulder at the woman slightly behind her.

"Alice." FP finally acknowledged her presence. "You stay outta this too."

"Wha-I-" She scoffed. "Don't you give me your attitude, Forsythe Junior!" She stepped forward, joining the rest of the gang in its circle around FP and Penny. "I'm allowed to ask questions. Like, for one….what is all this commotion about and why does everyone seem so oddly alert around Penny?" The entire room froze save for Alice who looked around at every Serpent present.

"Betty hasn't told you?" FP asked.

"Told me what? What's going on?" She looked at Penny, who seemed irregular and a bit off in her presence.

"Show her, Penny." FP said as Jughead and Betty rushed over to Alice, Chic eventually following.

Alice looked over to her old best friend and she watched the blonde pull up her sleeve, revealing the scar upon her forearm. "Your t-" Alice remembered very well that that's where Penny's Serpent tattoo was when they were teens and she snapped her head to the teen boy beside her. "Elizabeth….you knew about this?" She asked her daughter, while keeping her eyes fixed upon Jughead.

"Mom, she was horrible to him. To ALL of the Serpents. She-"

"I DON'T WANNA HEAR IT, BETTY!" The room grew eerily silent. "FP, you suspended him?"

"Yes, ma'am." Jones answered.

"That's not enough." She glared at her daughter's boyfriend. "He should be stripped of his jacket and refused presence at any Serpent gatherings until he proves that he can redeem himself."

"Dad, she can't just come in here and-"

"Jughead, I swear to god!" FP started.

"Mom, are you serious? Isn't that a bit extreme?" Betty chimed in.

"Isn't skinning someone alive a bit extreme, Elizabeth?" She finally moved her eyes to her daughter with fire in her own. "I don't know what she did. I don't care what she did. Unless she physically harmed someone...what Jughead did was uncalled for."

"Can I talk to you for a second? Alone?" Betty grabbed her mother's arm and pulled her away from the group for a moment as she began to whisper. "Are you kidding me, Mom? After what Chic did to that man...after we covered it up? And you're gonna sit here judging Jughead for-"

"Elizabeth, what we did was heinous! And I am nowhere near proud of it. What Jughead did is only moving a step closer to do what we did and we don't need that happening again. This gang was formed to keep a group of minorities safe. They were never meant to be violent people and if Jughead stays, influencing the other teens, he's just gonna continue down that same dark path that turns into something as bad as what we did for Chic. Okay? I'm only doing this to protect Jug...and you. And everyone here." Before Betty could respond, she returned to the circle. "Betty and Chic will take Jughead home, but he will leave his jacket here."

"Dad." Jug tried to protest.

"Just go, son." FP shook his head. "Go!" He pointed toward the door and with more than anger, Jughead ripped off his jacket and threw it on the floor.

"Come on, Jughead." Betty grabbed her boyfriend's arm. "Let's go!" She demanded, attempting to pull him away. Chic grabbed Jug's shoulder and pulled him back as well and eventually Jughead gave in, following the other two out to Chic's car.