Betty put her bag down on the sofa in the Blue and Gold's office and sighed in relief.

She'd ducked out of her house this morning before her parents had even come downstairs. She desperately needed to avoid the attempt by Archie to walk her to school. The early wakeup call left her tired and in need of caffeine. She dug some change from her bag so she could use the vending machine down the hall. Just as she was about to walk out again she saw an envelope on her desk, her name in red ink.

Meet at this address after school. Tell no one.

The straightforward note included an address near the southside of town. Betty did a quick internet search to see what she was walking into. As far as she could tell, it was a simple warehouse. Betty's nerves flared. Suddenly she wondered if Cheryl took her demand as some sort of threat that needed to be dealt with.

She drummed her fingers for a moment but decided to take the chance. She'd go and see what Cheryl's story was.

The adrenaline surge caused by the letter crashed almost as soon as it hit, and she ran to the machine for coffee.

"Hey, Betty," Veronica approached, "You're here early."

"I could say the same for you," Betty took her cup from the machine.

"My mother has been on my case since I broke curfew. I told her I needed to get to school early for a school project," Veronica hesitated for a moment before continuing, "Betty, I know things have been really tense between you and Archie since that night, but you need to know it wasn't what you think it is."

"What does that mean?" Betty asked.

"We just talked," Veronica replied, "He's been really struggling with his parents' split. He wanted to talk to someone who didn't expect him to have it all together."

"Someone like me?" Betty snapped at her.

"That's not it," Veronica shook her head.

"Veronica, I get it. You like him," Betty said, "Who wouldn't? He's cute. He's nice. He looks in your eyes instead of at your chest like some other guys who shall remain nameless."

"All true," Veronica nodded.

"And I think he might like you, too, if his reaction the first night you were at Pop's was any indication," Betty shrugged, "He doesn't see me that way. He never has and he never will. Take a shot. You never know."

"Betty, I don't think you're as invisible to him as you think you are," Veronica stated, "Most of the conversation I had with him was about you. He talked about how amazing you are and how much you mean to him. He didn't say it in a way that a boy would say about someone they simply see as a friend."

Betty smiled wistfully, "We're not just friends. We're best friends. At least we used to be. I'm not so sure anymore. I gotta get my stuff before class starts. When you're no longer grounded, give me a call. We'll go shopping or something."

"That sounds like fun," Veronica bobbed her head, "So you and me are okay? I really don't want to screw up our budding friendship."

"We're okay," Betty reassured her before she walked back to the Blue & Gold. She slipped the note from Cheryl into her bag and headed out the door.

"Betty!"

She turned and smiled, "Hey, Kev."

"I stopped at your house this morning, but your mom said you left super early," the boy said.

"Just avoiding conversations I'm not looking to have," Betty said, "So, what's up?"

"I went to see my grandpa yesterday," Kevin started.

"How's he doing?" Betty asked.

"Good," Kevin nodded, "Anyway, I told him about your brush with crime last week. By the way, he's glad you're okay."

"Tell him thanks," Betty smiled as they walked.

"Then I mentioned that Dad had told me on the DL about a vigilante that's been making the rounds the last few months."

"Yeah, my mom asked him about that when she picked me up the other night."

"Well, he said that some fifty years ago, there was another vigilante guarding Riverdale. They called her Proud Angel."

"Really?" Betty was taken aback.

"Yeah, it was all over the Riverdale Gazette headlines," Kevin responded, "There were theories about who it was. Some were really out there. Someone even thought it was Nana Rose. How unreal is that?"

"Completely unbelievable," Betty replied.

"Speaking of unbelievable, you still not talking to Archie?" Kevin asked.

"It's just too hard right now, you know?"

"Yeah," Kevin curled an arm around her neck and kissed the top of her head, "I get it."

"Veronica caught up with me this morning," Betty admitted, "She said things with Archie the night of the dance were totally innocent. They just talked, mostly about me and his parents splitting up."

"He hasn't talked about his folks for awhile," Kevin replied, "I figured he was over it."

"How long would it take you to get over your mom leaving not just your dad but you, too?" Betty asked.

"Yeah, it would take awhile," Kevin replied, "But I'd probably fake being okay before I really was okay. It's sort of expected of us men folk."

Betty giggled, dropping her head on Kevin's shoulder, "Oh, Keller, what are we going to do with you?"

"Give me a good spanking," Kevin snorted.

"Get Moose to do that," Betty whispered.

"Betty Cooper, you vixen," Kevin teased.

"I think you have me confused," Betty snorted, "You won't catch me anywhere near those pom pom shakers."

"They shake more than their pom poms."

"I thought you were more into the guys on the field than the girls on the sidelines," Betty teased.

"I like a good routine as much as the next guy," Kevin responded, "I just don't care for the lady parts that accompany it."

Betty giggled as they walked.

-d-d-d-

Betty left her last class before lunch and headed towards the library instead of the cafeteria, just missing a certain redheaded boy who'd been trying to track her down all day.

"Dammit," Archie said when he saw the empty classroom.

"Hey, Kev, can you help a guy out?" Archie approached Kevin in the cafeteria. "Can you get Betty to talk to me?"

"I think you need to give her a bit of time and space," Kevin countered.

"I get she's mad, but if she'd listen to me, she'd realize there's no reason to be," Archie said, "There's nothing between me and Ronnie."

"Except that you apparently trusted a girl you've known for five minutes over a girl you've known since you were four," Jughead interjected.

"Ronnie's parents are going through their own drama. When she talked about her issues, mine just sort of tumbled out. I honestly didn't even know it was still bugging me as much as it is," Archie replied, "If I'd known, I would have talked to Betty. She's been so willing to listen whenever I needed...until now."

"You realize last week could've gone a whole other way, right?" Kevin sat down next to Jughead, "I think your dad would've at least let you call Betty had you asked."

"No, he didn't," Archie stated, "When I found out what happened, I asked, a lot. He told me not to do the crime if I didn't want to do the time. He promised to make sure she was okay."

Kevin frowned, "I need to go find someone."

"Kev, seriously," Archie pleaded with him.

"I'll see what I can do," Kevin decided.

"Thanks," Archie nodded.

Kevin took off to find his friend. The Blue & Gold was empty so he tried the library.

"Are you looking for something, Mr. Keller?" the librarian looked at him curiously.

"Have you seen Betty Cooper?"

"Viewing room A," she pointed, "She's doing research for a story."

"Thanks," Kevin nodded his thanks as he made a beeline for the microfiche room, "How do you even know how to use this ancient thing?"

"I'm a journalist, Kev," Betty rolled her eyes, "Sometimes research is tedious."

"Can't you just Google it?" Kevin asked.

"What do you want, Kev?" Betty sighed heavily, "I'm a little busy."

He sat down next to her, "I know we were together for most of Saturday, but did I miss a call from Mr. Andrews at some point?"

"No, why?"

"He didn't leave a message or anything? Not even the house line," Kevin asked.

"No," Betty shook her head, "I haven't talked to Fred in a week or so."

"He was supposed to call on Archie's behalf," Kevin explained, "He and Archie went to the mat about Archie's phone privileges. He wanted to call to check on you, but Fred held firm that he was grounded. He promised to call you. I guess he got sidetracked."

"Oh," Betty said, "Okay, so maybe Archie's not a heartless jackass."

"And maybe you should talk to him?" Kevin nudged her.

"Yeah, maybe," Betty nodded, "But, that's later. Look at this. It's an artist rendering of what that vigilante, Proud Angel, looks like from witness accounts."

"Does this matter?" Kevin asked, "No one has seen this town's newest vigilante."

"I know," Betty sighed, "I'm just curious if there are similarities or not."

"You think there's a connection?" Kevin asked.

"I don't know," Betty shook her head, "I just find it curious."

"Oh man, I know that look," Kevin said, "It's the same one you'd get whenever a new Tracy True book would come out."

"I don't even know what to do with this information," Betty admitted as she hit a couple of buttons to print out the page she was looking at.

"Maybe you should hand it off to your mom," Kevin suggested.

"Maybe," Betty said, "How was your morning, Keller?"

"Fine," Kevin was taken aback, "Why are you suddenly curious?"

"I want to think about someone else's life for a while," Betty said, "Tell me what happened when you saw your recent hook up."

"He ran in the other direction," Kevin admitted, "Like full on ran because apparently just saying hi to me will ruin his reputation, or worse, spill the secret that he likes men more than women."

"Kev, I'm sorry," Betty frowned, "You know, present company excluded, guys suck."

"Totally agree," Kevin agreed.

"Think you'll see him again?" Betty asked.

"Don't know," Kevin admitted, "It's not like I've got a large pool of gay men in Riverdale to choose from."

"How about I introduce you to the friend I was talking about yesterday?" Betty suggested, "I think you'll really hit it off."

"I'll think about it," Kevin said.

"Good," Betty smiled.

"As long as you talk to Andrews," he amended.

"I'll talk to him," Betty assured him, "I've got a few things to do after school, but I'll stop by after Mr. Andrews gets home from work and sort things out."

"Good," Kevin told her, "I haven't seen Archie this torn up in a long time."

"C'mon, let's go to class," Betty said.

"Do we have to?" Kevin whined.

"You don't," Betty gathered her things, "I do."

"Buzz kill," Kevin groaned as he followed Betty like a two-year-old having a tantrum.

-:-:-

Betty walked towards the address she'd been given cautiously. She was more than a little nervous about what was waiting for her inside.

Stepping into the warehouse, Betty heard grunting. As she moved around, it looked like she was walking through some sort of obstacle course. One wall was completely covered with footholds and rigging. There was a place set up for target practice. There was a ring set up in the middle, which is where the grunting was coming from. Cheryl was center ring with headgear on and her hands taped, but not gloved up like Archie's usually were. She was wearing a tight-fitting spandex outfit, and she was sparring with someone Betty couldn't see.

She wandered closer and watched her classmate skillfully dodge a right cross before delivering an uppercut that had her opponent stumbling back.

"Can I help you, Dearie?" Nana Rose's voice spoke from behind her as she was rolling towards her.

"Um, Cheryl told me to come here after school," Betty stammered out as she held up the note Cheryl left her as proof, "At least, I think it was Cheryl. It has this address, and I left a message for Cheryl yesterday at Thornhill."

"You can stop rambling, my dear," Nana Rose held up her hand to silence Betty, "Cheryl told me about you finding her earring."

Betty watched Cheryl continue to spar.

"And you think you have what it takes to do that?" Nana Rose watched Betty watch Cheryl.

"Not yet," Betty admitted, "But I'm fairly athletic. I think I can learn..." Just then, Cheryl launched herself at her opponent, her legs wrapping around the upper torso of the man, before she threw herself backwards, throwing the guy off balance as he fell to the mat. She flipped around quickly. In an instance, the man was pinned. "...Eventually. Holy crap, where did she learn that?"

"My dear child has been training for a good part of her life," Rose smiled proudly, "I insisted on it."

"And Jason?"

Nana's eyes grew sad, "Yes, but unfortunately it didn't help him in the end it would seem."

"I'm really sorry," Betty flinched, "Jason and I weren't particularly close, but he didn't deserve what happened to him."

"It certainly got Cheryl's attention," Nana Rose stated as Betty looked towards the ring to see the man picking himself up off the floor. Cheryl was nowhere to be seen.

"About time you got here," Cheryl strutted towards him, her headgear was removed and she was toweling herself off, "It's bad manners to show up late when you're trying to blackmail someone."

"Blackmail? Me?" Betty said innocently, "Cheryl, I would never do that. That is not a Betty Cooper thing. I am merely offering to help. Should you decide you don't need my help, then I'll blackmail you."

"Cute," Cheryl scoffed.

"Nana Rose says you've been training your entire life," Betty stated as she pulled a file folder from her bag, "Nana Rose, is this you?"

Nana Rose glanced at the newspaper clipping Betty had found in the library. "Proud Angel," she sighed, "That was in my sprier days. Someone had to defend this town from the hooligans running crazy through it."

"Not a bad likeness," Cheryl looked over Betty's shoulder, "Can I have that? I think I might like to turn it into a painting."

"Sure," Betty gave it to her, "Kevin told me his grandfather had a lot of stories about you and your alter ego. People had a lot of theories. Someone even got close to the truth."

"John Keller always did have a good eye for detail," Rose said, "He's well then?"

"As well as can be," Betty replied.

"Time catches up to all of us," Nana Rose stated.

"So how do we get started?" Betty asked.

"Have you ever even thrown a punch, Betty?" Cheryl put a hand on her hip as she thrusted that hip out to one side.

"I decked Reggie in sixth grade," Betty reminded her.

Cheryl searched her memory, "I remember that. You broke his nose."

"It's still a little bit crooked," Betty smiled proudly.

"Look, Betty, this is a physically demanding thing that I do," Cheryl gave it to her straight, "You'll have to eat well, drink plenty of fluids. We train every day, even when we don't feel like it or have cramps. You'll have to get in much better shape."

"I'm in good shape," Betty looked down self-consciously at her outfit.

"Cute, you're in a girlie shape," Cheryl replied, "You'll need to get into fighting shape. You'll have to put on muscle in places you don't expect. This is a rough gig. Don't you think I wanted to be at the dance with all of our classmates, honoring my brother? I couldn't. I had to patrol because we heard chatter about a burglary, which you stumbled upon. Thank goodness you had the good sense to hide. I thought you were going to charge in and get yourself killed."

"You saw me?"

"Of course I saw you," Cheryl said, "That's part of the job description. You have to be aware of everything going on around you, and you have to be fast."

"And you need to be careful about losing things that could identify you," Nana added quietly.

"I was dressed for the dance," Cheryl reminded her grandmother.

"Water under the bridge," Nana Rose waved away the response, "So, Betty Cooper, do you really think you can keep up with my granddaughter?"

"I don't know about keeping up, but I'm a quick study," Betty insisted, "I can get into fighting shape pretty quick, if you're willing to teach me."

Cheryl sighed dramatically, "I guess I really have no choice. Start thinking up ways to explain the bruises you're going to get as we get you coached up."

"Really? Just like that?" Betty asked.

"Yes," Nana said, "Betty, sit with me for a moment. I want to tell you why I stopped being Proud Angel."

"Nana," Cheryl gave her a stern look.

"It's alright, Child," the older woman smiled, "Go brew us some tea, will you?"

Cheryl nodded and walked away.

Rose turned back to Betty, "I took so much satisfaction in being Proud Angel, in ridding the streets of this town of people who sought to terrorize good people."

"The articles I read said you were good at it," Betty smiled.

Rose patted her hand, "Thank you. One night I came up against an immovable force, I suppose you could call it. I ended up in the hospital, and my legs were never the same."

"I'm so sorry," Betty frowned.

"But that's not what I regret the most. My regret is because I was in the hospital, the Riverdale Reaper claimed a family."

"Oh no!" Betty gasped.

"There are consequences of our actions," Cheryl chimed in as she appeared with tea, "We can't save everyone or be everywhere at once. People are going to get hurt, and it will be out of our control. You'll have to be okay with that."

Betty nodded, "I can't promise it'll happen immediately, but I will do my best."

"You're well behind Cheryl in terms of skill," Nana Rose stated, "You'll have to work your backside off to even be able to keep up."

"I'm not afraid of hard work," Betty insisted.

"No, I don't think you are," Nana Rose looked at her appraisingly, "Maybe if I'd had a partner, I'd better use of my legs."

"Or maybe you and your partner would have gotten too bold and gotten both of yourselves killed," Cheryl sniped at her.

Rose gave her granddaughter a withering look, "Either way, we'll never know what could have been. Only what can be. Elizabeth, your training will begin tomorrow after school."

"Come dressed appropriately and ready to sweat," Cheryl told her, "Hydrate accordingly."

"Will do," Betty nodded.

"This should go without saying, but you are to tell no one," Nana Rose said.

"I get it."

"Also, we have to act like we normally do around each other at school," Cheryl said.

"Pretend the other one doesn't exist?" Betty smirked.

"Perfect," Cheryl managed a fleeting smile.

"I will see you tomorrow," Betty nodded before she exited the building.

Cheryl looked at her grandmother, "Are you sure about this, Nana?"

"I have a good feeling about her," Rose nodded.

"My life sucks," Cheryl looked up to the rafters.

-d-d-d-d-

Betty walked down Elm Street towards her house as she processed everything she'd learned that day. She couldn't quite wrap her mind around it.

Archie's house came into view, and Mr. Andrews's truck was parked in the driveway. She remembered the promise she'd made to Kevin during lunch hour. She stepped up to the front door and knocked.

Fred answered the door and nodded, "We were hoping you'd stop by."

"Hey, Mr. Andrews," Betty smiled tentatively.

"I owe you a big apology, Betty," Fred looked appropriately apologetic, "I promised Archie I would call to check on you after what happened after the dance, and I got sidetracked by other things. Arch has been pretty miserable thinking that you thought he was unconcerned about what you went through."

"I'm fine," Betty reassured him.

"Come in, please," Fred invited, "Archie? Come down here."

Archie came thundering down the stairs, stopping short upon seeing Betty in the entryway.

"I'm rescinding your ability to have visitors for this one evening only," Fred told his son, "Then you will serve out the rest of your punishment."

"Thanks, Dad," Archie smiled gratefully.

"You wanna," Betty motioned to the porch.

"Betty, I'm calling your parents and telling them you're having dinner with us," Fred called after them as they sat on the front step.

"How are you?" Archie asked.

"I'm fine. I promise," Betty nodded.

"Are you sure?" Archie wrapped an arm around her shoulders like he'd done a thousand times before. She immediately leaned into him.

"I'm not going to lie," Betty admitted, "I was a little scared. What if the guys in the store came out and saw me? I don't know how to protect myself."

"I can teach you to box," he offered, "You've watched me a thousand times, but you never had interest in gloving up."

"Still don't," Betty shook her head, "Thanks for the offer though. Your turn. How are you?"

"Really pissed that my best friend thought that I didn't care about what she went through," Archie admitted, "I'm really sorry about what happened that night, especially knowing that you thought Veronica and I were getting together as a couple or something."

"It's okay if you want to or if you already have," Betty said, "It's okay to like her."

"I do, but not the way you're thinking I do," Archie shook his head.

"Arch, I won't be mad, okay?" Betty told him, "And even if I was, so what? I have no claim on you whatsoever."

"That's just it," Archie stated, "She's pretty and all, and yeah, I'll admit I was intrigued the night she first came into town, but as I got to know her I realized we have nothing in common. She's cool and all, but she's not my type."

Betty nodded, "Does she know that?"

"Honestly, I think she feels the same," Archie replied.

"See, that's where we disagree," Betty said, "Arch, I've seen the way she's been looking at you."

"Okay, how has she been looking at me?"

"Like you're a popsicle, and it's a really hot day."

"So what?" Archie shrugged, "I can't change that. I can only be honest with you. She's not anyone I'm interested in."

"Okay," Betty said, "But, Arch, you know I don't expect you to have it all together, right?"

"And I don't," Archie replied, "I should have told you that I was having problems dealing with my parents splitting. I thought I was dealing until Veronica talked about what she was going through. It just hit me. My mom is halfway across the country. Yeah, she calls enough to check in, but she's not here. That's really hard."

"I can't even imagine," Betty shook her head, "I get it, somewhat. I heard the fighting, of course. So, I get Mary moving out. Sometimes you just can't stay with someone. I wish my parents would realize that. I don't get your mom just leaving town, and I'm sorry for that. I wish I understood better."

"I'm sorry you felt like I wasn't confiding in you," Archie stated, "You're my person, Betty. The one that I turn to for everything, and these past few days really ate me up. What's the phrase...you don't know what you've got until it's gone? Man, it really hurt having this distance between us."

"Arch, maybe we shouldn't try and not have distance," Betty said slowly, "Maybe this is happening for a reason."

"What are you trying to say?" Archie asked.

"Maybe we need to figure out who we are separate from being Betty and Archie," Betty felt her heart breaking as she spoke the words, but she knew if she was to join Cheryl in her quest to keep the town safe she would probably have to distance herself from everyone she cared about.

"No," Archie shook his head, "Betts, I've felt like I was losing my mind the last couple of days, and now you want to make it permanent? No way in hell."

"Not permanent," Betty stated, "Maybe we just need a bit more space to have our own interests and hobbies."

"We already do," Archie shook his head, "I don't agree to this, and I'm not letting it happen."

"Arch," Betty laid a hand on his leg, "What happens in a few years when we go away to school? What if we go to different colleges? How are we going to function without the other?"

"Betts, we're not codependent," Archie replied, "We're friends, best friends. There is nothing wrong with that."

"I'm not winning this, am I?" Betty shook her head.

"Not as long as I'm breathing," Archie said.

"I'm still going to find some new hobbies," Betty told him, "I might not have as much time for you as I used to. You have to be okay with that."

"I'll do my best," he kissed her forehead as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders again.