Walk A Mile & Even Further [Part II] (Patreon)

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It had been a full seven days and Archie Andrews was still struggling to adapt to the situation he had unwittingly put himself in. He had never anticipated that confiding in his guidance counsellor that he wished he and his father understood each other better would lead them to switch bodies but it had happened and with the counsellor vanishing into thin air, there was no easy way to correct things. In many ways Archie was still trying to get his head around what happened because it simply didn’t make sense. 

Perhaps the most infuriating part of the whole ordeal though was his father didn’t seem to have any idea he wasn’t in the correct body. He acted as if he was the high school football star with a passion for music, rather than the overbearing dad who refused to let his son follow his passions. Previously Archie had been infuriated by the differences between himself and his father but now he found himself feeling just as angry about the total opposite.

Finishing up another day in the mechanics shop that his father owned, Archie was utterly exhausted. The older body he currently - and hopefully only temporarily - owned didn’t quite have as much energy as he was used to and he found himself relying on coffee to make it through the long days. It wasn’t just the craving for caffeine that he seemed to inherit from his father once he had been thrust into Fred’s body, but also some of his personality traits. He couldn’t help but roll his eyes or tut in disappointment whenever he caught his father - not his son, he made a point to remind himself - acting like a fool as teenagers often did. It was alarming to say the least but Archie wasn’t sure what he could do about it.

With Mr Cassius, the school counsellor, gone - and apparently never even existing in the first place - Archie didn’t even know where to start. He had been the man responsible for switching the redheaded jock and his father, using unknown magics that Archie himself had no idea how to access. 

I can’t believe I’m thinking about magic and being completely serious about it, he thought to himself as he raised his coffee mug to his lips. He could hear the faint sounds of his father playing the guitar upstairs and was surprised by how much it annoyed him. Archie wanted nothing more than to be himself again and play his music but he had no idea if that would even be a possibility.

As each day passed by, Archie’s determination to return to his body wavered ever so slightly. He was dealing with impossibilities and was more than a little out of his depth but he didn’t want to give up hope. The whole thing would be easier if he had his father helping to guide him but considering the older man now believed he was Archie Andrews that was out of the question. 

Archie would have to do everything solo and the only thing he could even think to do was turn to magic. If magic had gotten them into this mess then it had to be able to fix it, right?

Had it not been for the bizarre situation he found himself in, Archie would never have known that Riverdale has its very own magic store. It was tucked away on a small side-street in the middle of the town and most people seemed to walk by without even noticing it. Archie was on a mission though and he knew that if anybody or anything in Riverdale could help him fix the situation with his father then it was located inside that store.

“How can I help you today, sir?” the brunette woman behind the counter asked after Archie had spent several minutes circling the store and admiring the variety of objects on offer. “I don’t believe I’ve seen you here before. First time?”

“Uh, yes,” Archie confirmed, stepping up the counter. The woman was probably just a few years younger than his father and he was somewhat bewildered by the fact he found her so attractive when she definitely wasn’t his normal type. Similarly he hadn’t felt any attraction towards Betty or Veronica in quite a few days - something else he was growing concerned about. He seemed to be becoming more like his father with every passing day and the thought of totally losing himself was terrifying. “I’m, uh, looking for something to reverse a spell.”

“A spell, hmm?” The woman looked him up and down, a playful smirk crossing her lips. “And what kind of spell might you be under, sir?”

A blush colored Archie’s cheeks as he realized that for the first time he’d have to admit out loud what had happened between himself and his father. Would she think he was crazy? He seriously hoped not as right now she was potentially the only person who could help him. “Well, uh, this… isn’t my body. It’s my dad’s and-- and he’s in mine,” he explained, avoiding eye contact as he instead focused on the multi-colored skulls on the shelves behind her. The store was filled with oddities and he was hoping at least one of them could help.

“A body swap? It’s been a while since I’ve encountered one of those spells,” she murmured, “But yes, we certainly have something that can help with that. A reversal spell, actually. Quite a complicated one though - and costly.”

There’s a reversal spell? Oh hallelujah! That was precisely the news Archie had wanted to hear. “How costly?” It wasn’t as if Fred could stop Archie from spending the money to fix things since he apparently had no knowledge of anything being out of the ordinary for the pair of them.

“It’ll be a hundred bucks for the spell itself, but I really would recommend you hire a witch to complete the spell for you or there might be… complications.” Archie raised his eyebrows, beginning to wonder what the shop clerk might mean by ‘complications’. “Magic’s a dangerous thing to play around with, Mr Andrews.” Wait a second, I didn’t tell her my name. “You might not get the results if you try to do it yourself.”

“How much does hiring a witch cost, then?” Archie huffed, steeling himself.

“For a spell like this? You’re looking at eight-hundred dollars, probably.”

“Eight-hundred? You’ve gotta be kidding, I’m not dropping that kind of money on a witch!” Even though Archie knew this was important if he wanted it done properly, the thought of spending that much just for a witch to cast one simple spell was totally absurd “No, I’ll just take the spell, thank you very much.” She was correct in presuming he didn’t have any previous magical experience but how hard could it possibly be?

His statement of defiance seemed to take the woman by surprise. She quirked an eyebrow and studied him for a moment but he remained stony and unwavering. Like hell was he spending that much money - did she think he was insane? A small voice in the back of Archie’s mind told him that it was definitely worth it but his brain had been overtaken by his father’s usual concerns for money and those adult thoughts held a strong grip over him. “If you’re sure, sir?” the woman asked, her pretty lips forming a frown.

Remaining stubborn, Archie purchased the scroll upon which he would find the incantation and instructions for completing the spell and quickly made his way out of there and back home. He was determined to get things fixed up as soon as possible and it would probably be easier with his son - no, father - still sleeping in. Teenagers can be so lazy sometimes, he thought to himself, failing to notice that it was the thought of a much older man rather than a teenager displaced out of his own body.

As he finally unrolled the scroll, a groan escaped Archie’s lips. The whole thing was in latin and he had no damn idea how to read any of it. Should have hired the witch. It was too late for that now though and if all it took was reading the words from the scroll then how badly could he mess it up? This was the answer to all of his troubles and without even waiting a moment, he began to read each word aloud, doing his best to pronounce them as correctly as possible. He was flying completely blind and could only hope that he was doing a good job but he had a feeling that the sudden warmth spreading through his body could only mean that something was happening - something he hoped was good.

The warmth continued to multiply as Archie made his way down the scroll, hands shaking. He felt strangely nervous about the results but he knew that he had to be confident or nothing would come of it. Positivity breeds positivity after all and he was positive that he wanted to back in his own body more than anything.

Beads of sweat rolled down Archie’s forehead as the world around him and the scroll became a blur. It was a difficult task to remain focused on the incantation when the world suddenly seemed to unstable around him but he powered on, doing his best not to stammer over his words too much. His body was uncomfortably hot and his clothes suddenly felt far too tight on him but Archie continued through, knowing this was his one shot.

After what felt like a lifetime every word on the scroll had been read out and Archie’s knees gave out under him, sending him tumbling to the ground and straight into a deep slumber. The last thing he observed before the world went dark was the words on the scroll vanishing, leaving it completely blank…

***

“Daddy? Come on daddy, get up!” The voice was familiar and the arms lifting him up were definitely strong. For a moment the man being helped back to his feet paused to think about what had happened. His memory seemed to be covered by a thick fog to the extent that even his own name seemed lost to him. “You okay, Freddy?” that familiar voice asked, drawing the older man’s attention.

Holding him up was a beautiful young man in his early twenties with vibrant red hair and a strong toned body. Archie, his brain provided in explanation. The older man - Fred - found himself relaxing instinctively as his memories slowly began to return to him. Archie was his studly young boytoy and he was the boy’s proud sugar daddy. It was a relationship filled with nothing but love and sex and the older man couldn’t be happier about it.

For a moment a fleeting thought crossed his brain, telling him that everything about this situation was wrong. Wasn’t he supposed to be Archie, a high school football and music star? Before he could really contemplate the thought for too long it vanished completely, replaced by the urge to move forward and kiss the beautiful young man in front of him.

The moment their lips touched and Fred allowed his arms to wrap around his boy’s waist, all of the confusion drifted away into nothingness. He knew who he was - he was Fred Andrews, the owner of a successful mechanics business all across the United States. He had chosen to settle down in Riverdale, his hometown, after years of slutting it up on the road, and it had been there that he met Archie, a student at Riverdale community college who worked as a go-go dancer at the weekend to cover the rent.

Archie had been drawn to the successful businessman, not just for his money, but for the body that he maintained in good shape despite being in his forties. Fred had put hard work into making sure he always presented himself well and his body showed it, with strong muscles allowing him to overpower his boyfriend should the situation call for it. They had discovered pretty early on that Archie liked being dominated and Fred was more than happy to comply, acting as dominant as he wanted while the young college stud lapped it up with pleasure.

Any final thoughts of his former life as Archie Andrews prior to a body swap with his father completely crumbled into nothingness as Fred Andrews accepted his new life as the only life he had ever lived. The blank scroll that had supposedly ‘fixed’ their situation found its way into the trash soon after and Riverdale’s magic store would no longer appear to Fred as he joined the crowds that walked past it without ever noticing its presence. 

After a long night of making love to his boyfriend, Fred reluctantly pulled himself away to dress up in one of his finest suits. He was having a meeting with Mr Cassius, a businessman who seemed to be interested in funding an expansion of Fred’s company - something the older man certainly wasn’t going to complain about. Of course, the name sounded strangely familiar but it hardly mattered. Hopefully the meeting wouldn’t take long either, as Archie had promised to greet him with a surprise after and surprises from his boy were always something the older man looked forward to.

Fred cared about approximately three things in life - his body, his business and his boy - and today seemed like it was going to be a great day for all three!