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h-eckers · 8 years ago

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Shed Your Skin

Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4

A/N: I am shamelessly in love with this story line, even though the writing may not be perfect and I’m really nervous about it. There is a part 2 already posted. This was always designed specifically to be multi-part, I’ll explain that more in the note on part 2. No spoilers.

P. S. This isn’t a Bughead fic by any means so I didn’t tag it as such (I’m sorry, guys), but the pairing is included in part

Summary: Being a newly inducted Serpent comes with unforseen benefits for Riverdale’s most poetic soul, like cool jackets and … personal bodyguards???

Word Count: 3,226

Warnings: gang activity, swearing, drug mentions, (Bughead angst, if that counts as a warning.)

Serpent sympathizers.

That’s what the Southside called them, and it applied to those in the area who weren’t Serpents themselves. These were the people who had no problem inhabiting the same space as a notorious gang, some had ties or dealings to members, others simply chose to approve because it did nothing to bother them. What turned out to be an unexpected blessing to Riverdale’s resident writer, was the family he was placed with on the Southside were exactly that, a family who openly referred to themselves as “friends of the Serpents.” When Jughead had confessed his connection to the gang, mentioning his father’s home left empty, the family under whose care he stayed simply allowed him to do what he pleased as long as he kept them out of it. In mere moments he had gained a freedom he was unused to, and yet one that so deeply comforted him.

This freedom is precisely what led Jughead to be sitting on the couch in his father’s currently abandoned home, aimlessly flicking through channels to find a suitable background noise for his writing. After all, there was much to update in his book, many a mystery solved and waiting to be immortalized with words against a page. The night was cold, but the sanctity of familiar walls, and the old heater in the corner, coated with dust, provided a gentle and welcoming warmth as well as an obvious fire hazard. The light from the kitchen twisted and stretched itself, struggling to illuminate much past the room it was in, only lending a soft and muted glow to the living room where the young writer had found comfort, lost in his own words, alone in his home for the first time in years that felt like centuries. For a moment, he felt peace.

The problem with the current state of Riverdale, however, meant that peace was short lived, and Jughead’s serenity was destroyed with a loud and repetitive banging on the front door in place of a polite knock. He stopped for a moment, contemplating whether he should answer it or leave it and let them believe there was no one here, he decided on the later. Even from their aggression towards his front door he could tell it wasn’t a person he’d enjoy speaking to and right now, he was comfortable in being alone. So he didn’t move from where he was, letting the demanding pounding on his front door die down, hoping to fade back into contentment, but again his wish for that was completely shattered when he heard the unmistakable sound of a key being put into the lock. Standing quickly, he turned to the door expecting the only person he could think of who would have keys apart from himself, when his eyes met that of the newly arrived body, just through the door, he sighed a heavy sigh.

“Hey, dude.” The unfamiliar girl smiled, shutting the door and shoving her keys back inside the pocket of her dark jeans, “I figured you might be here.”

“I’m sorry, have we met?” Jughead stumbled slightly, still caught up in the shock of the intrusion of a stranger.

“Nah, not yet, but I’m Y/N.” She grinned, holding out her hand for him, Jughead hesitated upon seeing the dirt and grease there. She chuckled, retracting her hand to wipe it against her leg, avoiding the leather on her jacket “Oh, shit, sorry, I was working on the bikes right before I came out here.”

“I’m Jughead…” His voice was strong, and yet carried a clear tone of caution, which one would expect in a situation such as this one, “and why are you here?”

“I know who you are, dude, your daddy talks about you all the time, I’ve seen you around. He actually gave me the keys to this place when I went to see him today… well, he asked the sheriff to give me the keys, same thing though really.” She explained causally, shrugging off the question and wandering into the kitchen as though the home was hers.

“Why?” Jughead asked, already growing impatient with her, perhaps because of her demeanour or maybe it was the fact that she seemed to know more about the situation with his father than he did. She walked over to the sink and started cleaning her hands, scrubbing the grease away with the dish soap left neglected on the counter, his eyes followed her, staring at her back when she turned to the sink, only then did he notice the Serpent embroidery across the back of her jacket, hold against the black and a perfect explanation of how she was acted.

“Us Serpents aren’t exactly the favourites right now, there’s been target attacks on us now and I’m here to house sit for the boss kinda, mainly I’m here because he said you would be.” Y/N shrugged, looking around for a clean dish towel and shuffling through drawers until she found something to dry her hands. “You’re one of us now, right? We look out for our own.”

There was a silence that crept up there, as Jughead’s eyes drifted back to the jacket they’d given him, sling over the back of a chair, on display. “I hadn’t really thought about it.” He admitted absently, his eyes moving back to hers, immediately he saw the worry on her face, as though she was looking at a child lost in a store, with no sense of direction.

“It’s no problem,” she said quickly, noticing the hesitance in him and offering her most gentle smile, “even if you decide you don’t want to be, your daddy’s for you a life time pass to protection.”

He didn’t say anything, there wasn’t much to say. In all honesty, he had no doubt that she could protect him, She was scruffy, not the cleanest but he could only assume that was the fault of working under old bikes before she arrived, and there were tattoos showing from under the cuffs of her jacket even though she looked about his age, but her eyes made her seem older, there was no doubt she had seen things, things that age a person, things that change them. “Look, uhm, I know it’s bit weird but do you mind if I shower real quick?”

“Yeah, yeah, just through there.” He mumbled, pointing in the direction of the bathroom.

“I know.” She smiled again, partially awkwardly but overall it seemed apologetic, she scurried away to get clean.

It was an unsettling feeling, despite everything, Jughead had always been resolute in how he felt. He knew what he wanted without a doubt at any time and yet he sat across the room, staring at the jacket he was gifted, thinking back to his short experience at South side high, and thinking about Betty, and Archie, and all he’d left in Riverdale and for the first time in as long as he could remember, he was completely unsure.

The truth was, the Serpents we’re beginning to look better and better as an option for him, they had welcomed him with open arms like no one ever had, despite how different he’d assume himself from them. This girl, though abrasive, seemed kind and open, she hadn’t tried to lie to him, and she’d accepted him readily as though they’d known each other for years, a nicer treatment than he’d received from some of his closest friends in the recent past. It was a battle raging in his head between what seemed right and what felt right, and at the moment the feeling was what he was chasing.

The thoughts he had found himself consumed by all vanished at one with a gentle hand on his shoulder, he looked up at her, fresh faced, wet hair tousled about her cheeks in wild waves, and she was wearing one of his dads old shirts tucked into her jeans. “You alright? I came out like fifteen minutes ago and you’ve just been staring at that jacket.”

“Thinking.” He said with a tight smile, watching as she retracted her hand and pulled on her jacket again, falling onto the couch with a soft ‘oomph’.

“Y'know, you don’t have to make up your mind straight away. It’s okay.” Her smile was genuine, gentle and purposeful, and he believed her entirely.

“You’re not really what I expected, considering you’re a member of a notorious gang.” He chuckled softly, leaning back in his chair. She raised her eyebrow at his sudden attitude change, but chose not to question it yet for fear of scaring it away.

“What?” She grinned, “Dirty, scruffy, bike mechanic who almost busts down the door before using the key doesn’t work for you?” She mumbled, grabbing a cushion and hugging it to her stomach. There was something endearing about her, she was honest, and for so long living in a town with so many lies, and where everyone seemed to try to be someone they weren’t, it was refreshing to say the least.

“I guess you have a point, but in any case it suits you.” He said, her cheeks burned slightly and she couldn’t help the small smile that decorated her lips for a moment as she tilted her head, never breaking eye contact with him.

“Your dad told me about how charming you were, said we’d get along. Even once said he thought we’d do good for each other.” She hummed softly, and he nodded, “You’ve definitely charmed me, Jug. I hope he was right about the rest of it.”

“I think he could have been.” Jug admitted, and perhaps it was too soon to say such a thing but it wasn’t as though it was a lie.

Y/N opened her mouth to reply, when there was a knock at the door again. A normal knock this time as opposed to the vicious barrage against the door the girl in front of him had inflicted not long ago. Jughead looked to her for an answer and she simply shrugged, “We don’t knock like that.” She smirked and he could only laugh as he got up to answer the door.

“Hey, Juggie, you didn’t answer any of my texts. I figured I’d come and check you were okay.” Her voice was already laced with worry, or anger, or possibly a cocktail of the two as she looked up at him. Jughead cleared his throat.

“Sorry, I guess I just got distracted.” He sighed, smiling for her and a small smile is what he got in return, “I am sorry, you know I wouldn’t ignore you intentionally.”

“I know, I was just worried, especially when I called your host parents and they said you weren’t there.” The concern was clear, he felt it in his soul and immediately felt the guilt that came with knowing he’d upset her. “I figured you’d be here.”

“Uh, do you want to come in?” He asked after a moment, things seemed tense, he’d been living on the south Side for just under a week now and he’d seen or spoken to her every single day but the way they interacted had changed. Things seemed stilted when they spoke, their kisses grew more chaste and empty, and he was aware that it was all him. She hadn’t changed but in the space of a few days, he had, in ways he hadn’t even fully realised for himself yet.

“Of course.” She smiled softly, moving carefully past him to wander inside, all of a sudden a fabricated image of Y/N flashed up in his mind, of her shoving past him ungracefully to get inside. For some reason, that made him grin.

Y/N had become entirely absorbed in a late night re-run of Friends, focusing on the show as a way to tune out the conversation she wasn’t a part of, when Betty wandered in and saw her, she stopped, confused. After a moment of being ignored by the freshly showered girl on her boyfriend’s couch, Betty cleared her throat, as politely as possible given the situation. Her attention was pulled away from the screen and towards the blonde in the living room. “Oh, hi!” She said happily, muting the TV to give the newly arrived guest her full attention, Betty wasn’t in the same place. She turned to Jughead.

“Who’s this?” She asked, completely ignoring the girl herself. Y/N didn’t appreciate that.

“My name is Y/N, and I’m perfectly capable of introducing myself.” Her expression and tone didn’t change from that energetic excitement, and yet there was something different, something sarcastic, something threatening slipping out with her words. Betty blinked at her, eyes going wide.

“Sorry,” She stammered slightly, “I’m Betty.” The other girls face lit up again immediately.

“Oh! You wrote that article about us right?” Y/N queried, “Thanks for that, sucks to hear what they did to your locker though, m’sure we’ll get ‘em soon enough though. You don’t have to worry for much longer.” She winked playfully, somehow making the incredibly ominous statement seem light hearted.

“You’re a serpent.” It wasn’t a question, nor was it something Betty appreciated apparently, she turned back to Jughead. “You know you can stay at my house if you need to, Jug.”

“I know, but it’s okay here.” He chuckled, as the blonde rested her hand on his arm, concern written across her face, “Really, everything’s fine.”

“Yeah, I’m just housesitting, body guarding.” Y/N tried to joke, perhaps ease some of the awkwardness she felt, it didn’t work, especially when Betty ignored her.

“Jug…” She said softly, like urging. Pushing him to say something else, to leave with her.

“Betty, every thing’s under control.” He said again, his brow furrowing.

“Okay,” She said tightly, obviously unimpressed with the decision, “well can I at least get that Blue and Gold stuff from you?”

“Of course. It’s in my room.” He mumbled, looking towards Y/N for a second, an indiscernible look in his eyes, trying to convey something Y/N couldn’t decipher, but whatever it was, it was near to worry. He turned his back hesitantly and walked into the next room. Y/N smiled.

“Yeah, so I’m just here to house sit while FP’s otherwise occupi-” She was cut off, Betty’s voice, low and quiet intersecting with her light-hearted attempt to make conversation.

“He’s not one of you. He belongs in Riverdale, with his friends.” Betty dragged out the last word, as though rubbing in some scathing insult like Y/N had been Jughead’s friend for ten years and not ten minutes. Y/N’s expression dropped slightly, not into anger but into a certain smugness, a serpentine smirk painting her soft lips.

“I think that’s for him to decide, don’t you?” She asked, that threat in her voice simultaneously drawing Betty to respond and urging her to run.

“He has decided.” She said, her strength of composure never wavering externally, though inside her heart quaked with an uncertainness. Y/N stepped forward menacingly, only an inch taller than the other girl and yet towering above her head.

“Maybe he has, but I don’t know if it’s what you think.” Y/N hummed, her tone close to sultry though it was only meant to scare the blonde girl before her, and it did, oh it did. “After all, you may have written a cute little article for his daddy, but I’ve been riding with FP since I was knee high. You could write a full trilogy and id still win by miles, sweetness.” She spat, her words dripping with venom that only a serpent could produce.

“That doesn’t matter,” Betty swallowed, a darkness coming into her eyes that made Y/N grin as the other’ hands clenched, nails to palm in violent collision, “you don’t get to win that easily. FP and Jughead are different people.”

“True,” Y/N shrugged, stepping back, “but who says they can’t grow to be closer. Bond over a pool table at the Whyte Wyrm?”

“Jughead would never. That’s not who he is.” Betty practically growled, only eliciting a chuckle from the other girl who simply fell back onto the couch, staring Betty down with narrowed eyes.

“Didn’t anyone ever tell you that snakes shed their old skin, princess?” She smiled. Betty opened her mouth to speak, interrupted only seconds before implosion by Jughead re-entering the room. The tension hit him like a truck, and he saw his girlfriend clutching her own hands, glaring at the other girl on his couch who had gone back to watching the TV as though nothing had transpired.

“Is everything okay?” HE asked, hesitant as to the response, Y/N didn’t respond, Betty turned to him with eyes aflame.

“I need to talk to you,” She growled softly, “alone.”

Jughead followed her outside. Y/N stayed put and listened, muting the TV again and sitting back on the couch to listen to the blondes hysterics, smirking to herself at Betty’s colourful description of her, terrible words falling from her innocent lips in vitriol of the she serpent. None of her words caused any injury, it’s not as though she hadn’t been called worse before, never though, had it been this entertaining. She listened to them argue for what felt like hours, noticing Jughead’s words in her defence despite their recent meeting, the argument had turned from her quickly though, to the decision Jughead was to make about his future, about where he was to belong. Eventually their voices faded into non-existence, with tense endings, she listened to Betty leave and waited while Jughead stayed outside for a few moments, gathering his thoughts she could only assume. During that time, she raised the volume on the TV again, though her attention stayed singularly on him.

When the door opened and he walked back into the room, Y/N said nothing. He said nothing. At first the two of them stayed locked in a mutual silence as he sat and rubbed his face, the frustration fading with each long breath he took. “She doesn’t like me.” Y/N finally spoke up, though her eyes stayed on the screen.

“I know.” He sighed, leaning back in the chair he sat in, though his eyes raked her form though searching for something he needed to find, as though she wore the answer on her body and maybe she did. Y/N rose from her seat, rolling her shoulders and grabbing the jacket they’d gifted Jughead from the back of the chair it laid on, walking over to him and holding it out to him in offer.

“It’s still yours if you want it.” She said seriously, there was something in her eyes he trusted and even more there that he was terrified of.

“I could lose her.” He said, as though asking for something. Some clarification or answer of the million questions racing through his mind at full speed.

“I’m not forcing you.”

There was a moment of quiet, and he stood to face her, stepping forward and grabbing the jacket still in her hands and they stayed for a moment, with locked eyes in wait, and locked fingers on leather. “We’re together?” he asked, and she knew exactly what he meant, it wasn’t about the two of them. It was about a family, about stepping into a world he knew nothing of.

“Ride or die, Jones.”

And he took it.

And he put it on.

And everything changed.

Jughead tags: @princessjughead @unicornqueen05 @andforthecoating @mrs-fangirl @aselfishllama

Everything tags: @gryffndor @itsjaynebird @vanessa-sanch-blog @lost-in-wonderland-x @annoyingsibling @bex09

#riverdale #riverdale imagine #riverdale fic #jughead #jughead fic #jughead imagine #jughead jones #jughead jones fic #jughead jones imagine #jughead x reader #jughead jones x reader #serpent!jughead #serpent!jughead x reader #serpent!jughead imagine #serpent!jughead fic

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