#did ed sleep in stede's cabin?

[bizarrelittlemew]

this has to be a shout-out to the fandom for speculating about the sleeping arrangements aboard the Revenge for over a year

#like why is there only one decent room besides the giant captain's cabin #did ed sleep in stede's cabin? #where did everyone else sleep? on deck? yet it's empty when ed and stede practice sword fighting #we've been discussing this since season 1 aksdhjsk at least archie got in with someone who actually has a room #although there still appears to be only one small bed #idk i just immediately thought this was a fandom reference #ofmd s2 spoilers #ofmd s2 #ofmdedit #ofmdsource #ofmd #our flag means death #ida.stuff #archie #roach

[virgo-79]

Do you ever think about the bits in between the fabulous scenes we got?

Do you think about Stede washing the blood off Ed's face and out of his hair after he woke up? Do you think about him insisting Ed take the bed after they come back aboard the Revenge? Tucking him into bed and sitting close while Ed falls asleep? Lying awake most of the night watching Ed sleep and just savoring the sight of him breathing?

Do you think about what they talked about in the cabin after their second kiss? Did they stay up most of the night talking?

Did Stede lie there holding Ed and smiling like a lunatic after the first time they made love? Did they just lie there looking into each other's eyes until they fell asleep? Or did they have another imaginary restaurant conversation where they just "yes and-ed" each other I to the wee hours of the morning?

Because I think about it a lot.

#ofmd #real normal about it

[piratecaptainscaptainpirates]

A 1k fic prompt for you! How about Ed being really sure that his "punishment" when he gets back to the ship will be way worse than just the crew making him wear a sack and a bell, and Stede being sad that Ed was willing to come back even with the assumption that he was going to get, like, keelhauled?

Oh this one is JUICY, I love it. Ed baby please accept that you don't deserve to be hurt

--

The room was empty when Ed woke up.

He tried to let himself drift back to awareness slowly. He felt better than he had since he’d been dead - something about being back on the Revenge, everyone properly together again. Something about having Stede with him again.

They’d fallen asleep in the bed together. Stede had insisted on it, since Ed was hurt and all. They’d been proper gentlemen about it, fell asleep with just their little fingers linked.

The crew hadn’t objected when Stede had turned back up with Ed in tow. They’d been expecting it, actually, it looked like, and that was…troubling.

Stede had said he would talk to them when he got up, to discuss their conditions for allowing Ed back on the ship. He must have wanted Ed to be able to sleep in a bit.

Ed was grateful for that. He didn’t know how well he’d be able to sleep for the next…little while. Depended on how angry they were at him, he guessed. He got up slowly, reminding his sore body that these aches and pains would probably feel like heaven compared to how he’d feel tomorrow.

The crew had been expecting him back. He’d hurt all of them. They would be wanting revenge, naturally.

Ed tried not to worry too much about it. He’d been through floggings before, those rarely killed you. Keel-haulings didn’t kill you all the time. Chopping off his gun hand, or a leg - that was something you could live through.

“Oh, Ed, good morning!” That was Stede, poking his head in the door, and Ed gave him a tight, nervous smile. “Just been talking to the crew. Jim and Frenchie were voted to be the ones to deliver your conditions, does that sound alright?”

Ed nodded bravely. “Sure.”

“Great.” Stede gave him a quick smile. “We’ll get this business sorted, and then we’ll have breakfast. Be right back!”

Stede was, Ed thought, being very optimistic about Ed’s ability to eat breakfast once all was said and done. Great, now he had to worry about disappointing Stede if he was hurt too badly to keep anything down.

Ed folded his hands in front of him as Stede led Jim and Frenchie into the cabin, trying to look appropriately cowed.

“Right.” Frenchie’s polite smile did not reach his eyes, and Jim was glaring at him.

This did not bode well.

“We just have a few big things, really,” Frenchie started.

“And a lot of little things,” Jim said. “Like no shooting anyone, or pointing guns at anyone, including yourself, and -”

“Ed knows all that stuff already,” Stede interrupted mildly. “You don’t have to tell him the little ones, he knows.”

“The big ones, then,” Frenchie said impressively. “One: for the duration of your probationary period, you have to wear a sackcloth.”

“The ancient symbol of penance.” Ed nodded seriously. He could accept that with grace.

“And you can’t be sneaking up on people,” Jim added. “So you have to wear a bell.”

“Pete already found you a little kitty collar,” Stede said helpfully.

“No, yeah, I can do that,” Ed said. “Sackcloth. Bell. Got it.”

Here it comes, he thought nervously.

“And finally,” Frenchie said seriously, “you’re on potato-peeling duty. All week.”

Ed stared. “That’s…it?”

Jim shrugged. “I think some people also wanted a public apology? So that too, I guess.”

“No, I mean…” Ed shifted nervously from foot to foot. Maybe he was just being stupid, and they assumed he already knew the flogging was coming? “How many lashes do you want? Fifty? A hundred? Because if it’s more than that, I -”

“Ed,” Stede interrupted, and Ed realized that Jim and Frenchie were just looking at him blankly, and Stede looked absolutely horrified. “Good God, Ed, no one’s going to beat you.”

Ed looked at Jim and Frenchie for confirmation.

“No, yeah, absolutely not,” Frenchie said. “We’re not doing that.”

“Yeah, no,” Jim agreed. “I mean, I’m still pissed at you. Shitty captain. Shitty behavior.”

“Yeah, I know,” Ed mumbled, looking at the ground.

“But,” Jim shrugged, “like, listen, man, when you’re about to beat someone’s head in and they say finally like you did, you don’t feel good about that, y’know? I already beat you to death once. I don’t wanna kill you.”

“Yeah, mostly we kinda just want to make sure you’re not going to go all crazy on us again,” Frenchie added.

Stede was very quiet as Jim and Frenchie brought Ed the sackcloth onesie Wee John had prepared for him and a collar with a bell on it. Like, yeah, this was kind of embarrassing, but compared to what he’d been expecting? Fuck, he’d take the sackcloth any day.

“Here, let me.” Stede had given Ed privacy as he got changed, but he stepped up close to him to fasten the collar around his neck. Ed tilted his chin up, baring his throat to him without even hesitating.

The collar was tight but not horribly uncomfortable, and it made a merry little jingle every time he moved. Ed thought he’d keep it, even after his probation was over. For…reasons.

“Hey.” Ed frowned as Stede pulled back, concerned by the downward slant to his mouth. Ed was feeling positively jovial; Stede just looked upset. “What’s the matter?”

Stede shook his head minutely. “You agreed to come back,” he said softly, “even though you thought you were going to be hurt?”

“I mean, yeah.” Ed frowned. “Kinda deserve that, anyway -”

“You do not,” Stede said firmly. “You don’t deserve to be hurt. You’ve been through enough, for fuck’s sake. You deserve to feel safe.”

“I do,” Ed promised, a bit surprised by how much he meant it. “I’m just surprised they don’t…you know, they don’t hate me.”

“They never hated you,” Stede promised, giving the bell a little flick with his finger. “Not at all, Ed. You broke their trust, but that’s it.”

Huh.

Trust was something that could be won back. Ed liked the idea of that.

#ofmd #our flag means death #ofmd fic #my fics

[bougiebutchbinch]

:vibrates:

(CW: Unhealthy jealousy/reclaiming stuff that's way more fun in fic than real life)

Izzy gets into a free-use/polycrewle Thing with literally everyone aboard EXCEPT Ed and Stede after Calypso's Birthday. He's thriving. Relaxed for the first time in years, happy and open and comfortable with himself, developing unique and fabulous relationships with the entire crew.

The only downside? There's nowhere Stede and Ed can go aboard where they won't risk being assaulted by the visual of Izzy getting snogged or snuggled or Dicked Down by all his new boy/girl/themfriends.

Ed and Stede are. Not okay with this.

Oh, they tell themselves they're just annoyed because their own lovemaking keeps getting interrupted by, say, Wee John hitching Izzy up against the wall of their cabin and noisily going to town. They can't sleep without hearing Izzy moan.

But deep down, they both know they're incandescently jealous.

Izzy has barely looked at either of them since getting with the crew - at least, not in the usual tragic, yearning eye-fuck sense. Ed especially kinda... misses that. Izzy wanting him has been a part of his life for so long, and he strung him along because it boosted his self-esteem. And now Izzy's just... not interested? As soon as someone else stuck their dick in him? Did he ever really want Ed at all?

Stede hasn't known Izzy as long, but he definitely thought there was something brewing between them after their escape from Zheng's ship. Has he just gotten used to Izzy pining? Are he and Ed in the wrong for not wanting him to move on? Is this selfish of them, to not be happy for Izzy, and glad he's getting some (from people who aren't Them)?

They try to be happy for Izzy, but it's through gritted teeth.

On the other side of things - Izzy is ABSOLUTELY performatively rubbing it in, making the point that Ed's not the only one who's moved on and is way happier now. The crew, always up for causing chaos, are fully on board to help, and taking bets on how long it will take for Stede and Ed to aggressively pounce on Izzy and snog him with tongue.

Of course, three can play at the jealousy game - this turns into a horrific unhygienic sex-competition where Ed/Stede and Izzy/Crew aggressively try to make each other green-eyed with envy by fucking on every flat surface aboard. It ends in a vicious, vitriolic, hatesexy Steddyhands threesome in front of the entire crew, who offer running commentary throughout and critique Stede and Ed's form!

Anyway, after they've all had a post-coital cigarette, Izzy rolls over and glares at his captains, telling them '....I'm still gonna keep sleeping with the crew. You fuckers don't own me'. The main difference is, he also gives Stede and Ed some sugar every now and then.

This old man's heart is gonna give out from all the fucking sdfksdlgsdgf

#izzy hands #ofmd izzy #steddyhands #gentlebeard #stede bonnet #edward teach #ed teach #blackbonnet #ed babygirl teach #izzy babygirl hands #ed teach born on a beach #teehee #ofmd stede

[darlingeames]

‘You’re Blackbeard?’

Ed – Blackbeard, for Christ’ sake – pops his head out of the wardrobe into the cabin to see if whoever called for him left, then turns back to Stede.

‘Yep. Blackbeard. That’s me.’

Stede, still holding the stupid fucking pants, openly gapes. He thinks for a split second that he should be careful what he says next, how he acts – he knows the man in front of him is incredibly dangerous. But he doesn’t feel it. So it doesn’t matter.

‘But I just asked you, and you said you work for him.’

Ed. Short for Edward fucking Teach.

He vaguely remembers seeing all that leather surrounded by smoke before he lost consciousness, Ed’s voice saying I’ve heard all about you.

‘Techincally, that’s not not true, you know,’ Ed says, and he looks a bit smug. Like he’s proud of his little trick. ‘You could say that being Blackbeard is my job.’

This man is incredibly peculiar, Stede thinks. He grips his pants tighter, which Ed seems to notice.

‘Since you already got up, even though really, you should take it easy, or your guts will spill out, take it from someone who’s been stabbed countless times before, you probably want to get dressed, I’ll leave you to it–’

And Ed starts to get out of the auxiliary closet, but then he turns back.

‘Wear those pants, the colour’s gorgeous.’ And, to Stede's absolute dismay, Ed winks at him.

Left alone in his secret closet, Stede thinks that any rational man would probably at least entertain the possibility that Blackbeard would lock him in said secret closet and steal his crew and ship – but then, Ed was so kind, and he could have killed Stede in his sleep anyway if he would have so desired, so the thought passes so fleetingly through Stede’s mind that it leaves behind no trace.

Stede does indeed put on the pants, and a white shirt and the black cravat, because he felt the need for something to counterbalance the redness of his flesh where the noose had choked him.

He barely stepped out of the closet when Ed turns from looking up at the chandeliers. 

‘What other cool stuff do you have in here?’

So Stede shows Blackbeard his library.

Stede has a feeling, the moment an unknown man, with incredibly kind, large brown eyes wakes him up from his feverish nightmare. He feels, more than he thinks, that of course, this is exactly the way it should be. If it had been Lucius or Olwande sitting on his bed, warning him not to get up too fast lest his guts spill out, he would have felt disappointed, and he would not for the life of him been able to pinpoint exactly why. But Ed, who works for Blackbeard, and who looks exactly like someone who would work for Blackbeard, assures him that he might be a decent pirate since the Spanish didn’t manage to kill him yet, and takes an interest to Stede’s best robe and he can’t tell silk from cashmere but he keeps rubbing it between his fingers, and Stede knows nothing about this man, and the part of him that has been reading pirate stories all his life yells that it might be a trap, they are pirates, for fuck’s sake, they screw each other over all the time, he could be lying for all you know and your crew is either dead or imprisoned and you’re this close to being thrown overboard – but it’s such a distant tirade, and Stede can barely hear it over the sound of his robe rustling between Ed’s fingers, and he’s been dying to tell someone just how much fun he’s had while having the Revenge built. 

So really, it’s no choice at all.

‘Can you keep a secret?’

It turns out that pirates do lie and do screw other people over, even if it’s such for a bit of fun – Ed says No, I’m Blackbeard, and Stede thinks Christ alive, did I really bring the actual Blackbeard into my auxiliary closet that nobody but us knows about and showed him my fucking summer linens, how has this become my life, and stares in horror at the back of Ed’s head, at the unruly mess of salt and pepper curls, and thinks of the worst. But Ed shows no sign of it meaning anything at all – doesn’t call back to whomever it was that was looking for him, and doesn’t start laughing at Stede –

In seconds, quick as silver, the two images in Stede’s head become one – this is Blackbeard, he knows he is, just as he knows he’s not in any real danger, just as he knows the sparkle he saw in Ed’s eye when he opened the secret door was real.

He’ll never look at him and think Blackbeard. That word still conjures up the fantasy version of Black Pete’s stories, the one in his books, the smoke and the glowing eyes and the nine pistols, and the ruthlessness and bloodthirst. That Blackbeard has never had anything to do with his Ed, the man that woke him up and seemed thrilled with all of Stede’s idiosyncrasies, from his clothes to his two chandeliers and his books. In this world, it’s one of his biggest failings – he’s never been able to look at Edward Teach and see what he should have seen. What his crew saw. What Izzy had tried so hard to preserve. He had taken one look at the man and Stede, in his feverish, incredibly embarrassed state, hadn’t seen the leather and the tattoos and the years upon years of having the sea as a home, he saw kind eyes, he felt a warm hand, and he didn’t meet Blackbeard, he met a man that made the simple act of breathing easier.

#ofmd ficlet #ofmd fic #gentlebeard #blackbonnet #going back to their very roots<3 #wrote this as a warm up to get into the feel of it #sometimes i just like dipping into stede's head. i think it's fascinating in there. #the way he perceives ed is so <333 to me #my writing #my fics #our flag means death #mine.txt #ofmd #ed teach #stede bonnet

[dragon-kazansky]

Spirit of the sea

Izzy Hands x Reader (GN)

You were a member of Blackbeard's crew long ago. Then you became a ghost story. Izzy Hands only sees you in his dreams these days, until he sees you for real when investigating Stede Bonnet. This sets him on a rollercoaster of emotions between you and what his captain is doing.

{Masterlist}

{Previous Chapter} - {Next Chapter}

Warnings: Not much Izzy and Reader interaction, because, ya know. However, you will be bonding with some of the crew, so yay!

Chapter Six - Out in the open

♡♡♡

You didn't sleep at all. Neither did Izzy by the sounds of it. He spent the rest of the night clearing out his cabin and packing what little he had.

As the sun began to rise and the darkness faded, you stood beside Edward looking down at the dingy below. Izzy was standing in it looking up at you.

Your expression was cold. The light in your eyes was gone, he noticed. Izzy could sense your pain from this.

It hurt him too. To leave you behind was not his plan, but you refused to come with him, he wasn't going to force you. If only he could look you in the eye and be honest with you.

"So, is this it then?" Izzy asks Blackbeard.

"You shouldn't have duelled him, Iz! We could've worked this out."

"You will rue this day, Edward. You will rue it long, and you will rue it hard."

Roach comes up beside you with a smile. "Hey. Made you a sandwich for the trip."

You take the sandwich from his hand and look down at Izzy. It's going to seem childish, bit at least you can get one last insult in. You throw the wrapped sandwich at Izzy with no intention of him being able to catch it. Instead it hits him in the head and bounces into the ocean.

Izzy stares up at you. You ignore the way Edward is side eyeing you too.

"I would've eaten that," Ivan says.

"A fucking pox on all of you!" Izzy growls.

"Well, that's that," Edward grumbles, walking away. Ivan soon follows him. You remain standing at the railing with Roach, watching Izzy sit in the boat and row away.

"Not for nothing, but that guy really is a dick, huh?" Roach says.

You sigh softly, letting Roach leave.

"But he was our dick..."

♡♡♡

Lucius hands his severed finger over to Fang. You watch from the other side of the ship as they throw it into the water.

You were amazed to find out that Lucius cut off his own finger in a moment of hysteria during last night's fuckery. It was disgusting, but also kind of impressive.

Pete had whittled him a wooden one to wear, so all was good in the end.

You walk last Stede to go sulk for a while. He is still stabbed into the mast.

"You alright?"

"I'd very much like it out," he says, looking a little worse for wear now. He'd been there most of the night at this point.

"I'll go get someone."

"Thank you." He sounds rather appreciative. You carry on walking.

As you go below deck, Edward is waiting for you. You smile as you go to pass him, but he holds up his hand, stopping you. You take a step back and look up at your captain.

"He didn't stay."

You didn't have to do much thinking to understand what he meant. "No. He didn't."

"Did you talk to him?" Edward asks.

"Course I did. You know I did."

"And still he left..."

"Ed, I can't force Izzy to do anything. You know him better than I do. You what he's like."

"Nah. You know him better than anyone," Ed says to you. "I figured he would fold if you spoke to him. Assumed you would be his reason to stay, even after that duel."

"Why? It's probably for the best. I unintentionally left you all behind 6 years ago. He's intentionally leaving us. Let the man do what he wants," you sigh.

"You left him 6 years ago." Edward looks at you with stern eyes, his head tilted forward slightly.

"Huh?"

"Nevermind." Edward walks away leaving you confused and dazed.

♡♡♡

A couple days pass. Edward and Stede grow closer and closer. Edward has been a little down about Izzy leaving, but Stede always know what to say or day to bring his mood back up again.

You, however, feel like a piece of you is missing. From the moment Izzy left, the ship has felt incomplete.

You have spent the last couple nights in, what was, Izzy's cabin. He had taken the few thing he owned with him. You sat on the bed and stared at the empty desk. The little wooden sparrow was gone. He had taken it with him. You're not sure what to do with that information, but it was comforting in a way.

Still, there wasn't anything left behind for you to hold onto.

Roach rushes past the door as you're sulking. You look up just in time to catch him flee past. Figuring there is no use in depressing yourself over the loss of your friend, you decide to go figure out what that was all about.

Turns out there are no oranges onboard. Oh, and the Swede has scurvy.

Roach had used most of them for a fucking cake that Stede had asked for. You stare at the gentleman pirate in disbelief.

"You had him make you a cake?"

"It hardly tasted of oranges." Stede says. Roach looks offended.

"So it was a waste." You sigh.

"Well, not completely. I still ate it."

"Either way, we need more oranges."

The crew start fussing as the topic of the Swede having scurvy come up again. You let out a long sigh as you look at this group.

"Let's just accept the fact that, due to Roach's immorderate use of the citrus, we now have to go grocery shopping."

Roach scoffs.

"St Augustine's full of oranges, and we're right near there," Frenchie says.

"Oh! Anything exciting to do there? Maybe something that might impress a world-weary, adventuring type?" Stede asks.

"No! It's boring and awful, and the humidity? Do you understand what that'll do to your hair?" Jim says, standing up.

"So?" Olu asks. Jim walks off.

"I'll wear a hat," Stede says proudly.

"Anyone else's fingernails falling off?" The Swede asks. You groan and leave with the rest of the crew.

♡♡♡

Stede had gone to St Augustine with Lucius. You remained on the ship with the crew. You were sitting in the captain's quarters with Edward. You were stretched out on one of the couches, a book in your hand. Edward was examining one of Stede's robes.

"Are you missing him?" Ed asks.

"Hm? Who?" You ask, not looking up from the book. It was a page on the legend of Blackbeard. You were fascinated by the way people viewed the man in front of you.

"Izzy."

"Oh." You still don't look up from the book.

Edward looks over at you. You had become a lot quieter since Izzy left. "You've been sleeping in his cabin. I've seen you."

"The room's available now. Might as well make use of it."

"Right. Yeah. Sure." Edward says, not so convincingly. He walks over to the coach you're perched on and plants his hands firmly on it, looking down at you.

"I'm fine, Edward."

"You don't look fine. What are you reading anyway?"

You snap the book shut and look up at him. "Just a book!"

"Alright. No need to get antsy."

"I'm sorry," you sigh. "I'm just worried."

"About Izzy?" He asks.

"Yeah. When I left, it was unintentional. I literally couldn't get back to you. He left because of some stupid duel and wouldn't stay when I asked. He would rather honour dueling rules than..." You gasp for breath. "Than stay with me."

Ed places a hand on your shoulder. "Mate..."

You shrug his hand off. "Forget it. I'm being stupid. I just... I just thought Izzy was my friend."

"Yeah, me too, mate."

However, Edward wanted to say more. It just didn't look like the best time. The moment is broken by Stede strutting in with Lucius behind him. He's waving something around in his hand.

"Look at what I got!"

Edward leaves your side to go peer at the item Stede was gushing about. Lucius sends you a look that tells you he was mentally drained. You chuckle softly.

"A treasure map!"

You and Edward share a look.

"Read it and weep, my friend. Adventure awaits."

"Look, mate, I hate to be a downer, but people just don't bury treasure. It's just not done." Ed explains to him.

"Well, why make a map?" Stede asks.

"He's saying the map's not real," Lucius chimes in.

"Yeah, the whole burying treasure thing is just a tale," you add in.

"What? Course it's real! Look at it. Tatty edges. It's burnt. It's been around, it's seen things."

"You got scammed for money," you say plainly.

"If it were real, why would she have sold it to you?" Ed asks. You nod. "Why not keep the map herself, and find the treasure herself?"

"Oh, Strong question. Love that." Lucius says.

"Scam," you add in again.

"Maybe she's just lazy. I mean, she works down at the docks selling maps, for God's sake."

"Best of luck to you, mate. I'm taking a nap." Ed slumps down on the coach you're on and plants his legs over your lap. You glare at him softly.

"Last I heard, a ship only has one captain, and the captain of this vessel says, 'On your feet!' We're having a day." Stede says standing up. "Once I've changed."

Stede leaves to get dressed. You turn your head to Edward.

"Now you have to go."

"If I'm going, you're coming with me," he says, giving you a light glare.

"Fuck that."

"I'm your captain. Orders are orders."

You stare at him in disbelief. "Oh, that's mean."

Edward has a shit-eating grin on his face.

♡♡♡

Within the hour Stede had changed into more 'appropriate' attire and you all went ashore. You continued to give Blackbeard a death stare as he rowed the boat over. He just grinned back at you.

However, once on land, he became self conscious about his very being getting caught on the island. After all, people know of Blackbeard. Scary murderous pirate can't be caught treasure hunting of all things.

You found amusement in this.

"So, we're either here, or possibly here." Stede says, looking at his map. You were walking on one side of him, Lucius on the other. Ed was on the other end.

Edward was trying to hide his face every time he walked past someone.

"Why are you hiding you face?"

"He's freakin' Blackbeard. He can't be caught treasure hunting," you say, returning the shit-eatkng grin back to your captain.

"We're in the middle of nowhere. No one's gonna recognise you." Stede says, looking at Ed.

"Hey, Blackbeard! Treasure hunting!" A resident calls out. You give Stede a deadpan look.

Edward threatens the man. "Shut the fuck up, OK? I'm not Blackbeard. Fuck off, get outta here! Move."

The man hurries off.

"Right, Ed, you go stand over there under that tree, and Stede, you figure out which way you wanna go, okay?" You say, taking matters into your own hands.

Edward walks off to hide under the tree.

"Now look, we're going to have fun today, and that's an order," Stede states firmly.

"You can't really order people to have fun, but..."

"Well, I just did. Guys like Blackbeard, they live for adventure. It's like nourishment for them. So we're going to have an extremely fun, memorable, deeply cool adventure.".

You can't fight back the smile from listening to Stede. Was he trying to impress Blackbeard? Okay, that's cute. He's being cute.

"Now, do I have your support on that?" Stede asks Lucius.

"Yeah, OK."

♡♡♡

Stede takes the lead. You walk with Edward behind him a little ways. Lucius is following behind you both.

Edward seems to be slowly growing more agitated the further this goes on. He swatting violently at the flies buzzing around your heads. You have to duck a few times to avoid getting a snack across the head.

"Well this is fun," you mutter.

"Shut up," Ed spits out, clearly not having fun.

"Might as well make the most of it. We're both stuck here."

Edward sighs and glares at you. "Stupid treasure hunting."

"I say let Stede have his silly fun."

"Would you have agreed to do this if it was Izzy?"

"Izzy wouldn't be caught dead treasure hunting," you say. "He'd have killed the man who dared ask him to."

Blackbeard swats away more flies. "You still upset about Izzy?"

"You mean since we spoke about him last like 2 hours ago? Yes, Edward. I'm still upset the bastard left."

"Sensing quite a bit of tension here," Lucius says, coming up beside you. You roll your eyes. "What's the deal with dizzy Izzy anyway?"

"It's just Izzy," you warn him. "Izzy is... was, my friend."

"Doesn't seem like the type to have friends."

"Hey, he's my friend too," Ed says.

"Is he though?" You ask, looking at Ed.

"What does that mean?"

"Izzy had been trying to talk to you for days, and all you did was brush him aside to go hang out with Stede. You didn't even stop to hear him out."

"I knew what it was about."

"Still, you didn't stop to listen," you say, watching where you were stepping.

"It amazes he even has friends," Lucius says. You glare at him. "I just mean... he was very intense."

"Yeah, well, that's just Izzy."

"Kinda cute really."

"What is?" You ask, eyeing him.

"How much you care for the bastard."

"Shut up."

Edward swats away more flies. Stede had gone on so far ahead, you had lost sight of him.

"Fuck off, flies!" Edward yells.

"They're not that bad. They really a full of blood, though, aren't they? Like little flying grapes." Lucius comments. One then flies into his mouth and he starts choking. "I think I just swallowed one!"

"At least you got lunch. I'm fuckin' starving." Edward sighs.

"Guys! Come quick! I've found something!" Stede calls out.

"Thank God," you mutter, hoping he had found his treasure and you could all go back to the ship.

Stede turns around with an insect resting on his finger. You groan quietly.

"Dryocampa rubicunda, or the candied melon silk moth. A very rare specimen. See? We're already finding stuff."

"Great, you found a bug. Cheers." Edward is less than impressed.

"And who says treasure maps are useless?" Lucius says. You all turn to look at him. "I wasn't being sarcastic, that's just how I talk."

"Laugh at you want, but without the map, we wouldn't have found this little guy, so it's already paying dividends." Stede remains positive.

"Suppose it is pretty interesting, for an insect." Ed says, looking back at the moth. He the goes back to fighting flies. "Fuck this. I'm going back to the ship."

As Edward marches away, you follow after him.

"Oh, come on! We're having fun! You know what your problem is? You just have no idea how to relax!" Stede calls out. "Does he Lucius?"

"I mean, you are kind of intense, like... all of the time," Lucius says.

That's 2 people he has now described as intense.

"It's a running theme with Blackbeard," you say mindlessly.

"You're not intense." Lucius looks at you.

"Give me time."

"I know how to relax." Edward leans against a tree. "See? I'm actually quite relaxed right now."

A snake falls from the tree into Ed's open arms and he starts to fight it, smacking it onto the ground and then stabbing it violently. "Die!"

"According to the map, there are snakes in this area." Stede stands there, looking at Edward. "So, just be careful."

You run a hand down your face and sigh deeply.

♡♡♡

The snake becomes lunch. You set up a campfire and Ed cooks the snake. You sit on the ground beside Lucius while the two captain share a log.

"Is this what Blackbeard is usually like?" Lucius asks you.

"It's how I remember him. But he softened up a lot since Stede it seems..."

You both gaze at the captain's. They're babbling on about Ed having a restaurant where he could serve snake and have a gift shop. You wonder how it came to this point.

"Must have been impressive sailing on his crew." Lucius takes a bite of his snake.

"Yeah. They were good old days."

"What was it like?"

"Probably about what you expect from the stories, to be honest. A lot of raiding and death. But we were also close as a crew. Kind of. Blackbeard as our captain, Izzy doing every little thing that was asked of him. Fang and Ivan working their asses off to please both Izzy and Blackbeard."

"Sounds kind of... well, intense. Doesn't really sound close. More like everyone just working hard to please the others. What about you?"

"Me? I did what I could to keep everyone happy. To keep... Izzy happy..."

"You must really like him. Like, really like him." You jab Lucius with your elbow. "Ow! Okay, sorry..."

"Izzy works his ass off. Yeah, I get it, he's a dick and it's very hard to like him, but he's not all bad. He's just... stressed beyond belief, and the one man he tries so hard to please barely acknowledges it!"

Lucius glances at Blackbeard. "Oh."

"Look, I won't deny it. I have a soft spot for Izzy Hands."

"Yeah, I noticed."

You give him a gentle shove with your arm.

"Well, he's gone now. Maybe you can find some relief."

"Relief?"

"Yeah." Lucius shrugs. "Maybe you can move on. Let that part of you go."

You look down at the bit of snake in your hand. Let Izzy go? Is that possible? Can you do that? You hadn't once let go during the 6 years you were apart of him. But had he? After all, he thought you were dead during that time.

"Maybe make Izzy a ghost of your past," Lucius suggests.

"A ghost...?"

You're pulled out of your thoughts by Stede helping get snake out of Ed's beard. You and Lucius stare at the two. The conversation about Izzy being put to the back of your mind.

"Oh my God, this is happening," Lucius mutters.

"Wow," you whisper.

"What?" They look at the pair of you.

"Nothing."

You turn back to Lucius who gives you another look. Yeah, it's happening.

♡♡♡

The map caught fire. It was a total accident and was bound to happen, but alas, there's not much of the map left.

Stede sits on his knees as he tries to fix it.

"There's still a few scraps that didn't completely burn."

"Ah, give it up, Stede. All adventures have a natural conclusion, and this one's more than fitting." Ed says, watching him.

"No, I think I can fix this. Come on, the day's not fully ruined."

"God, he'll probably be moping all the way back to the ship." Ed groans.

"You don't have to be a dick about it," Lucius says softly, frowning.

"What?" Edward turns to him, his voice sharp.

"He said don't be a dick about it." You look Edward in the eye. "He's put this whole thing together just for you."

"For me? Why?"

"Look, you're very cool, and you wear leather, OK, so maybe you won't understand this, but everyone is worried all of the time whether they're interesting or adventurous enough for you." Lucius tells him right off the bat.

"That bizarre little man over there likes you very much, and you like him." You state plainly to your captain.

"If you can't get over yourself long enough to realise that, you're going to end up another lesther-clad, middle-aged sad sack dying alone in a puddle of his own piss." Lucius carries on angrily. "You can stab me in the face now."

Edward glances at you. He can tell from your expression that you agree with Lucius. He walks quietly over to where Stede is.

"It's hopeless. We might as well head back to the ship," Stede sighs, defeated. "You were right. It's a stupid idea. I... I don't know why we're here."

"I'm actually a little disappointed," Edward tells him. "I was startin' to have fun."

Ed gestures for you and Lucius to come closer. You both go to stand beside him. Ed points to piece of the map. "That little bit there on that lite scrappy bit of paper, that looks like a tree, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, no, definitely does to me," Lucius says. You just nod.

"And the other little squiggly bit. What's that look like?"

"Like a road, or a river." You might as well join in and make the most of this.

"You know what? I think, just with this little bit here, we could probably sort this out."

"Yeah?" Stede asks full of hope.

"They're all the pieces we need."

"Shall I prepare the shovel, or..." Lucius goes to grab it.

"We didn't come all this way to not dig something up!"

"Right!" Stede stands up. "That's the spirit. OK. This way." Stede marches onward.

"That was sweet," you say, turning to Ed.

"Don't, or I will stab you in your face."

You laugh and follow them as they head off further into the trees.

♡♡♡

"Is this how you felt with Izzy?" Edward asks, walking alongside you again.

"What do you mean?"

He gazes at Stede and motions between himself and the other man with his hand. "This."

"Are you implying I was in love with Izzy Hands?" You ask. Edward nods. "What? No! Izzy was my friend. He needs friends, Ed. If anything... no, forget it."

"What?"

"No, nothing. You're not ready to hear that.

"You two were so close, ya know." Edward shrugs his shoudler lightly. "Kind of envied that."

"Envied it? Izzy was your friend too."

"Yeah, but, like, not in the way you were friends. You too had something. He still wears that ring around his neck."

"The ring on his necktie? He's always had that. What's that got to do with anything?" You ask, confused by Edward's words.

"No. Not that. He has a chain he wears under his shirt. There's a ring on it."

"Huh?"

"Izzy found a ring on that ship that night. Pretty little ring. He didn't say anything for a while about after the night we lost you, but eve actually I had to ask. I caught him looking at it as it hung around his neck. Told me he thought of you when he saw it. He was gonna give it to ya, but... well, you know."

You look at the ground, brows knitted together in thought. Hearing Izzy like this was so soft and gentle. He was sentimental.

"Why didn't he say anything?" You ask. "After my return."

"Perhaps he can't bring himself to. You know what's he's like. Doesn't trust easy, for starters."

"He lost trust in me?"

"We thought you were dead," Edward says softly. "Don't forget that. For 6 years you were dead in our lives."

"Fuck..."

"Listen, mate. Don't feel bad. Things didn't turn out as planned and a lot of shit happened. But we're cool. You're back and everything is gonna be okay."

"But Izzy is gone. The bastard left... he left me behind! If... if I meant anything to him, I..."

"Hey, hey, hey! Calm down."

You take a deep breath. "Sorry."

"It's all good. What's done is done. Just don't hate the man, okay?"

"Hate him...?" You fall quiet. "I couldn't hate him."

Ed keeps an arm around you as the group keeps on walking. Eventually the adventure comes to an end. To get this over with, Lucius and Ed guide Stede to an old dead tree.

"You sure this is the right tree?" Stede asks.

"Yeah, definitely."

"Oh, undoubtedly, mate."

"It looks just like the one off the map."

"Plus, pirates are ways burying stuff at the base of trees," Ed says.

"See, now I feel you're patronising me."

"What are you doing to my family's tree?" Jim asks, standing behind Bonnet.

"Good timing. I'm just about to unearth some treasure," Stede replies happily.

"We, er..." Ed goes over to Jim to speak quietly behind Stede. "We're just letting him dig for a bit, get it out of his system."

"I found something! What do you think it could be?"

"A rock." You, Lucius, and Jim all said at the same time.

"I've got it." Stede holds the item up. "I think it's a rock."

You sigh. "Yeah, too bad."

Stede tosses the rock over to Edward. "Yeah, sorry, mate. That's usually how these things go. Just end up finding a rock, or dried-up piece of shit."

Ed uses one of the water tankers Lucius is carrying to rinse the rock.

"Well, I guess the real treasure was our day spent together, am I right?" Lucius smiles.

"Lucius! We spend every day together." Stede puts his hands on his hips.

You laugh a little. Ed looks at you with a smile.

"Treasure is the real treasure."

"Hey, look at that. It's an orange." Edward holds the 'rock' up. "Petrified." He tosses it back to Stede.

"Old tree will had some fruit to give after all." Jim looks at the tree fondly.

Stede offers the orange to Jim, since the fruit came from their tree, but Jim tosses it back. It's Stede's treasure.

"OK, back to the boat," Ed says, turning on his heel. You do not hesitate to catch up. You've had enough adventure for one day.

♡♡♡

Edward joins Stede in his quarters after you all return to the ship. While Lucius smiles and listens to the other party's adventure on getting oranges, you sneak past them to go hide in Izzy's old cabin.

Lucius sees you though.

You sigh as you stand in the doorway and look at the bed. It doesn't feel right without him. You sit down carefully and rest your head back against the wall.

"Where did you go, Izzy?" You whisper. "Why did you leave me?"

A knock at the door startles you and you turn to see Lucius standing there, now without all the gear he had been carrying all day.

"Hey."

"Hi."

He looks at you with a kind softness. "You want some company?"

You sigh softly and nod your head. Lucius comes over and sits beside you on the bed. He rests his head back too and looks at you, planting a hand over yours on your leg.

"You know, I kind of miss him yelling at us all, in a weird kind of way."

You laugh.

"Yeah? You get used to it after a while. Sorry he was such a dick to you though." You apologise.

"Nah, forget about it." He waves his hand as if to brush the apology off. "He definitely had a soft spot for you."

You shrug. "So people keep telling me."

"But it's true. I saw the way he looked at you." Lucius smiles.

"Shut it."

You both chuckles. A moment of silence passes before you sigh and speak again. "I just wish I could apologise to him some more. I want to see his stupid face and know that he trusts me again."

"Blackbeard said he closed himself off after I "died." And I don't luke the idea of him suffering alone in silence."

Lucius gives your hand a squeeze. "Things will get better."

You look at him. "I kind of like being on this ship. It was weird at first because it was so different from other ships I've been on, but it had grown on me."

"Yeah get kind of used to it."

You both smile at each other.

"Thanks for checking on me, Lucius."

"Any time, sweetheart," he grins and winks at you. You laugh and give him a gentle shove. "You ever been sketched?" He asks.

You try to bite down your smile, but to no avail. "No."

"Wanna be?"

You laugh.

It felt good to laugh again.

♡♡♡

@grippleback-galaxy - @askmarinaandothers - @godlikegallagher - @for-fuck-sake-im-alive - @whiskeyswriting - @lxsm2 - @bloody-bunni666 - @the-chocoholic-writer - @bugbugboy - @callmemana -

#izzy hands x reader #spirit of the sea #ofmd #our flag means death #dragon writes

[spaceshipkat]

can’t stop thinking about how Stede is such a terrible person to sleep with bc the man is a fucking starfish who somehow has more than four limbs when he’s asleep, but he offers to share a cabin with Ed after they become co-captains and “the bed is big enough to share Ed, i’d love to share it with you 🥺” and bc Ed is head over heels for Stede he accepts, not knowing what he’s getting into. and then fast forward to that night when Ed finds himself spatulaed right out of the bed bc Stede the Flailing Starfish is at it again but Ed is determined to share a bed with Stede bc he is touch-starved and also he loves Stede but shush can’t say anything about that yet, so he decides to be proactive by climbing back into bed and lying down on Stede like a weighted blanket, and he expects Stede to wake up, or perhaps to continue to toss and turn, maybe even spatula Ed right out of bed again but instead Stede settles down and sleeps all the way through the night, as does Ed, and luckily Ed wakes up before Stede in enough time to move off him before Stede can find out what position they’re in. and then Stede asks how Ed slept and Ed says “fine” (because he did; Stede’s tits are great pillows) and Stede says he feels more rested than he has in years bc he didn’t wake himself up a thousand times from his usual tossing and turning and perhaps that’s because he knew Ed was sharing his bed and didn’t want to crowd him and Ed obviously can’t tell him the truth, nor does he want to, and so every night when Ed and Stede share a bed, Ed waits until Stede starts to starfish and climbs on top of him before he can spatula, and they pass the nights sleeping better than they ever have in their lives.

it gets to a point where Ed can’t fall asleep anymore without lying on top of Stede, feeling the rise and fall of his breath and hearing his heartbeat, but hey Stede never wakes up and so he never has to find out and Ed can keep pretending he’s not soaking up every single second of this to save up for the day this ends, and then one night, after a huge fuckery that left Ed exhausted, Ed is so comfy on Stede he doesn’t wake up first the next morning. in fact, he doesn’t wake up until he hears Stede shush someone, then slowly realizes Stede is combing his hair and the sun is so high in the sky that Stede must have been lying there for hours with Ed asleep on top of him, and naturally Ed freezes, having been caught, and rather than face Stede telling him they shouldn’t share a bed anymore if they can’t keep to their own sides Ed just bolts from the room and avoids Stede at all costs for days. doesn’t go in the cabin, refuses to be alone with Stede long enough for him to say something, gets increasingly more irritable bc he finds himself unable to sleep after getting so used to sleeping on top of Stede that nothing else is acceptable. it’s maddening! he used to be able to sleep hanging off a rope ladder, on the hardwood floor wherever he fell after too much alcohol, literally standing upright at the helm, and now he’s so whipped he can’t even find comfort in the hush-hush of the ocean against the hull of a ship, so he resolves to simply never sleep again until he’s so tired he passes out because anything is better than lying down at night feeling how alone you are and knowing how it feels to have what you actually want only for it to be taken away before you’re ready.

and then one night while Ed is on watch (he threatened the crew into giving him their nighttime watch, a skeleton crew of one, though it didn’t take much convincing for everyone to agree) Ed startles into awareness at a hand landing on his shoulder and he blinks at Stede, surprised to see him accompanied by Fang and Wee John, and he can’t read Stede’s expression because it’s a new moon and his eyes already weren’t what they used to be but when coupled by two weeks of sleep deprivation he’s not sure what’s real and what’s not. and when Stede says “that’s enough of that, Edward” Ed knows what’s about to happen bc he’s not been the greatest person to be around lately, sleep deprivation will do that to a person, but still Ed doesn’t want to be kicked off the Revenge so he starts babbling, not even sure what he’s saying, but it doesn’t seem to matter anyway bc Stede waves his hand at Fang, who hauls Ed away from the helm and takes his place, and then Wee John tosses Ed over his shoulder and Ed’s head starts to swim so he closes his eyes and doesn’t open them again until he’s draped over something lumpy and startlingly familiar, but when he tries to move he finds himself stuck, two vises wrapped around his back, and then someone tells him to stop struggling and go to sleep, and since he can’t deny he’s tired he just does as ordered and decides he’ll figure out what’s happened in the morning.

he has no idea how much time passes, since by the time he opens his eyes again it’s still dark, but he hears a familiar heartbeat, feels the familiar rise and fall of a chest beneath his, and when he looks up he spies a familiar pair of eyes peering at him from beneath a nightcap. and Ed flushes and stammers and tries to move away but Stede only tightens his grip and says “i haven’t slept since you left because i find it impossible to be comfortable without you right here on top of me, so unless you have some valid objection that isn’t ‘whoops i’ve been caught cuddling let me run away instead of talking it through as a crew so i can find out my co-captain is quite besotted and asked me to share his bed for reasons that are not entirely pure,’ i suggest you cease any idiotic attempt to remove yourself from my bed, Edward Teach” and Ed stares at him because he can’t have heard that right, he has to be hallucinating that look Stede is giving him and the fingers he feels combing through his hair and the racing heartbeat in the chest beneath his, but when Stede sighs and murmurs “i missed you” Ed closes his eyes and presses his face back to those stellar tits and lets himself fall back asleep because this has to be a dream and he’s not going to allow it to end, not when it’s just getting good.

it’s morning when he wakes again and Stede is still under him, still asleep, but Ed can’t help the sneaking suspicion he didn’t actually imagine anything last night, and then he hears Lucius snap at Izzy to get away from the cabin door because Stede has ordered they not be disturbed until further notice and Lucius will not have Izzy fuck up the promise of a month’s vacation (the crew has gotten quite good at vacations now that they’ve had countless since their very first) after Stede and Ed work their shit out, and by the time the conversation ends with a pissy Izzy stomping away Ed realizes Stede’s breathing has shifted and he turns back to find Stede looking at him with a smile and a shrug and a “well i didn’t know how long this would take and i needed to give Lucius something to make him take over first mate duties so Oluwande could work as acting captain in our absence” and Ed can hardly believe this is real, that this is happening, so when he swallows and wets his lips and asks “can i kiss you?” he’s not expecting Stede to blush and say “i’ll be quite upset if you don’t,” and he’s not expecting Stede to lift his head to meet Ed in the middle and make a small happy sound right into Ed’s mouth and to thread his fingers through Ed’s hair to deepen the kiss, and he’s not expecting Stede to ask if they can fuck and to take the lead when Ed stammers a “yes,” and he’s not expecting it to be the best sex he’s ever had even though it’s not actually anything more than slotted thighs and rocking hips but it is the best sex he’s ever had and he both doesn’t want it to end because he’s not ready for that and he also desperately needs it to end because how can he possibly survive something this good?

and afterward he accidentally falls right back asleep like a complete schlub and doesn’t wake until sunset, when Lucius pokes his head in to check on them and Roach pushes past to carry in a tray of food because they can’t survive on sleep and sex alone, they’re grown men how can they not know that, and Ed blushes and tucks his face into Stede’s chest when Fang says he’s so happy for them and Jim mutters about how Ed could have saved them all a lot of trouble and mutters something in Spanish that has Oluwande snagging the back of their collar and hauling them out, and when it’s quiet and calm and just the two of them again and Ed is eating orange slices he finally finds the bravery to ask “did you mean it?” and Stede sips his tea and asks “did i mean what?” and Ed eats another orange slice and says “that you’re…besotted” and Stede says “of course i meant it, Ed, or i wouldn’t have said it” and Ed didn’t think it was possible to blush any more than he already was or smile any wider than he already is but today is a day for revelations, and he mutters “love you too” into Stede’s tits and Stede takes Ed’s orange and sets it on the side table with his saucer and teacup and then takes Ed’s face in his hands and kisses him and it tastes like citrus and sugar and home

#our flag means death #blackbonnet #my writing #idk what this is #but y’all get to have it #ofmd #ofmd fic #gentlebeard

[our-death-means-flag]

Tuesdays?

Ship: Steadyhands x Reader Request by @bbygrill18! Notes: My very first request!! ٩(๑❛ᴗ❛๑)۶ Featuring my favorite boys helping afab!reader with period cramps. I decided to stick with gender neutral pronouns so everyone can enjoy! (Hope that’s alright!) Warnings: mentions of blood/period things, some implications of Y/N being treated poorly on past crews (nothing more severe than canon)

You woke up feeling like you had been stabbed. 

Well, shit.

There go your plans to have a lovely day with your lovers.

You weren’t sure if it was better when you knew it was coming or when it was a shock. On the one hand, when it came slowly, you could plan ahead. But it also meant that the anticipation loomed over you like a knife. When it came quickly, you couldn’t plan but you also couldn’t dread it. Honestly it sounded like one of those annoying choices where you didn’t actually have a real choice. Between a rock and a hard place.

Of course your preference didn’t matter to your body so when you’d woken up this morning with a familiar dull ache in your abdomen, you hadn’t been able to plan (though considering that you’d been on cloud nine ever since starting a relationship with all three of your crushes, you probably wouldn’t have been able to plan all that well). 

The first time you’d gotten your monthly after moving into the captains’ cabin with your lovers and of course it had to be a bad one of course… And you already knew it would only get worse later in the day.

 It took a tremendous amount of willpower to wriggle out of Ed’s arms and away from Stede’s warmth and the soft silky sheets. Both because of how much they both cling to you in their sleep (adorable) and because you really wanted nothing more than to curl up in their arms for the foreseeable future. Izzy, being the workaholic he was, had long since woken up. Ed whined under his breath as you made your escape and you paused just long enough to plant a kiss on his cheek. “Sorry love.” 

You all but ran into the bathroom. Sighing in annoyance as you gathered your things, you quickly switched out your sanitary products. (Of course as soon as Stede had found out about you, he’d gotten you all the best supplies money could buy, making sure to buy each kind since he didn’t know what your preference was.) You’d usually stay and eat with your lovers but you wanted to get some work done before your cramps got worse so you grabbed a quick bite of breakfast and then went on your way.

You knew that it wouldn’t take long for your partners to notice that something was off, but you could delay for a bit longer. 

Honestly you had no idea what to do. You’d been on different crews before joining up with the Revenge and back then you’d just work through the pain. Both because time off wasn’t a luxury you could afford and because you knew most ships weren’t too kind about women on board. On the rare occasions that it got unbearable, you managed to play it off as an illness.  

You'd have been able to just take a day or two off on the Revenge, courtesy of Stede’s generous vacation policy. But you usually just worked through it. You hadn’t been a pirate nearly as long as Ed or Izzy but you certainly knew how unforgiving the world could be about weakness. And even though you knew that you were safe here, it was a hard habit to break.

Izzy stared at you with a raised eyebrow as you walked on deck, clearly surprised that you were awake so early. He returned your overcompensatingly chipper “Good morning” with a mumble of “morning…?” which sounded confused enough to be a question.

You tried to ignore both him and the building throbbing pain in your gut as you went about checking the rigging and redoing a few knots.

You could feel Izzy looming. But you wanted to avoid the incoming conversation so you did your damndest not to think about it as you adjusted the rigging. As you finished that up you turned and nearly barreled into Izzy, who had apparently been looming over you this entire time.

“Are you alright?” His tone sounded closer to an accusation than a question but you knew Izzy well enough to know just from the look on his face that he was worried. “Are you sick?” He added before you could answer, glancing down at where your arm was wrapped around your midsection.

“Yeah, I’m fine! No worries.” You immediately dropped your arm, trying to make it look casual as you instead leaned back against the railing.

Izzy narrowed his eyes then, after a brief pause, grabbed you by the arm and all but dragged you towards the cabin.

“Izzy!” You yelped in surprise. You tried to pull your arm free but, while Izzy’s grip was gentle enough not to hurt you, it was unbreakable. You gave up rather quickly as you knew full well that in a battle of strength, Izzy would win so you allowed him to drag you into the captains’ cabin and all but threw you in.

Stede seemed to be in the middle of preparing breakfast while Ed was still huddled up in bed, only his hair and one arm visible from under the covers. Stede beamed at your sudden arrival. “Good morning, loves!”

“Morning.” You couldn’t help but smile when you saw that expression on Stede’s face. It was adorable.

You were all ready to drop the subject of your less than stellar condition but it seemed that Izzy was not. He stood leaned against the doorframe, notably blocking you in. “There’s something going on with them and they’re not telling me what it is. They might be sick.” He reported, the edge in his tone barely noticeable. “Do the talk-it-through shit.”

Stede’s face immediately fell and Ed’s head popped up from under the sheets. 

“Oh darling, come sit.” Stede patted the couch and smiled, concern clear on his face.

You sighed. “It's really not a big deal…” You waved your hands dismissively. 

“Pish posh!” Stede exclaimed and gently pulled you into the couch and pressed a cup of fresh tea into your hand. “If it’s bothering you then it most certainly is a big deal.”

You were about to dismiss again when you were suddenly grabbed from behind, a curtain of dark hair blocking your view as you tried to look around. Ed leaned against you from behind the couch. In a shockingly graceful movement for a man who had just dragged himself out of bed, Ed clambered over the couch and positioned himself at your side and wrapped his arms and legs around you. 

You were officially trapped. Well, honestly you had been since the moment Izzy had grabbed you but now with Ed clinging to you, Stede’s unfairly convincing smiles and Izzy guarding the door, escape had officially become impossible. You sighed and relaxed fully, accepting your fate of a rather awkward conversation.

Izzy still lingered by the door, though whether he was more worried about you running away or someone sneaking up on you while you were vulnerable, was hard to guess. It may very well be both.

Stede dropped down into a somewhat awkward squat to be on eye level with you and put his hands over yours on the cup. “Well love? What’s the matter? You know my rule on this ship. We talk it through…”

“As a crew.” You finished with a small smile. You resisted the urge to minimize again and just stated flatly. “It’s my time of the month and I’m in quite a bit of pain.”

You managed to avoid laughing when Izzy raised a brow and whispered a soft confused “That hurts?” to himself, seemingly genuinely confused. But your composure didn’t last.

Ed mumbled a sleepy “What time?” He buried his face into your shoulder and added, “Tuesdays? Bet it’s a fuckin’ thing.” You couldn’t help but snort at that. You were fairly sure Ed was grinning as well, probably hoping to make you laugh.

“Oh honey,” Stede soothed. “Is there anything I can do to help? What do you normally do?”

You sighed, gently sipping your tea. “I don’t usually do anything actually. Just do what I do everyday.” Poor Stede looked heartbroken. “Most ships aren’t all that excited to have a woman on board.” You reminded. “I couldn’t exactly say what was really wrong and if I was ‘sick’ too much I’d probably get tossed overboard for the trouble. What kind of ship would want a crew member who got bedridden every month?”  

Izzy hissed in sympathy. You had no doubt he’d worked through illnesses before. Even Ed clung to you a little tighter.

“That’s horrible, dear.” Stede sympathized. You shrugged in response. That was just how things were. “But you know that here you can take all the time you need.”

“You always make me rest. Rather hypocritical.” Izzy added.

“I know. I know. But it’s an old habit. Sorry for keeping it from you.” You responded.

“I could take a nap.” Ed mused. You almost rolled your eyes. Ed was the only person you’d ever met who could sleep for a million years and still decide to go back to bed when he woke up. “Might make you feel better?” He offered.

“How about a heat pack as well? They always seemed to help Mary.” Stede offered.

“Never tried one. I’d like to though.” You smiled lightly.

“I’ll get it.” Izzy jumped at the chance to help and all but ran out of the cabin, mission acquired.

You chuckled, finishing your tea. Stede was quick to take the cup. Ed, seeing that you no longer had a breakable cup in your hand was quick to stand, pulling you up with him. You yelped in surprise but were smiling. “Ed! Careful!” Stede softly reprimanded. 

Ed ignored him and curled up in bed with you in tow. He was quick to pull you up against him, being the big spoon for once. 

Stede stepped in and gently wrapped both of you in blankets. Stede planted a kiss on Ed’s cheek then yours. “You rest. I’ll get you something to eat alright? And some chocolate?”

“Chocolate.” You mused. “Yes please.” 

Stede smiled and left the room with a chipper “Be back in a moment.”

Mere moments after Stede left, Izzy returned. He’d been so quick you were wondering if he’d run all the way to the kitchen to get the hot water and the water skin. Knowing Izzy, he probably had. He paused just long enough to grab a very soft towel to wrap the water skin in and knelt by the bed so he could gently help you rest it against your abdomen. The heat was heavenly against your skin, the cramping going from painful to barely uncomfortable. You breathed a sigh of relief. 

“Better?” Izzy asked, almost hopeful. 

You nodded, “Much better.”

Izzy hesitated, his fingers twitching towards your hand from where they were on the bed. You took the initiative and grabbed his hand. He gently caressed your hand. “How badly does it usually hurt?” He asked, clearly still upset that you were in pain.

You tightened your grip on his hand. “Depends. Can be really bad or just annoying. Kind of feels like getting punched in the gut to be honest.” You admitted. “Sucks.” It honestly felt kinda good to vent a little.

Izzy sighed. “I have to go back on deck. Someone has to make sure those idiots don’t sink the ship.” Even though he said idiots, his tone was softer. You smiled, glad that he was warming up to the crew. “I’ll make sure to get you another heating pack when this one gets too cold.” With Izzy in charge of that, you doubted you’d have even a second of not having a good heating pack. “Ed,” Izzy addressed. “Make sure they don’t try to go back to work.” He was almost verbatim quoting you the last time he’d gotten sick. 

Ed grinned and released you with one hand just long enough to give a somewhat snarky salute. “Gotcha.”

Before Izzy could leave, you gently pulled his hand up to your lips, planting a soft kiss on his knuckles. “Thank you so much Iz. You’re the best. I love you.”

Izzy, just like he had the first time you had kissed him, turned every shade of red and stood up so quickly he nearly fell. He mumbled a mix of ‘thank you’, ‘fuck’, and ‘love you too’ and bolted. You chuckled lightly.

“And you always tell me not to tease him?” Ed mumbled into your neck. You could feel his breath on your skin. “Hypocrite.” 

You chuckled breathlessly. “How is it teasing for me to tell one of my boyfriends how much I love him? I love you too, of course. Is that teasing?” You teased. You adjusted, leaning against Ed more and hiding under the blankets.

Ed laughed and planted a soft kiss on the back of your neck. “Love you too.” The two of you sat in silence for a moment. “You know…” Ed broke the silence and you could tell from his tone of voice that he was about to be a menace. “We are all bloodthirsty pirates after all… If you’re still up for it.” It took you a moment. Then Ed said “Wink wink” out loud and it clicked.

“Edward fucking Teach.” You tried to sound disappointed in him but it was severely undercut by how much you were trying to hold back your laughter.

“What?” The menace in question replied, feigning innocence. He planted another kiss where your shoulder meets your neck. “You love me, remember?” He teased.

You groaned but laughed. “Of course I do, you menace.”

You relished the incredible situation you found yourself and could hardly believe it was real. Here you were, one of your lovers holding you, another fetching you your favorite food, and another making sure you were safe and bringing you heating packs. It was such a difference from all the times you’d been curled up alone on other ships that it may well be heaven.

A/N: Hope I did the request justice!

These ridiculous, adorable, and unhinged boys are so fun to write.

Extra Headcanons: You send the boys to get supplies (modern au)

Ed at the store, talking loudly on the phone, 100% seriously: Babe! I’m in the pad aisle, what size pussy you wear?

Hearing you laugh over the phone is 1000% worth all the weird looks

He makes a very interesting picture, decked out in leather with a thick beard and tattoos with a small pastel colored box under his arm

Stede, returns with a shopping cart full of products (he bought one of each size and brand): I wasn’t sure if the colors meant different things ( ; ω ; )

Also bought snacks, three different heating packs and probably anything else in the store that claimed to help.

Izzy, the only one who already knew what you needed since he spotted the box before and made a mental note, walking back to you with a death grip on the shopping bag since this is for you and you need it and trusted him to get it: *intense focus*

Modern!Izzy would complete any task that his partners gave him with the same steely determination as Canon!Izzy handling a raid

Would 100% stab anyone getting in the way of him getting you what you need

#stede bonnet x reader #ofmd x reader #ofmd #our flag means death #our flag means death x reader #izzy hands x reader #israel hands x reader #steddyhands #edward teach x reader #steddyhands x reader

[stedebonnit]

Its seasonal depression season and I'm thinking about the crew sailing up north for the winter because Stede has never seen snow having grown up in Barbados, and I'm thinking about him being so excited at first when he sees the snow comkng down, feels the cool breeze and the snowflakes on his tongue, but over the shortening days, Stede's mood starts to dip, and he finds himself in this sort of anhedonia.

He finds it harder and harder to get out of bed, sleeping through the days, barely eating anything. He suddenly cant bring himself to feel happy or excited, he hasnt smiled in weeks, and he doesn't care to do all the things he'd planned to do once they got to the snow.

Stede feels this panic, deep down, because this is so similar to how he felt with Mary, trapped in a space that never fit him, a deep melancholy weighing him down.

He has Ed now, and he knows its different. He loves Ed, that hasnt changed, but underneath the ever-present fog he feels this terror, a fear that he'll drive Ed off, make him resent Stede just like his wife did. He's tired, boring, and crabby, he can't imagine anyone wanting to be around him when hes like this. He doesn't even want to be around himself like this. He doesnt understand why he feels this way, and he doesn't know how to fix it.

With Mary, he'd always known deep down that leaving would fix the way he felt, it was the guilt of what that meant that held him back for so long. Its different, now. Everything he's ever wanted, everything he knows he still wants, is just beyond the cabin door, but he can't find an ounce of motivation within himself. He wants to go out, to show the crew, to show Edward that he cares, that he's more than this, but he feels stuck in the bed, staring blankly out the window, too tired to even cry. He doesn't want to fall into apathy again, but he feels himself slipping beneath his fingers with each passing day that he can't force himself out of bed to join Ed and the crew.

Ed doesnt resent him. He's worried for Stede, of course, but he knows that this is different than it was with Mary. After a few weeks of silence, Ed bringing Stede his food in bed each day, taking care of Stede, Ed decides its time for a change. Gently, and so very patiently Ed coaxes Stede out of bed for the first time in a week, he helps Stede dress himself, his movements sluggish, his expression blank, and wraps an arm around him as they walk out of the cabin to join the crew out on the wintery deck.

The crew greets him with smiles, and though he cant bring himself to smile back, he manages a short wave and some simple nods. As Ed settles him down on a barrel, surrounded by the crew, a patient audience to Stede's return, he feels the sting of the winter breeze hit his face. Stede he can't bring himself to care, but luckily, Edward does, and the moment he sees Stedes cheeks tinge red, he pulls off his scarf and wraps it around Stede's neck with such care.

The Swede asks "Can you read to us, Captain? We've missed you."

Stede suddenly tears up, gratitude and shame warring with each other in his mind, bringing out the painful sadness that has been simmering for weeks under the surface. He's touched that the crew has thought of him, that he matters enough to be missed, but Stede doesn't have it in him to read them a story. Right now he can't even bring himself to communicate with more than a nod or a shake of his head, so in that moment he blinks back the tears and shakes his head, curling himself into Ed for warmth.

The crew understands, and instead he sits and listens to Lucius reading them stories (Ed does the voices, because Lucius can't).

Each day after that, Ed helps Stede dress himself, walks him to the table for breakfast instead of bringing it to him in bed, he helps him to tidy the cabin, just a small amount each day. Stede is still weighed down by the fog, but getting himself moving helps to make it bearable, if only a bit. Ed is patient with him, encouraging him to try at least one thing each day, but never pushing him to do too much.

Eventually, they decide to sail back down south. Its not pleasant being out in the winter, and Stede is too depressed to do any of the winter activities they'd planned.

A few weeks later, as the days become longer again, Stede feels the fog begin to lift, inch by inch. He knows its real when he watches the sun rising through the cabin window before pulling himself out of bed without the need for Ed's gentle encouragement. Its the first time hes been out of bed before midday in weeks. Thats when he notices, for the first time in weeks, that a smile has crept onto his lips. Stede runs to find Edward, collapsing into his arms, and Ed holds him as he weeps with relief. The fog has lifted, and they survived it together.

#ofmd #our flag means death #stede bonnet #blackbonnet #gentlebeard #ofmd headcanon #mine #d speaks #can u tell im projecting

[naranjapetrificada]

I don't usually stay up for the new eps but it accidentally happened this time somehow? Anyway several immediate, off-the-dome thoughts, behind a cut so I don't ruin your scrolling:

Only having 8 episodes instead of 10 is really, really showing now

We were robbed of a scene of Ed and Stede dancing for even a couple seconds and I'm livid. My uncharitable take is that we could have spared a few seconds of the scene with Taika's kids (which was cute, don't get me wrong) to see them dance a bit

I don't have gifs or anything but Rhys did an excellent Devastated Face pulling Taika into the cabin like that, and I'm still processing that *that* was the inciting event for it

Taika did excellent bedroom eyes while the curtain was getting pulled around the bed nook but I guess we already knew he was good at eyes

Speaking of the bed nook, that really limited the cinematography options for a morning after scene didn't it? Rhys did some nice faces but honestly? It didn't feel as warm and affectionate as I was hoping and I can't quite figure out why yet

Actually relevant to my last point, but despite it being The Part of the Show Where They Fuck, did anyone else feel like there was a noticeable lack of casual affection in 6&7? Because tbh the main reason I wanted them to fuck was the eventual casual affection. I might do a whole separate post about this after a re-watch.

At least right now, I'm less bothered by the Izzy stuff I haven't been able to shut up about lately, maybe because there's more important stuff going on

Everything was set up for the "breakup" to the point where I wasn't surprised, and I'm also not worried given what's most likely coming in the finale

The most shocking moment to me was Stede setting that person on fire. With the Ned Low scene I could see how they were pulling the strings together, like that he insulted Ed and that people talk about the real Stede Bonnet introducing walking the plank. But he was so casual with throwing that cigar that even though it was undeniably badass, it was just so out of character (in a believable way, like the kind of thing that shows a character hitting a point of no return) that it totally took me by surprise (in a good way)

Now I actually do have to sleep but I'm super excited for a re-watch later!

#ofmd #ofmd s2 #ofmd s2 spoilers #ofmd s2e6 #ofmd s2e7 #ofmd season 2 #ofmd spoilers #our flag means death #stede bonnet #edward teach #ofmd meta

[adzeisval]

Hope Banished Nightmares

Izzy hasn't had a good nights sleep in ages, plagued by horrible nightmares. Stede realizes Izzy isn't the same man that he's killed in his dreams. Takes place during the 1st half of season 2. Also on AO3.

Izzy couldn’t remember the last time he had slept through the night without having a nightmare. It started the night after losing the first toe and continued every night after that. Things were starting to blend together; reality was often as nightmarish as the dreams were. 

In the dreams Ed cut off toe after toe and Izzy had to swallow them whole. Ed took two more of his toes, the nightmares were not unfounded. 

 Then the dreams shifted and he would walk into the Captain’s cabin to find Ed dead, overdosed on something or having shot himself. Then Eddie held a pistol under his chin and Izzy had put himself in danger so Ed didn’t pull the trigger on himself or anyone else. 

In the fever and drunken haze that followed Izzy dreamed of someone putting him out of his misery. Then Ed had left a loaded gun in his hand and Izzy felt he had no choice. Somehow he failed to end it all. Sometimes in the nightmares he succeeded. 

Then he shot Ed and watched the crew kill him. The dreams after that were the worst. A ghostly Ed haunted him, sometimes Izzy would be the one to kill Ed, or he would be too late and the whole crew would die. 

Izzy thought he might go mad and at some point he wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between dream and nightmare. Was there any hope for him? 

*****

Izzy had failed. He’d failed in every way he could and he was miserable. He was going to die and perhaps he even deserved it but his crew didn’t. He’d failed them completely. Zheng was going to kill them all for the mutiny and Stede wasn’t going to be able to step in and stop it and he probably wouldn’t even for former members of his crew. He would never do it for Izzy. 

Because they had killed Ed. 

Izzy should have let them push Ed’s body off the edge of the ship. Should have just let the storm take him. He couldn’t do it and because of that his crew was doomed. He’d fucked everything up. He couldn’t save Ed, he couldn’t save his crew, and he couldn’t save himself. 

“Alright, alright everyone out but the condemned,” Zheng’s first mate called out and shooed the Revenge crew and Stede out. Izzy could feel the tension rise in the cell. 

“So,” Auntie said, “Which one of you started the mutiny?” 

“I did,” Izzy said. He had. He’d shot Ed and that had started the whole thing. He might not have directly killed Ed but he had started it.

“Huh, not used to having someone admit it right away,” Auntie said, “Why?” 

Izzy snorted, “Why do you think?” He stretched his peg leg out. It was so much more complicated than that but he wasn’t in the mood to talk about it, no one really cared anyway. 

“Right,” Auntie said, “I’ll be back shortly.” 

Izzy watched her go then sighed, “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I should have gotten rid of the body. I should have acted sooner to stop Ed. I…I’m sorry.” Izzy didn’t know what else to say. It was all his fault. 

No one spoke. He hadn’t expected any sort of forgiveness but he was surprised that no one was blaming him or cursing at him or telling him to fuck off. 

Auntie came back in and looked at the group. Izzy expected he would be the first to be taken above to be killed. They’d probably make a big production out of it too. But Auntie looked around and then pointed at Fang. 

“You.” 

Fang was taken out of the cell and Izzy wished there was something he could do. He couldn’t even manage to say anything to Fang as he was taken away. No one else moved either. 

A shot rang out above and there was a thud. 

Izzy remembered the first time he met Fang. He remembered all the years Fang had been with the crew and now he was gone. Dead because Izzy couldn’t do anything right. 

They took Archie next and there was a shot and another thud. 

“Fuck,” Frenchie said. 

They took Frenchie and there was another shot and a thud. Izzy heard a sniffing sound and looked over to see that Jim was shaking and crying. 

Jim locked eyes with Izzy then looked away like they were ashamed to be caught crying. Izzy thought that in the past, the very recent past, he would have yelled at Jim or told them to buck up. 

“Jim…” 

“I don’t want to die Izzy,” Jim said. 

‘I know.” 

Jim stood and came toward Izzy and took his hand. Izzy squeezed Jim’s hand. Jim let out a shaky sob. 

Auntie came back and Jim tried to wipe the tears from their face. Izzy watched Jim go. He waited. Another shot. Another thud. He was alone. 

His Captain, a man he loved, was gone. His crew was gone. He’d just heard each and every one of his remaining crew fall. He couldn’t even comfort them, he couldn’t fight for them. Izzy started to cry. 

Izzy heard footsteps and he only vaguely realized that it was someone different. He looked up after a moment to see Stede Bonnet standing before him. Stede had a gun in his hand. 

“Come to finish me off yourself Bonnet?” Izzy asked. 

“I have some questions,” Stede said. 

“Go on,” Izzy sighed. 

“Why did you kill him?” 

“To protect the crew, he…he’d gone mad, I told you this.” 

“Yet you kept his body on board the ship, not a smart idea,” Bonnet said. 

“I…I couldn’t…I couldn’t just toss him overboard,” Izzy said. 

“You got part of my crew killed,” Bonnet said. 

“I know. I…I’m sorry Stede. I failed everyone, Ed most of all.” 

“Don’t say his name…” 

“I loved him!” Izzy yelled, “I loved the crew! I…just fucking kill me!” 

“Get up on deck,” Stede ordered. Izzy hobbled up on deck, he didn’t have the energy to try to bait Bonnet into shooting him anymore. He wished Bonnet would; Izzy did not want to see the dead crew. He hadn’t heard any splashes so the bodies were still on deck. Izzy hoped they would be given a little dignity in death and at least get a proper sea burial. If anyone bothered to ask for his last wishes it would be that; a proper burial for the crew. Bonnet would certainly give one to Ed. 

The bodies were laid out on deck, covered in sail.

“See what you did?” Bonnet said, “You killed them all.” Izzy had tried. He’d tried to walk the line between Ed and the crew and he tried to figure out how to save them both. He wanted to save both. But he was useless in that regard. He was useless. Couldn’t keep his Captain alive, couldn’t keep the crew alive, couldn’t even keep himself alive. Bonnet was sure to fire the pistol in his hand at any moment. 

“You might be the most useless, pathetic person I’ve ever known,” Bonnet said. Bonnet finally lifted the pistol and Izzy was glad it was almost over. 

*****

Izzy jolted awake then groaned in pain. Nightmare. Not real. His head hurt, his stump was throbbing, and he wanted to cry. It took him a long time to shake off the dream and remember what had really happened. 

The crew was safe. They had taken back the Revenge in the dead of night and escaped. He hadn’t gotten them killed. 

Ed was gone though. That part of the dream was true. Izzy sat up with a groan and wondered how long it would take Bonnet’s grief to turn to anger. How long would it be before the man took his pain out on Izzy? Maybe he deserved it. He probably did. There was no use for him now that the crew was safe. Bonnet would get rid of him, and even a soft man like that would likely kill him. Izzy wanted to go back to sleep but his stump was throbbing and he really needed to get up and find a bottle of something to deal with the pain, to deal with everything. 

There was some sort of commotion outside and Izzy wondered if they were under attack. Then there was a knock on his door and he opened it to find Jim standing there with an odd look on their face. 

“Jim? What is it?” 

“Izzy, uh, Ed’s still alive. Stede was with him and he woke up.” 

Izzy felt sick. He felt dizzy. He felt a strange numbness crawling through his body. He didn’t know what to say, didn’t know how to react or what to do.

“Izzy?” 

“I…thanks for telling me,” Izzy said and Jim rushed off. Izzy saw the crew was gathering around an excited Stede and snuck away from them making sure to grab a bottle on his way up. 

He drank two swigs right away and another three once he popped out next to the figurehead. 

Eddie was alive. They hadn’t killed him. Stede would likely keep him on board. Izzy really didn’t have a place there did he? He’d mutinied. He was both glad and terrified that Ed was still alive. 

Izzy didn’t know what was going to happen to him and he didn’t want to think about it so he took another drink. Only the pain let him know he was really awake. 

*****

Stede wasn’t sure how much he believed about Ed going mad. That was until he was talking with the crew and several of them made it clear that they did not want Ed on board. He’d only talked with Izzy about it and he had been sure once he found out that Ed was dead that Izzy had been exaggerating. 

Honestly he had been too lost in grief to think that much about it.

Now the crew was insisting on a vote to decide Ed’s fate and they were not in agreement on the whole thing. 

“We’re forgetting Izzy,” Jim said and the group stopped arguing. 

“Somebody should ask him,” Fang said. Stede barely stifled a groan. He didn’t want to have to ask Izzy. He didn’t really want to talk to Izzy. He’d lied. Lied about leaving Ed on a beach, lied when he said he could never kill Ed. Izzy was not someone whose vote should count at all. 

“Fine,” Stede sighed, “I’ll ask Izzy.” 

The group went back to talking and Stede took a moment to gather his thoughts before heading out on deck. Frenchie and Jim were waiting for him. 

“What is it?” Stede asked, trying not to sound too bitchy and probably failing. 

“Just, don’t be too hard on Izzy Captain,” Frenchie said. 

“He’s had a hard time,” Jim said. 

Stede scoffed, “Hard time killing Ed you mean. Hard time lying about it all.” 

“He didn’t kill Ed, or he didn’t deal the death blow,” Jim said. 

“He only shot Ed in the arm to keep him from killing us all,” Frenchie said. 

“Then who…” 

“I did,” Jim said, “I was the one to kill him, or I thought I did. Izzy could only watch, he was…in bad shape after losing the leg.” 

“And was that Ed’s fault?” 

“Ed shot Izzy,” Jim said, “Archie and I had to amputate his leg, he almost died.” 

“And that’s after Ed cut off several of his toes,” Frenchie added, “Ed ordered me to kill Izzy and I couldn’t do it.” 

“Ed was gonna shoot one of us that day. Izzy made sure it was him. Just…we know he’s an asshole sometimes but just…that’s not all he is,” Jim said. 

“He’s the one who kept Ed’s body on board,” Frenchie added, “Izzy’s the reason Ed’s still alive.” 

Stede looked between the two crew and knew they were telling the truth. Izzy…Izzy was the reason Ed was alive? Stede bristled at the thought of having to thank Izzy for doing such a thing but…maybe he wasn’t being entirely fair to Izzy. 

Izzy had almost always been a villain in Stede’s dreams. He’d had several where to get to Ed, to save the man he loved, he had to kill Izzy. And in the dreams it felt good. Felt good to run him through and watch him die. But the crew was right that there was something more to Izzy. Dreams weren’t reality. 

Stede wondered why Izzy had kept the body on board when it was far more practical to get rid of the evidence of the mutiny. He thought back to the way Izzy had said he could never kill Ed. 

Love. It had to be. Izzy loved Ed. They both loved Ed and they both hurt him and maybe Izzy deserved compassion as much as Stede did. 

Stede found Izzy, drunk and disheveled and saw something different there. Pain. Not just physical pain from the leg but a deeper hurt that wouldn’t be so easily cured. Izzy was lost and uncertain and Stede couldn’t bring himself to hurt the man more. 

He brought up Izzy keeping the body on board and Izzy didn’t deny it. Stede got Izzy’s vote and left the man there. He decided then and there to keep Izzy on board, as long as Izzy wanted to stay.

Most of the crew of the Revenge were lost, traumatized, uncertain people, much as Stede had been when he first set sail. That’s where Izzy was at the moment and Stede couldn’t turn the man away. Izzy deserved a chance. He deserved some hope. 

*****

Izzy was sure that when Bonnet came to him he was going to be told to leave the ship. Ed was back so Izzy had to go. That had to be why Bonnet was there. But no. No. For some reason Bonnet thought enough of Izzy to ask his opinion about banishing Ed. 

Izzy wanted Ed gone. At least he thought he wanted Ed gone. Didn’t he? Shouldn’t he? What…what was he now? Nothing made sense and the booze both helped and didn’t. 

Izzy expected someone to have enough of him and get rid of him. Surely they could see how useless he was? Bonnet was too soft to do it. The crew didn’t need him. He hadn’t done his job. None of them. Did they want him to take matters into his own hands? Were they just going to wait until he drank himself to death? 

Everything was a blur. He attacked the figurehead, his peg leg broke. The crew came to help him but why? He was already gone wasn’t he? Didn’t they see that?

He passed out for a bit and he dreamed about the crew coming in and finishing his useless ass off. He woke and it wasn’t true, though he was sure it would happen soon. 

Then the crew left him the leg and the note. They…they did care? Even when he had so little to offer them? They wanted him? He wasn’t just a burden? He…maybe he could be something still, maybe there was more to him than being first mate to Blackbeard. 

Izzy walked out onto deck with his new leg, a little shaky at first, but he made it on his own. He’d cleaned himself up a bit and eased off the bottle. He felt better. Izzy walked around on deck a little bit getting used to the new leg. 

He’d just gone below deck when Bonnet came back. Not alone. Bonnet called another meeting, another vote. Ed didn’t have anywhere to go, it would just be for another night. Izzy knew that wouldn’t be it. If Ed was allowed back it would be for good. 

“What do you think Izzy?” Bonnet asked. 

What did he think? Too much to give a simple answer. For starters it was nice to be asked, to be included in the conversation. With his head a little clearer he thought of Ed differently. 

Ed had been hurting from the loss of Bonnet, and from Izzy’s seeming indifference to that pain, Izzy’s pushing him too hard into something that wasn’t right for him anymore. Izzy wanted Ed to be better, to come out of that madness and depression and get better and fuck him the best place for that was on the Revenge. With Stede fucking Bonnet, with a crew that was kinder than they should be. It was working for Izzy, it could work for Ed. 

Izzy Hands wanted Edward Teach to be alright because there was still a little love for the man in his heart. Maybe more than a little.  

“Ed can stay, as far as I’m concerned,” Izzy said. 

He didn’t know what would come of the whole thing, if it would end in disaster or if it would all turn out alright but Izzy had hope for the latter. 

Izzy had a crew and a home and he didn’t want to deny Ed the chance to have those too. Izzy was where he belonged, and he hoped Ed would find that place too. 

Izzy went to his room exhausted by the events of the day, and for the first time in a long time he slept through the night.

#ofmd #izzy hands #stede bonnet #edward teach #jim jimenez #frenchie #angst with a happy ending #fic

[gonzo-rella]

Estranged | Edward Teach/Blackbeard (ft. Stede Bonnet)

MASTERLIST | AO3 | KO-FI

Relationship(s): Edward Teach/Blackbeard x Stede Bonnet x gn!reader (romantic)

Summary: Things start to go back to normal when you, Stede and the marooned crew return to the Revenge. However, your relationship with Ed is still strained.

Warnings: Angst, relationship issues, ‘somehow, Palpatine returned’ levels of me not explaining how on Earth we got here. (Let me know if I need to add any)

Word count: 1.5k

(A/N: So, I wrote an Izzy fic where the reader deals with their feelings after Izzy maroons them (go check it out if you haven’t already; it’s one of my favourite pieces on this blog). I really wanted to do a Blackbonnet x reader fic with a similar sort of premise because I knew it would work well, so I wrote this. It’s more focused on the Ed side of the relationship, just because I felt like it. Also, I’m not used to writing poly relationships. Hopefully that doesn’t show too much in my writing, and feel free to let me know if there’s anything I should keep in mind when writing poly relationships in the future! [Insert obligatory begging for OFMD requests])

It was all starting to improve. You, Stede and the crew were back on the Revenge, Stede and Ed were repairing their relationship and Ed was becoming himself again. But, between the three of you, there was still some uncomfortability. Ed was still grappling with Stede’s temporary abandonment, while you were dealing with being marooned by Ed (as well as the idea that, for a moment, Stede had chosen his old life over you and Ed). 

It hadn’t gone unnoticed that you’d been avoiding your two boyfriends. Some of the crew believed that you were just giving them some space so they could work things out between them (after all, your split with Ed was caused by Stede ditching him); the others assumed you were pissed at the both of them.

Compared to your relationship with Ed, though, your relationship with Stede was doing far better. You hadn’t felt as personally hurt by Stede. It sucked what he did to Ed- you fully acknowledged that. But, the way you saw it, they both left you for a reason out of their control at first, but Ed had ultimately chosen to abandon you and your friends, leaving you all for dead. No matter how long it took for him to have a change of heart, Stede returned in the end, rescuing you and the crew in the process. Ed didn’t come back for you. He probably wasn’t going to, even if you’d have been trapped on that island until your final breath.

With all these feelings swirling around your head, it was difficult to sleep, especially in the same bed as them. As quietly as possible, you crept out of your cabin and out to the deck. The crew, like your boyfriends, were sound asleep. 

You took a seat on one of the bottom steps, admiring the ocean through the gap between the balusters. Even after all your years of being a pirate, the dark depths of the sea still terrified you- at that moment part of you was fixated on the unlikely scenario of you going overboard and sinking to the bottom of the sea. But, before you could completely lose yourself in your thoughts and fears, you were grounded by the feeling of your palm against the chilly wooden step you were sitting on. Perhaps lying under the scorching sun awaiting death gave you a new appreciation for the cool night air.

The first real feeling of calm you’d experienced in a while was so overpowering that you lost track of how long you had been out on the deck. You didn’t even notice that you weren’t alone (aside from the sleeping crew, of course) until-

“There you are.”

You jumped.

“Ah, shit. Sorry ‘bout that.”

A pair of boot-clad footsteps drew closer, then you felt a thud on the step beside you.

“You alright?”

You hummed in response.

“What are you doing out here, love?”

“Couldn’t sleep.”

He sighed.

“Do you want me to leave you alone?”

Your breath hitched in your throat. In a sudden movement, you finally turned to face him. You locked eyes for a moment. He watched you with a puzzled, somewhat frightened look as you contemplated what you wanted. You shuffled to rest your back against the railing and ultimately shook your head, your gaze dropping to your lap in the process.

He nodded.

“Alright.” 

You glanced up at Ed.

“Did I wake you up?” you asked.

“No, no.” he assured you. “Actually, Stede did. He noticed you were gone. I said I’d have a look for you, make sure you were okay.”

“Sorry.” you mumbled.

Instinctively, he reached over to rest a comforting hand on your knee, but he quickly recoiled and cleared his throat.

“You don’t need to apologise.” Ed insisted. “I’m just glad you’re okay.”

You offered him a weak smile, which he (after overcoming his surprise) quickly returned.

Rolling your head back slightly, you fixed your eyes on the stars above you. An exhale escaped your nostrils as your body relaxed once again. You lost yourself in the stars and the silence, and Ed could feel you slipping away again. He couldn’t take his eyes off you. Maybe it was because, since your return, you had avoided being caught in his line of sight as much as possible. He’d only really seen you from afar, or when you were asleep. It had been so long since you’d stayed so close to him physically (at least that’s how it felt) and even then your mind was worlds away.

He swallowed his saliva. The action was unintentionally loud, so much so that it earned him a glance from you. You did a double take. His eyes, glued to you, were glistening in the moonlight. After a few seconds of studying his face, you realised his eyes were brimming with tears. Your heart sank.

“What’s the matter?” you said softly.

It wasn’t as though you couldn’t make a guess.

“‘M fine.” he muttered.

“Okay.” you nodded, biting your lip.

You drummed your fingers lightly against the wooden step beside you. You couldn’t blame him for his reluctance to open up after you’d been so distant towards him, and especially after what happened with Stede. He’d expressed his feelings, only to get his heart broken. That’s why he’d pushed you away and resorted to completely casting you aside. It was up to you to start the healing process.

“You know,” you admitted. “Earlier, when you asked me if I was okay… I might have been lying a bit when I said I was.”

Concern filled his teary  eyes.

“I couldn’t sleep because I was thinking about everything that happened.” you explained.

You paused.

“To be honest, I’m really fucking hurt and I haven’t been dealing with it all that well. That’s kinda why I’ve been avoiding you.”

His breathing became a little ragged, causing your eyes to widen in alarm. Thinking quickly, you requested, “Can I hold your hand, Ed?”

Avoiding looking at you, he nodded. You gently took his trembling hand, rested it on the nearest step and brushed your thumb over his rough knuckles.

“I’m sorry I’ve been avoiding you.” you apologised, still absently stroking his hand.

Ed shook his head.

“You shouldn’t be apologising to me.” Ed insisted, his voice weak. “I’m the one who colossally fucked up.”

“I didn’t handle this whole thing that well.” you contended. “You find opening up really hard- I get that. I should’ve at least tried talking to you about it, instead of punishing you by… sort of ignoring you.”

“It’s obvious how much I hurt you. And, you shouldn’t ’ve had to start this conversation. I mean, this is my fault.” Ed responded. He ran his free hand over his face. “I was so surprised and absolutely fucking relieved when you came back and you didn’t tell me to piss off.”

Sensing he had more to say, you didn’t reply.

“It was completely out of fucking order what I did to you and those guys.” he continued, nodding to the slumbering crew several feet away. “I’d just… I’d had my heart absolutely shattered by Stede… and when I came back I didn’t want you to be able to hurt me like that, so… I distanced myself, then I got rid of you before you went away on your own. I know it doesn’t make what I did okay, but… you deserve an explanation.”

You smiled at him. 

“Thank you, Ed.”

“You shouldn’t be thanking me either.” he muttered.

“Eh, maybe not.” you shrugged playfully.

He chuckled weakly and finally looked up at you.

“I love you so fucking much.” he sighed.

You shuffled closer to him and cupped his stubble-covered cheeks. After running your thumbs along his cheekbones, you leaned in slowly. However, before your lips could touch, you whispered, “Mind if I kiss you?”

He chuckled more heartily this time.

“Go ahead.”

Grinning, you closed the gap and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips. He rested his hands on your shoulders, clinging to your shirt as though letting go meant losing you again. Nothing was completely fixed by that kiss- you both knew that- but you were on the right track.

You pulled away, still holding his face between your hands.

“I love you too, Ed.”

You gave him another quick peck on the lips before breaking away from him.

“Let’s finish talking tomorrow, yeah?” you suggested. “Maybe get Stede in on it too?”

He hummed in response.

You stood up and extended your hand to him.

“Going back to bed, then?” he asked.

“Yep.”

“I think I’ll join you.”

You giggled quietly and he interlaced his fingers with yours. He led you back to your shared cabin, opening and closing the door as quietly as possible. Still, Stede woke up.

“Shit. Sorry.” Ed hissed.

“Don’t worry.” Stede mumbled sleepily, squinting in the darkness. “Is that the both of you?”

“Yeah.” you answered.

As Ed kicked off his boots by the door, you climbed into bed with Stede, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek. He smiled, resting his head against your shoulder. You both made sure to leave room for Ed when you got comfortable. Soon enough, Ed joined you. He wrapped his arms around your waist and held Stede’s hand, which he lifted to his lips and gently kissed.

“Night, you guys.” you whispered.

“Night, darling.” they responded in unison.

For the first time in a while, everything felt right.

#edward teach x reader #blackbeard x reader #stede bonnet x reader #blackbonnet #blackbonnet x reader #edward teach x stede bonnet #ed x stede #edward teach #blackbeard #stede bonnet #ofmd x reader #our flag means death x reader #ofmd #our flag means death #x gn!reader #x gn reader #x gender neutral!reader #x gender neutral reader

[house-afire]

Knives in His Feet (Ed/Frenchie)

Prompt: 100 words of cats

“You’re the one who made the cat flag, aren’t you?”

Frenchie did his best not to jump out of his skin. It was sort of Blackbeard’s deal, especially these days, to suddenly be right behind you, so the startle reaction was just something you had to train out of yourself, wasn’t it, like needing sleep or flinching at the sight of blood. He always had blood on him now, drying around his fingernails and in the weave of his clothes.

“Thought it’d be fierce,” Frenchie said. He hastily added, “Skeleton with the heart, though, that’s better. Some of my best work, really.”

Blackbeard leaned close to him, his voice a hot whisper in Frenchie’s ear. “Want to see something weird?”

No, he actually didn’t. A guy asked you that kind of question, it wasn’t ever the good kind of weird, like a funny-colored parrot or a biscuit that sort of looked like you.

But he liked all his fingers and toes right where they were, thanks, so he wasn’t going to make trouble.

“’Course,” he said, following Blackbeard to the captain’s cabin.

It’d been a pretty place, in Stede’s day. Bit of a pit now, if Frenchie were honest. Very obviously the home of a man going through a real shitstorm of a break-up: damp hankies everywhere, slashed-up paintings, ashes from the ritual burning of the ex’s possessions, all that jazz. Sort of smelled funny.

“You hate cats,” Blackbeard told him.

“Hate’s a bit strong. Healthy terror of them, I’d say.”

Blackbeard’s kohl was streaked with tear-tracks, but picking up on that didn’t really make his bared-teeth smile any better. “Would you kill one?”

Frenchie had heard about Fang’s dog by now. Did Blackbeard have a cat in here, waiting for an appointment with Frenchie-the-executioner?

“D’you want me to get Iz?” Frenchie offered. “Think the whole, ah, death thing is more his speed.” Not that Izzy didn’t look as ashen and out-to-lunch as the rest of them, lately.

“Oh, Izzy won’t kill this kitty,” Blackbeard said, with something dark curling in his voice: satisfaction and anguish and bitterness all mixed together. “One of the few things he won’t do, even when he’s ordered, the little fucker.”

“Guess we all draw the line somewhere,” Frenchie said.

“But you’re smarter. You wouldn’t stick your head in the lion’s mouth, would you? Fucking terrible idea, right? Something shows you it’s a monster, and you know it’s a monster, you’ve got to put it down, not trust it, not let it go on gnawing at you.”

Did lions gnaw? He’d have thought they could just bite straight through. But then, he’d lost the plot here, he was pretty sure.

“Yeah,” Blackbeard breathed. “Yeah, you’re a smart man. ‘Healthy terror,’ love that. Gotta be healthy.”

He started peeling off his leathers.

So they were doing that, then? Frenchie could work with that. He couldn’t say he was much in the mood, what with the exhaustion and the mind-numbing fear and all, but he also couldn’t say he hadn’t thought about it. Never imagined there’d be this much preamble about cats, though. Well, nobody could accuse Blackbeard of being predictable.

“Right,” Frenchie said, undoing the clasps on his jacket. “Bit of fun’s healthy too, yeah? Good thinking.”

He was a touch behind on the undressing, so he hadn’t gotten more than his jacket off before Blackbeard went and turned into a cat.

Frenchie decided to fit in that jumping-out-of-the-skin bit after all, and he recoiled to the point where he banged his back against the door. It wasn’t every day that you saw a man you were ready to bed turn into a … small-ish panther? Crazily enormous house cat? There were silver strands of fur mixed in with all the black.

Blackwhiskers, Frenchie decided, and then he had to bite down on his lip until it bled, because there were certain laughs that could come out of you that you could never get back in. He didn’t want to find out how far gone he was just from that.

Blackwhiskers was even more terrifying than most cats. Wicked sharp claws, and a hiss that made every hair on Frenchie’s body stand on end. But, well—its tail wasn’t all bushy, was it? And cats did that, when they were pissed off at you: made themselves into bottle-brushes to scrub the soul clean out of your body. It wasn’t slinking into a hunting pose either.

Frenchie wanted to jump ship to get away from it, but that wasn’t the same as wanting it dead, least of all dead by his own hand. He was more of a lover than a fighter, really.

And Blackbeard had it all wrong if he’d thought Frenchie would kill him while he was like this. Cats were a holy terror, but Frenchie had never gone around picking them off one by one. He’d armored himself in them, flown them on his flag, tucked their claws between his fingers. There was no point in wasting what scared you. Blackbeard was fucking terrifying, too, but sometimes that had kept them safe.

Mostly kept them safe from dangers Blackbeard himself had led them to, true, but safe all the same.

He knew his fear wasn’t all Blackbeard had counted on for this, though. He never looked at a thing from just one angle: it was like he had eyes like a fly’s, everything broken up into all these shards of possibilities. He’d known that Frenchie would have to think about the others, too.

It was hard to imagine any of them would ever get close enough to Blackbeard to do a proper mutiny, with a quick in-and-out, sorry-about-that knife plunge or a proper heave-ho with an anchor. Blackbeard had them all outclassed, even Jim. Izzy … there was a chance Izzy could do it, skills-wise, but he was three toes down and still loyal, so there wasn’t much hope there.

Cat was … manageable, maybe. And Wee John and Roach and Olu and the rest had all died parched and starved somewhere, and the rest of the crew was coming apart at the seams, and the box in Frenchie’s head was beginning to look a bit battered. And if Blackbeard died, they could all breathe for a change. Sail to Nassau, maybe. Regroup.

And if Blackbeard died, Blackbeard would be dead. And he hadn’t always been … this. It wasn’t so long ago that he would’ve been the cat on the flag, not the cat on your chest in the middle of the night.

And it was awful, wasn’t it, that Blackbeard had called him in here for this? It was so sad it made something twist around inside Frenchie’s chest.

“Can you still understand me?” Frenchie said softly.

Blackwhiskers gave him another hiss. Bit hard to translate.

“I know it might backfire on me and all,” Frenchie said, sliding down the door to sit on the floor, “or on the rest of us, but I don’t particularly want to kill you, if that’s all right.”

The cat’s ears flattened against its head. Very cursed skull shape, that. He ought to keep it in mind for their next flag, if he lived long enough to stitch one.

“But,” Frenchie continued, “I’m still not clear on whether you’ve got, like, a human brain in there or not. Far as I know, you’re just working with cat instincts. So if you wanted petting, or anything like that … I mean, I’d think it was just the cat asking for it.”

The cat’s eyes were luminous, like those eerie bits of the sea. It stalked towards him, and Frenchie held his breath, waiting to see if it would claw his face off or sink its teeth into his throat and toss him side-to-side.

It dug its claws deep into Frenchie’s legs, instead. It felt like being sliced open by a bunch of white-hot razors. Having his clothes bloodied from the inside-out made for a bit of a change, at least. If he didn't die in here, he'd need to dump some rum over the scratches so they wouldn’t infect. (To be fair, if he did die here, infection would be the least of his worries, wouldn’t it?)

Blackwhiskers settled down on Frenchie’s lap, its claws still rhythmically flexing in and out of his thighs. It glared up at him.

“On it,” Frenchie said. He stroked a hand down the cat’s back: once, twice, three times.

Blackwhiskers didn’t purr for it, but it put its knives away, and Frenchie was of a mind to count that as a win. He might have to grab that bottle of surgical spirits after all.

The cat’s fur was soft and fine as silk, the way he used to imagine Edward Teach’s hair would be. He had always marked those fantasies down as pleasant but unlikely, since Ed had only had eyes for Stede, but here he was, living proof that dreams did come true, in a fashion. Granted, he wasn’t having a nice nooner with his boss’s boyfriend so much as he was petting a suicidal cat-man who’d ordered most of his friends marooned, but if you looked at it a certain way, those were just details. Life never worked out how you thought it would.

“I’d like to hold on to what I’ve still got, you know?” Frenchie said, tentatively scratching the cat’s ears. “You included, I think? So, just one man’s recommendation and all, but you could stop trying to get people to kill you.”

Blackwhiskers let out a noise that was like a strangled creak, still less like a purr than the opening a door maybe better left closed. Kindness was always chancy that way.

Frenchie decided to be hopeful about it. It was nice, being hopeful. Nice and dangerous, like an enormous warm cat napping on some of your blood, but still the best he’d felt in weeks. No sense in ignoring a silver lining.

#frenchie #edward teach #ed/frenchie #tw: dubcon #(but only in the form of a brief mention of it as a possibility) #cat shifters

[adickaboutspoons]

I just spent hours explaining myself to a stranger on the internet, and I'm kind of too bummed about last night's episodes to think about them too much anymore right now, but I just wanted to gloat that I apparently have mind-reading powers because I'm, uh, actually writing that Overboard AU I threatened in someone's tags back when ep 3 first aired, and I have a thing about a bit of string on a tray too.

So have an unsolicited WIP snippet!

So the premise is that Ed was moonlighting as a cabinet maker to stave off the boredom of piracy and took a job on Stede's Dad's ship and a recently married Stede was sent to oversee the work. Ed and Stede become friendly, and Ed takes more time with the job than he ought to have because he's enjoying Stede's company so much. So Father Bonnet decides to stiff Ed on the bill, and sends Stede to deliver the news with strict orders not to Take Any Guff From The Rabble. Stede is miserable but he does it (because he can’t v. well stand up to his father, can he?). Stede ends up getting accidentally knocked overboard when he tries to apologize, and the waves knock his head against the hull and he gets amnesia. Ed saves him, but decides to get back at the rich fucks who treated him like dirt by telling Stede he's a pirate under Ed's command and taking him back to the QAR. Things happen and now Ed is having Complicated Feelings, and at the time of the below snippet, Stede's turn on the rota to bring Ed dinner in his cabin has come up, and Stede has stubbornly spent over a week saying nothing but "Forgive me, Captain" to Ed whenever they have occasion to talk:

The next day Stede has a clean dishrag tucked behind his belt like an apron when he brings the tray through the door. Did he somehow charm Cookie into letting him help in the galley? Cookie is intensely territorial about his stocks and pots, and has been known to use his knives for more than just chopping veg when he feels someone might be encroaching. Still, if anyone could talk his way past Cookie's defenses, it would be Stede, wouldn’t it?

Stede whips the cloth from behind his belt and floats it over the papers on Ed’s desk before laying the tray on top of it. He pulls the chair back from the desk, angling it toward Ed, and holding on to the back of it. Ed sits down gingerly, and Stede helps guide the chair so he’s tucked up close. There’s another clean cloth on the tray folded up so it resembles a butterfly. Atop it there’s a bit of thin rope that’s been knotted into a little flower. Ed picks it up and traces a finger around the intricate interwoven strand. He looks up at Stede, who is standing just to his side with his hands clasped behind his back. His eyes are soft as summer skies and his smile is warm and Ed feels his face warming in response.

He looks away quickly, throwing the knotwork flower back onto the tray. “Don’t waste the line,” he said around the tightness in his throat.

Stede’s smile falls. “Forgive me, Captain,” he murmurs dejectedly.

Fuck. The tightness in Ed’s throat gets worse. Reaches down into his stomach and squeezes. He doesn’t feel hungry anymore. He forces himself to tuck in.

“Dismissed,” he says, his mouth full. Some broth spills onto his beard, and he grabs the cloth on the tray to wipe it away. When he puts it back down, the butterfly’s wings are crumpled and asymmetrically stained.

Stede stares at it for a moment. His mouth moves, and Ed wonders if he’s finally going to say something. He doesn’t. Instead, he moves silently toward the door, his shoulders stooped. Ed’s stomach clenches harder.

When he’s alone, he picks up the flower again, tracing out the star at the center formed by the overlapping weave with his thumb. He thinks about the way Stede’s eyes sparkle.

He pushes away from the desk. Enough grub. Time for sleep. He looks at the flower in his hand again, then quickly tucks it away into the interior pocket of his jacket.

#WIP #ofmd #our flag means death #ofmd fic

[carrymelikeimcute]

Titanic AU

Edward knows the rules - decks are for passengers, his place is down in the overheated engine rooms or the packed cabins where the walls run with the damp of everyone's breath, soot on everything, even the beds. That's where he's paid to be.

But it's so late, and almost all the passengers are sleeping. He can't resist it - the fresh, cold as glass air and the stars above. The roar of the propellers and the music as the first-class band winds up the evening in the dining room. So he's up here again, at the very back of the ship, sprawled on a bench and looking at the sky, tightly rolled cigarette in hand.

He only looks around when he hears footsteps, wondering if he's in trouble. But it's just one of the first-class passengers, a bloke in a fancy suit walking quickly towards the railing. Probably about to throw up - he certainly looks like shit, though if he weren't so pale and miserable looking he'd probably be...he shakes that thought away. That's one sure way to get burned.

Ed's still watching when the guy leans against the flag pole, pausing for a moment before he starts climbing over the railing.

"What the fuck?" it's a whisper, there's no one else around to hear but he definitely doesn't want to startle this...crazy fuckwit.

He's on his feet in seconds, moving quietly but quickly until he's close enough to hear the man's erratic breath as it shivers out of his lungs. He's on the other side of the railing now, clinging to it with his arms behind him. Ed doesn't approach from behind, but from the side, trying to look calm and to not give the guy a shock - already asking a lot seeing as he's out here in his work clothes with a leather coat over to hide the soot and sweat.

"You...alright there, mate?"

It's a terrible opening gambit and it does make the guy jump, just a little. His head whips round. Ed knows he hasn't seen him on any of his little 'jaunts' to the decks. He'd remember, because up close...fucking hell. He looks like a painting. A sad one, but a beautiful one nonetheless.

"I'm find, really there's no need for your concern," the stranger manages.

"Right...so..." he edges a bit closer. "Evening going well?"

The stranger huffs a laugh that borders on a sob. "It's actually my engagement dinner."

Ed has known some marriage-shy men in his time - men like his father - most of them either deserted their brides-to-be or fucked around regardless of their engagement. They did not, in his experience, stand alone over a drop into the midnight black Atlantic like the heroine in a gothic novel.

"I really don't want to talk about it," the guy says. "If you could just...leave, please. Sorry to be rude but...please."

Ed tuts thoughtfully and makes a show of looking down over the railing, inching closer as he does so.

"Can't do that now, can I? Might have to jump in after you."

"Don't be ridiculous," he looks appalled. "You'd...die."

Ed nods, humming agreement. "Probably, yeah. Tell you what - since we're going to be dying together, maybe we could take five or ten minutes to get properly acquainted." He holds his hand out from right by the guy's side. "Ed Teach - 'M a stoker."

The man looks at him like he's insane, but he takes his hand anyway, fingers shaking a little, but apparently trusting him enough to let go of the rail for a moment. "Stede Bonnet. Um...passenger."

"Nice to meet you," Ed says, then hauls him bodily back over the railing with a grunt of effort and the realisation that he's probably about to ruin this guy's suit.

#ofmd #gentlebeard #ofmd AU #ofmd titanic AU #gentlebeard fic #ed x stede #has this been done a thousand times?? #I don't care

[dragon-kazansky]

Captain Hands

Izzy Hands x Reader (GN)

The Revenge has a new captain, and with it a new first mate. Seems like you're both settling into your new roles.

{Masterlist}

Warnings: None. It's fluffy as heck.

Captain on deck

♡♡♡

Izzy wakes up with a soft groan. He's still getting used to sleeping in the captain's cabin. It really was the most comfortable bed onboard.

Even more so because he got to share it with you. As soon as he made you his first mate, he declared that your cabin was with him. His old cabin, where you both shared many nights, was given to Frenchie. He was excited to have his own room.

As far as Izzy was concerned, your place was beside him. Always.

He turns his head to see you asleep beside him. He smiles. A beautiful sight to wake up to. He looked forward to every morning that would follow.

You stir. His smile grows. He lays there quietly watching you wake. You're still tired, he can tell, but he also knows that within the hour you'll be up on deck starting your duties.

Perhaps he can keep you to himself for a little while longer.

"Morning, love."

You wipe your eyes gently, ridding them of the blur from just waking up. Your eyes find his and your heart flutters. He's a gorgeous sight to see.

"Good morning."

Izzy rolls onto his side, his smile softens. His face is inches from your own. "How did you sleep?"

You return his soft smile. "Like a baby."

He chuckles softly and reaches out, grasping your hand with his. You let your fingers tangle with his own.

Moments pass in peaceful silence as you both just lay there and admire one another. You do not take from granted the time to just look at this man, not when you had nearly lost him before.

Izzy Hands was all yours.

The faint sounds of the crew moving about indicate that it's time to get up. Izzy sighs softly, his eyes not once staying from your face. Carefully, you reach out and brush some his hair back.

"Up and at 'em, Captain."

He chuckles softly and watches you get up first. He remains in that exact position as she lean over to pluck your discarded clothes from the floor. You have no issue finding your shirt as you begin to dress.

Izzy would never tire of seeing you. All of you.

As you stand to pull up your pants to your waist, Izzy sits up. The blankets fall down to his lap, keeping his lower half covered, but displaying his chest and his scars.

You turn to glance at the handsome pilot, a smile tugging at your lips. You lean over and steal a kiss. Izzy is pleasantly surprised.

"Come on, you."

He smiles as guide him out of the bed with your gentle touch. It takes everything in him to not wrap you up in his arms and kiss you until the sun goes down. Yet, he knows he has responsibilities he cannot ignore. At least you'll be there beside him.

Once you're both up an dressed you both make your way through the ship. The crew are already fed and working.

Since Ed and Stede's departure, things have felt different, but also the same. The crew was still a family and they worked harder than ever to keep their home afloat. Figuratively and literally.

As you opened the door you looked up and smiled. The sun was already shining down on deck and the crew were bustling about. You looked across the ship.

"Captain on deck!"

The crew all turned to acknowledge Izzy stepping out from behind you. He sighs and waves them off, hating the fact you announce him like that every morning. You get such a kick out of it.

The crew return to their duties and you follow Izzy up the steps. He let's Frenchie continue sailing the ship as he looks out to see. You join his side.

"Another beautiful day."

He turns to gaze at you. "Always is when I have you beside me."

You smile and reach over for his hand. His fingers once again find their home entwined with yours. You give his hand a squeeze and smiles, your eyes turn back to the sea.

"Better enjoy it while we can. He's still out there," you say.

Izzy turns his eyes back to the horizon. "All in good time, love."

Your heart flutters.

The moment is broken by Lucious who coughs softly to get your attention. You smile as you turn around and looks at him. He's holding two cups of coffee. You thank him as you take them from him. He gives you a shit-eating grin as he wanders off again.

Izzy takes a cup from your hand. "Nothing is sacred on this ship."

You grin. "I was kind of loud, huh?"

Izzy chuckles as he sips his coffee. He no longer cares how much the crew know. He's definitely heard enough himself.

You lean against the bannister and look down at the crew, cradling the warm coffee in your hands. Izzy swears he couldn't fall more in love with you, and yet, the look in his eyes says it all.

You catch him looking and smile.

Yeah, this was what you wanted. This right here. You wouldn't change a damn thing.

♡♡♡

@callmemana - @jossambird - @moon-jae - @fandom-star - @coolninjavoid - @angiiepaniic - @ljaneyx - @lxsm2 - @rustedachilles -

#izzy hands x reader #izzy hands #ofmd #our flag means death #spirit of the sea #captain hands