Cast

Cole Sprouse as Jughead Jones

Vanessa Morgan as Toni Topaz

Jordan Connor as Sweet Pea

Willa Holland as Hannah Pearson

Drew Ray Tanner as Fangs Fogarty

Camila Mendes as Veronica Lodge

KJ Apa as Archie Andrews

Madelaine Petsch as Cheryl Blossom

Charles Melton as Reggie Mantle

Lili Reinhart as Betty Cooper

Skeet Ulrich as FP Jones

Danielle Campbell as Emma Walker

Author's note

This one-shot is set in an alternate universe where Jughead didn't break up with Betty after she did the Serpent dance, Jughead and Toni never kissed, the Black Hood got Betty to choose his victims but didn't make her end her relationship with Jughead and her friendship with Veronica, Archie and Veronica didn't break up and Veronica didn't start dating Reggie, Alice, Polly, Cheryl, Kevin, Toni, Fangs, and Principal Weatherbee never joined the Farm, the Farm never kidnapped Betty, Toni, Cheryl, and Fangs were never kicked out of the Serpents, the Pretty Poisons don't exist, Toni and Cheryl didn't break up, Jughead and the rest of the Serpents didn't start playing Gryphons and Gargoyles, FP and Alice never dated or had an affair, the Stonewall Prep storyline never happened, and Principal Honey was never hired.

On the Heathers casting sheet, which you can find on Riverdale showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa's Twitter page, Sweet Pea wrote the initials NM, and Fangs wrote the initials FF. Based on that, we can assume Sweet Pea's first name starts with the letter N and his last name starts with the letter M and Fangs' first name and last name start with the letter F. I chose the name Nathan Montgomery for Sweet Pea and the name Francis Fogarty for Fangs.

Jughead Jones led Toni Topaz, Sweet Pea, Hannah Pearson, Fangs Fogarty, and the rest of the Southside Serpents through the doors of Riverdale High School. Sweet Pea gripped Hannah's hand tightly as they walked down the hallway. Toni and Fangs walked beside Sweet Pea and Hannah, glaring at anyone who looked at them the wrong way.

The Serpents stopped walking when they saw the table that Veronica Lodge, her boyfriend, Archie Andrews, and Kevin Keller were standing behind.

Veronica smiled. "Friends! On behalf of the students and faculty here at Riverdale High, welcome to your new school! To ease this transition, I've set up a registration desk, where you can get your locker assignments, class schedules, and a list of sports and extracurriculars. We encourage each and every one of you to drink deeply from the cup that is fair Riverdale."

"Stand down, Eva Perón!" Cheryl Blossom yelled, walking down the stairs, followed by Reggie Mantle and a group of girls in blue and gold cheerleading uniforms.

Veronica sighed and looked at Jughead before facing Cheryl.

"There's the school spirit I so fondly remember," Jughead said sarcastically.

"Cheryl." Veronica acknowledged, glaring at the redheaded girl. "No one invited Fascist Barbie to the party."

"Wrong, Veronica. No one invited Southside scum to our school." Cheryl said, crossing her arms over her chest.

The Serpents tensed.

"Listen up, ragamuffins!" Cheryl yelled.

"Ragamuffins? What kind of insult is that?" Hannah asked.

Hannah was tall and slender. Her long brown hair was parted in the middle and styled in loose curls. She was wearing an unzipped black leather jacket with the Southside Serpents symbol on the back, an unbuttoned long-sleeved green and white plaid flannel shirt over a white tank top, dark blue denim jeans, and black combat boots with black laces. She had on a light amount of black eyeliner, a light amount of black mascara, and soft brown eyeshadow. Her lip balm was a pretty peach colour. She had a double-headed snake tattoo on her left arm, but it couldn't be seen underneath her jacket. She didn't have any other tattoos besides her Serpent tattoo. She didn't have any scars or birthmarks. She didn't have any piercings.

Hannah was 16 years old. She joined the Serpents when she was 15. She did her Serpent dance to Warrant's song Cherry Pie. She lost her virginity to a guy her age one night at a party shortly after she joined the Serpents. They weren't romantically involved. It was just a hookup, nothing more. At some point, she and Sweet Pea realized they were attracted to one another and started dating.

Cheryl looked at Hannah with raised eyebrows and then started speaking again. "I will not allow Riverdale High's above average GPA to suffer because of classrooms that are overcrowded with underachievers, so please do us all a favour and find some other school to debase with your hard-scrabble ways." She looked the Serpents up and down with a fake smile on her cherry red lips and held her hands together in front of her.

"Why don't you come over here and say that to my face?" Toni asked angrily, moving towards Cheryl. Jughead, Sweet Pea, Hannah, and Fangs followed her, ready to fight.

Cheryl got in Toni's face. "Happily, Queen of the Buskers."

"She is just asking to get her ass kicked," Hannah muttered to Sweet Pea. She was about to lunge at Cheryl, but he grabbed her arm and pulled her back.

"Okay, guys, can we just put our differences aside and start over?" Archie stood in between Toni and Cheryl. Hannah's gaze went from being focused on Cheryl to being focused on him. "A clean slate?" He looked between Cheryl and the Serpents.

"You don't speak for the Bulldogs, Andrews, and need I remind you that these greaser snakes showed up at your place trying to kick your ass," Reggie said, giving Archie a pointed look.

"Happy to finish what we started." Sweet Pea threatened, shoving past Toni and moving towards Reggie. He stopped in his tracks when he felt Fangs and Jughead's arms hold him back.

Veronica stood in between Reggie and Sweet Pea, putting a hand on Sweet Pea's left arm. "I'm so over the toxic masculinity in this hallway right now," she said loudly, her voice full of annoyance.

"All right, that's enough pomp and circumstance! Everyone, get to class now!" Principal Weatherbee yelled.

Reggie backed off.

Veronica took her hand off of Sweet Pea's arm. He began to walk towards the staircase. Jughead shoved him, causing him to pick up the pace. He could make out the rustling of papers as he and the rest of the Serpents walked down the hallway.

"Stupid Northsiders," Sweet Pea grumbled.

"It's okay, babe. Everything will get better." Hannah said, rubbing Sweet Pea's arm and getting him to calm down. "And if it doesn't, we'll just kick their asses," she added. He laughed.

Hannah walked into the math classroom. Math was her last class of the day. Once the clock struck 3, she would be able to get on her motorcycle and go back to her trailer.

None of the other Serpents had math at this time of day besides Jughead, who was sitting next to a girl with fair skin, blue eyes, and long straight blonde hair tied up in a high ponytail wearing a white t-shirt, an unbuttoned pink cardigan, dark blue denim jeans, and beige ankle-length boots.

The girl was named Elizabeth Cooper. She was Jughead's girlfriend. Hannah met her at FP's retirement party. She was as sweet as apple pie and was one of the few Northsiders Hannah could stand to be around.

Hannah sat on the other side of Jughead and gave Betty a friendly smile. "Hey, Betty."

Betty smiled back. "Hey, Hannah."

The teacher wrote an equation on the whiteboard and explained it to the class. Hannah listened intently while writing in her notebook. Despite what people like Cheryl and Reggie may think, she was actually pretty smart and cared about getting an education.

The clock struck 3, and Hannah left the classroom and walked out to the parking lot. She got on her motorcycle and drove to her trailer.

Betty laid in her bed, cell phone in hand, browsing Instagram. The name Hannah Pearson showed up in the list of suggested followers. She tapped on Hannah's profile picture and checked out her profile. Hannah had 99 posts and 85 followers and was following 100 people. At the top of the page, there were pictures of Hannah, a picture of Hannah's black Honda CB550 motorcycle, and a picture of the outside of the Whyte Wyrm. She scrolled down the page and saw a close-up of the Serpent tattoo on Hannah's left arm, pictures of Hannah and Sweet Pea, and pictures of Hannah, Toni, and Fangs. She couldn't help but smile at how cute Hannah and Sweet Pea were together and how close Hannah and her friends were.

Betty hit the follow button. A few minutes later, she got a notification saying that Hannah had followed her.

A few weeks had passed since the Serpents transferred to Riverdale High. The Bulldogs and the Serpents had been in their fair share of fights, and Principal Weatherbee had banned the Serpents from wearing their leather jackets and showing their tattoos. Sweet Pea had to wear a turtleneck in order to cover his tattoo, much to the amusement of the rest of the Serpents.

Hannah was talking to Fangs in the student lounge. She stifled a laugh as Sweet Pea walked in. "You look great, babe."

Fangs turned around and burst into laughter.

Sweet Pea was wearing a white turtleneck underneath an unbuttoned blue and white plaid flannel shirt with long sleeves, dark blue denim jeans, and black combat boots with black laces.

"Shut the fuck up," Sweet Pea grumbled, making his way over to Hannah.

Hannah tried to conceal her smile. "It suits you."

Hannah was wearing a grey tank top underneath an unbuttoned red and grey plaid flannel shirt with long sleeves, dark blue denim jeans, and black ankle-length leather boots with silver studs on the buckles. Her long brown hair was styled in loose curls. She had on a light amount of black eyeliner, a light amount of black mascara, and soft brown eyeshadow. Her lip balm was a pretty peach colour.

Fangs smiled. "Yeah. It...Um…It brings out the colour of your eyes."

Sweet Pea shoved Fangs.

"It's really not that bad. I've seen Fangs wear much worse." Hannah said.

"Hey!" Fangs exclaimed, offended.

Hannah kissed Sweet Pea. "You would look good in anything, I promise."

"Thanks, but that doesn't make me feel any better." Sweet Pea said.

"Are you guys busy tonight?" Fangs asked.

Sweet Pea shook his head. "No."

"Do you want to go see Love, Simon at the Bijou with me?" Fangs asked.

"I was going to invite Toni, but she's too busy trying to get with Cheryl Bombshell." Fangs rolled his eyes.

"Sounds like fun. We'll be there." Hannah told Fangs.

That night, Sweet Pea, Hannah, and Fangs arrived at the Bijou in Sweet Pea's truck. Sweet Pea held Hannah's hand as they walked in and found their seats.

Fangs nudged Sweet Pea and Hannah. "Guys, look."

Sweet Pea and Hannah turned around.

Toni was sitting next to Cheryl. She made a flirtatious comment, causing Cheryl to blush.

Hannah smiled. "Aww, how cute!"

Cheryl and Toni became a couple a few weeks after their date.

Principal Weatherbee lifted the ban on Serpent jackets and Serpent tattoos, and the Serpents started wearing their jackets to school again.

Betty and Jughead lost their virginity to each other.

Hannah stood beside Sweet Pea, laughing at something stupid he had said. Fangs was on the other side of him. Jughead was in front of them. She looked around the park and saw Cheryl standing next to Toni and laughing. She smiled.

Jughead's father, FP Jones, whistled, getting the attention of the Serpents.

"Listen up, now! All right, listen up!" FP yelled.

"Some 60 years ago, the very first Serpent meeting took place on these same riverbanks. Now, it makes sense that this is where we gather now, where I…Where I say my goodbye. Jughead, would you step up here, son?" FP asked.

The crowd started muttering.

"What the fuck is going on?" Hannah whispered to Sweet Pea.

Hannah was wearing her black leather jacket with the Southside Serpents symbol on the back, an unbuttoned long-sleeved blue and black plaid flannel shirt over a black tank top, dark blue denim jeans, and black ankle-length leather boots with silver studs on the buckles. She had on a light amount of black eyeliner, a light amount of black mascara, and soft brown eyeshadow. Her lip balm was a pretty peach colour. Her hair was straight.

"I have no idea. To be honest, I thought we came here to get drunk and celebrate how far we've come," Sweet Pea said.

Hannah laughed.

Jughead walked towards FP.

"What are you doing?" Jughead mumbled.

"What I should have done a long time ago," FP muttered.

"I'm retiring from the Serpents." FP announced. The muttering got louder. "For real this time," he added.

FP put an arm around Jughead's shoulder. "Now, my boy has never stopped fighting for this crew. Hell, he almost died for it." He turned to face his son. "That's why I'm giving you the mantle."

The crowd cheered. Sweet Pea hit Fangs, making him wince.

"And now, as your first official duty as Serpent King…" FP nodded to Toni, who made her way towards FP and Jughead and handed FP a red leather jacket with the Southside Serpents symbol on the back.

"I think you know what to do with this." FP handed the jacket to his son. Jughead smiled.

"All right, all right," Jughead muttered. "All I can say is…I love you, Dad. And the Serpents will not die out. Not on my watch."

The crowd cheered.

Cheryl walked towards Jughead, and they smiled at each other as he gave her the red leather jacket.

"Welcome to the Serpents, Cheryl," Hannah said.

Cheryl smiled at Hannah before making her way back to Toni and kissing her.

"One more thing." Jughead told the Serpents.

"We have a new Serpent Queen." Jughead pulled out his cell phone and called Betty.

Fangs started dating a girl named Emma Walker.

Emma was a Northsider. She was on the cheerleading squad with Betty, Veronica, Cheryl, and Toni. There were no other Serpents on the cheerleading squad besides Toni.

Jughead finished writing Anatomy of a Murder, his book on Jason Blossom's death and the effect it had on the people of Riverdale. It made it to the top of the New York Times Best Seller list.

After their lunch date at Pop's, Sweet Pea and Hannah went back to his trailer.

Hannah walked into Sweet Pea's bedroom. Sweet Pea followed her. He shut the door.

Hannah took off her black combat boots, dark blue denim jeans, black t-shirt, and Serpent jacket, leaving her in just her black lingerie.

Sweet Pea left a trail of kisses on the side of Hannah's neck, rubbing his hands up and down her legs. Hannah groaned in pleasure, taking off Sweet Pea's clothes, leaving him in just his boxers.

Hannah straddled Sweet Pea's body as they laid on top of the bed. She kissed down his body, creeping closer to his boxers. Sweet Pea flipped them over so that he was on top. The two kissed each other all over as they made love.

Sweet Pea and Hannah collapsed on the bed next to each other.

"You up for round 2?" Sweet Pea asked.

Hannah rolled on top of Sweet Pea. "Definitely."

In junior year, Hal and Alice got divorced, Emma and Fangs lost their virginity to each other, Hiram and Hermione got divorced, FP became the sheriff of Riverdale, Veronica opened a speakeasy in the basement of Pop's, Cheryl lost her virginity to Toni, Hal and Hiram were sentenced to life in prison, Alice and FP's son, Charles Smith, shut down the Farm, Hermione got people to stop playing Gryphons and Gargoyles, burned every single copy of the player's handbook, and arrested the Gargoyle Gang, Gladys and Jellybean moved back to Toledo, Fangs' mother succumbed to her illness, Toni's grandfather died of old age, and Pop Tate died of old age.

After the fall of the Gargoyle Gang, a new gang arrived in Riverdale. They were called the Scorpions. Each member wore a black leather jacket with a big red scorpion on the back. They dealt drugs and street raced for sport, just like the Ghoulies had.

The Serpents and the Scorpions were enemies.

At the beginning of senior year, Fred died in a hit-and-run accident after stopping alongside the road to help a stranded motorist.

Friday, June 21, 2019

It was the night of the senior prom at Riverdale High.

Archie was going with Veronica. Jughead was going with Betty. Toni was going with Cheryl. Sweet Pea was going with Hannah. Fangs was going with Emma.

Veronica, Betty, Cheryl, Hannah, and Emma had gotten ready for the dance at Betty's house.

The limo Veronica had rented pulled into Betty's driveway.

Archie, Jughead, Toni, Sweet Pea, and Fangs stepped out of the limo and stood in the driveway, waiting for Veronica, Betty, Cheryl, Hannah, and Emma to step out of the house.

Archie was wearing a black suit, a white dress shirt, a black necktie, and black dress shoes with black laces.

Jughead was wearing a black suit, a white dress shirt, a black necktie, and black dress shoes with black laces. His beanie rested on top of his head.

Toni was wearing black high-heeled sandals and a strapless black dress with a floor-length skirt. The sweetheart neckline showed a hint of cleavage. Her long brown hair with pink highlights was styled in loose curls. The curls were pushed out of her face but still left to fall down her back. She had on a light amount of black eyeliner, a light amount of black mascara, and soft brown eyeshadow. Her lip balm was a light shade of berry pink.

Sweet Pea was wearing a black suit, a white dress shirt, a black necktie, and black dress shoes with black laces. The first two buttons of his shirt were undone. His Serpent tattoo was on full display.

Fangs was wearing a black suit, a white dress shirt, a black necktie, and black dress shoes with black laces.

Archie's jaw dropped when he saw Veronica walking towards him. "Wow. You look stunning."

Veronica was wearing navy blue high-heeled sandals and a navy blue floor-length dress. It was strapless and had a sweetheart neckline. The neckline showed a hint of cleavage. The top was folded pieces of soft fabric, and the bottom billowed when she walked, giving her the appearance that she was flying. A small silver chain with a tiny diamond hung low on her chest. Her shoulder-length wavy black hair was in an elegant updo, leaving her neck bare. Her brown eyes were framed by long dark lashes, her lips were plum and shiny, and her cheeks were rosy.

Veronica smiled and gave Archie a peck on the lips. "Thank you, Archie."

Archie walked towards the limo. Veronica walked beside him. He held the door open and took her by the hand, helping her get in the backseat.

Jughead's jaw dropped when he saw Betty walking towards him. "Wow. You look incredible."

Betty was wearing pale pink high-heeled sandals and a pale pink dress with a floor-length skirt and a sweetheart neckline that turned into off-the-shoulder sleeves. The neckline showed a hint of cleavage. A small silver chain with a tiny diamond hung low on her chest. Her long blonde hair was styled in barrel curls. The curls were pushed out of her face but still left to fall down her back. She had on a light amount of black eyeliner, a light amount of black mascara, soft pink eyeshadow, and nude lip gloss.

Betty smiled. "Thank you, Jughead."

Jughead walked towards the limo. Betty walked beside him. He held the door open and took her by the hand, helping her get in the backseat.

Toni's jaw dropped when she saw Cheryl walking towards her. "Wow. You look beautiful."

Cheryl was wearing red high-heeled sandals and a red dress with spaghetti straps, a v-neck, and a floor-length skirt with a slit in the right side that reached the middle of the thigh and revealed her right leg. The neckline showed a hint of cleavage. A small silver chain with a tiny diamond hung low on her chest. Her long red hair was styled in barrel curls. The curls were pushed out of her face but still left to fall down her back. She had on a light amount of black eyeliner, a light amount of black mascara, and soft pink eyeshadow. Her lips were cherry red.

Cheryl smiled and gave Toni a peck on the lips. "Thank you, Toni."

Toni and Cheryl walked towards the limo. Toni held the door open and took her by the hand, helping her get in the backseat.

When Sweet Pea saw Hannah walking towards him, his jaw dropped. "Wow. You look amazing."

Hannah was wearing green high-heeled sandals and a green dress with a v-neck, two spaghetti straps criss-crossing over the open back, and a floor-length skirt. The neckline showed a hint of cleavage. The sides of the dress were cut out, exposing a teasing fraction of skin. Her Serpent tattoo was on full display. Her long brown hair was styled in loose curls. The curls were pushed out of her face but still left to fall down her back. She had on a light amount of black eyeliner, a light amount of black mascara, and soft brown eyeshadow. Her lip balm was a pretty peach colour.

"You don't look so bad yourself," Hannah said.

"Thanks," Sweet Pea said.

Sweet Pea walked towards the limo. Hannah walked beside him. He held the door open and took her by the hand, helping her get in the backseat.

When Fangs saw Emma walking towards him, his jaw dropped. "Wow. You look gorgeous."

Emma was tall and slender with fair skin and blue eyes. She was wearing lavender high-heeled sandals and a strapless lavender dress with a sweetheart neckline, an open back, and a floor-length skirt that flared at the hips with a small train. The neckline showed a hint of cleavage. Her long brown hair was styled in barrel curls. The curls were pushed out of her face but still left to fall down her back. She had on a light amount of black eyeliner, a light amount of black mascara, and soft pink eyeshadow. Her lip balm was a pretty coral pink colour.

Emma smiled and gave Fangs a peck on the lips. "Thanks, babe."

Fangs walked towards the limo. Emma walked beside him. He held the door open and took her by the hand, helping her get in the backseat.

The limo drove down the road.

Wednesday, June 26, 2019

It was graduation day.

The ceremony was being held in the gym at Riverdale High. The graduates sat in the first row. They were clad in blue graduation gowns and blue graduation caps with gold tassels. The guests sat a little farther back.

Betty was the valedictorian. She walked up to the podium and gave a speech.

"Have you ever read a good book or a good story, and when you're on the final chapter and the final page, you feel a sadness you can't explain?"

"Sometimes, if you're lucky, the story or book will have an epilogue or a sequel. I stand here before you, my fellow graduates, to tell you that although this chapter in our lives has ended, the story is far from over."

"We are all still so young. We have time to fall in and out of love and to make mistakes. We still have the opportunity to fail and succeed and to change our minds like we change our clothes. There are tears of sadness running down some of your faces. Why? This isn't the end. This is the beginning of something amazing."

"For some of you, maybe it's college. Maybe it's your dream job. Maybe it's getting married and starting a family. Or maybe it's finally accepting who you are and not being afraid of who you could turn out to be."

"Just promise me one thing. Don't forget what these past few years have brought to your life. Don't forget about the people that taught you all about friendship and bravery and courage. Don't forget about the smiles and frowns, the laughter and tears, and the break ups and make ups. Don't run from your mistakes. Learn from them and embrace them. I wish you all the happiness in the world. I can't think of a group of people that deserve it more."

Thunderous applause followed Betty's speech.

Betty returned to her seat.

Principal Weatherbee announced that diplomas were going to be handed out. He started calling names.

"Archibald Andrews."

Archie made his way towards the stage. He shook hands with Principal Weatherbee and the superintendent of the school board before taking his diploma back to his seat.

A few more names were called.

"Cheryl Blossom."

Cheryl made her way towards the stage. She shook hands with Principal Weatherbee and the superintendent of the school board before taking her diploma back to her seat.

A few more names were called.

"Elizabeth Cooper."

Betty made her way towards the stage. She shook hands with Principal Weatherbee and the superintendent of the school board before taking her diploma back to her seat.

A few more names were called.

"Francis Fogarty."

Fangs made his way towards the stage. He shook hands with Principal Weatherbee and the superintendent of the school board before taking his diploma back to his seat.

A few more names were called.

"Forsythe Pendleton Jones III."

Jughead made his way towards the stage. He shook hands with Principal Weatherbee and the superintendent of the school board before taking his diploma back to his seat.

A few more names were called.

"Veronica Lodge."

Veronica made her way towards the stage. She shook hands with Principal Weatherbee and the superintendent of the school board before taking her diploma back to her seat.

A few more names were called.

"Nathan Montgomery."

Sweet Pea made his way towards the stage. He shook hands with Principal Weatherbee and the superintendent of the school board before taking his diploma back to his seat.

A few more names were called.

"Hannah Pearson."

Hannah made her way towards the stage. She shook hands with Principal Weatherbee and the superintendent of the school board before taking her diploma back to her seat.

A few more names were called.

"Antoinette Topaz."

Toni made her way towards the stage. She shook hands with Principal Weatherbee and the superintendent of the school board before taking her diploma back to her seat.

A few more names were called.

"Emma Walker."

Emma was the last to graduate. She made her way towards the stage. She shook hands with Principal Weatherbee and the superintendent of the school board before taking her diploma back to her seat.

Principal Weatherbee addressed the crowd. "Everyone, please rise."

The crowd stood up.

Principal Weatherbee turned to the graduates and said, "Graduates, please move your tassels from right to left."

The graduates did as they were told.

"Congratulations to the Riverdale High School class of 2019!" Principal Weatherbee exclaimed.

The graduates threw their caps in the air.

THE END