Anarchist | Riverdale

Fortune and Men's Eyes

We've all felt it. On the first day of a new school year. Butterflies in the stomach. We've all looked around and wondered, where am I gonna fit in here? Who am I gonna sit with at lunch? Will I even make it to lunch? Multiply that by a thousand, and that's how Archie Andrews felt as he was being processed at the Leopold and Loeb Juvenile Detention Center.

"I came as soon as I could, Betty are you alright?" Ellie asks walking through the Cooper house front door the next morning. Polly tried calling her all last night about Betty having a seizure, but she was a busy with what seems like the start of another murder investigation for her and her brother and turned her phone off as soon as she got home.
"Dr Patel kept Betty overnight for observation, but it was just a precaution." Alice answers before Betty could. Ellie sits by her sister's side and comforts her, placing an arm on her back. Sweet Pea stood a little awkwardly at the end of the island, hands in pockets.
"Well did he say what caused the seizure?" Ellie asks.
"They ran tests, but he suspects it's just good old-fashioned stress." Alice replies, grabbing some glasses for some orange juice for everyone.
"Oh, Betty. I was up all night with the twins." Polly says. We were so worried about you."
"You were worried about me?" Betty asks, looking confused. "What about Juniper and Dagwood are they alright?"
" Okay, here we go again." Alice sighs and Ellie looks to her mother for any indication of what Betty is talking about.
"Juniper and Dagwood are napping. They're fine." Polly smiles, comforting her sister. "Why wouldn't they be?"
"Um, because I saw you and Mom throw the twins into a giant bonfire last night." Betty says and Ellie is starting to look and feel more confused than ever.
"Alright, that's enough, the only thing burning last night was the hibachi in the backyard. We were making skewers with a few friends." Alice tells her clearly still deluded daughter.
"From the farm?" Betty asks, taking a sip of orange juice.
"Yeah, as a matter of fact."
"You must've just had a hallucination while you had the seizure." Ellie tries to reassure her sister.
Betty shakes her head. "It was so real."
"Sweetheart." Alice begins but before she could carry on Jughead calls Betty and she walks off to answer.
"Ellie, come on. Jughead wants us." Betty comes back a few minutes later. Alice tries to argue about Betty leaving the house but she is set in stone that she is going to see Jug today and is not going to tell him about the seizure.

"My God, Dilton is dead?" Betty exclaims when Jughead explains what happened to the two of them last night.
"Yeah." He sighs. "And Ben from the drive-in? He's barley hanging on."
"Doctors don't know when, or if, he's even gonna wake up. Sheriff Minetta asked us to keep the whole thing hush-hush for the families' sake but, Betty, what we saw was.." Ellie says but can't find the right words to say.
"What, Ells." Betty encourages her to keep going.
"It was like a ritual site." Jughead jumps in for her. Their lips were blue. There were chalices, that were filled with poison or something. Animal bones were in a circle. The three had markings on it. There was a winged totem, with a skull and branches."
"So was it a murder or a suicide pact gone wrong?" Betty asks, sitting herself up on a desk.
"No idea. I saw Ben and Dilton. They were playing this weird game at Pop's. Dilton was raving about someone called the Gargoyle King. I was also thinking that all three of us could investigate this together, for old times' sake. Or at least until we catch a new lead with Archie's case." Ellie suggests.
"I like that idea." Betty smiles. "I'll try to see if Dr Curdle can get us into the coroner's office."
"Perfect." Ellie smiles back, leaning into Sweet Pea, just to be close to him.

"Dr Curdle?" Betty asks, letting herself into the office after knocking.
An unfamiliar face turns round and all the teens furrow their eyebrows in confusion. "Oh. You're not--."
"I'm his son." The man clears up. "We spoke over the phone earlier. I took over after my father passed away."
"Oh, I'm sorry." Betty replies.
"Do you have the money?" Dr Curdle Jr asks.
Betty hands him over an envelope with cash inside and the coroner checks that it's the agreed amount.
"The toxicology report revealed lethal level of cyanide in Mr Doiley's blood. I surmise the surviving boy didn't drink enough to finish the job." Dr Curdle informs the three.
"Dr Curdle, if you had to guess, murder or suicide?" Ellie asks.
"Well the body did show signs of stress." The coroner replies, pulling back the sheet to reveal Dilton's back. "Three symbols carved out on his back. Runic, I'd say."
"Would you mind if I got a shot of this?" Jughead asks and Dr Curdle nods, approving.
"What caused, uh, the blue lips?" Betty asks as Jughead snaps a photo.
"the cyanide was mixed into a sugary drink called Fresh-Aid. Blueberry flavoured." Curdle informs the teens. "There's something dimly familiar about this. But you asked me before if I thought it was a murder, or suicide. I'm not sure what it is, but whatever it is, it's darker than what happened to Jason Blossom, or what the Black Hood did. No, what we're looking at here , I believe, is the true face of evil."
Betty, Ellie and Jughead share a concerned look. Ellie sighs, she thought this was all over, but it just looks like it's starting again, and now she's involved, she must see it through, even if only for her own satisfaction.