Chapter Text
The first thing that meets Stede when he finds the Revenge again is the hard, firm grip of Fang holding his hands behind his back at Izzy’s command. Months, he traveled in a stolen boat barely big enough to accommodate his crew. All that time searching for Edward had given him a good view of the chaos that had been left in his wake. Dead and empty ships, sunken vessels and floating corpses. Now, only now as he stands aboard his ship alone does he see the truth of the matter.
Jim, Frenchie, and another woman Stede hasn’t met before stand with their heads down, keeping from looking Stede in the eye at all. Stede thinks he catches Jim’s gaze just once, pleading to know where Olu is. Stede wishes he could tell them that everything is going to be alright, but first he has to reckon with the first mate pacing the deck as if to wear a hole in the wood.
He mumbles something under his breath as he paces, and Stede can see the pent up stress in his shoulders. The bags under his eyes are hidden behind the partially rubbed away layer of kohl and Stede can see it on the others if he looks hard enough. The sway of the ship covers the uncomfortable silence in the air.
“I’m sure you have your whole invading ship etiquette to deal with, but why don’t we just let Ed know that I’m here,” Stede offers.
“You shut the fuck up!” Izzy snapped, stopping in his pace and walking a hard line to Stede. He snarls as he stares up at Stede and now Stede can see him quite clearly. The smug look he’d given when Stede was arrested is far gone. He’s pent up like a hamster being squeezed until it pops by a particularly crude nine year old boy.
“Maybe it won’t be so bad if we tell him,” Frenchie offers. When Izzy whips his head around to look at him, Frenchie quickly ducks out of sight.
“Anyone else have any bright ideas?” Izzy snaps.
“We could let him go,” Jim offers. “Blackbeard never has to know that Stede was here.”
Stede wrinkles his brow. “No, Blackbeard very much should know that I’m here. That’s why I came all this way.”
“I knew you had no self preservation skills, Bonnet, but this is another thing altogether,” Izzy says. “If you want to live, you’ll shut up and let us figure this out before he hears you.”
Stede’s eyes go straight to the captain's quarters door. “Ed! Edward, come out here and tell everyone it’s alright!”
A fist quickly slams into Stede’s face and he yelps at the sudden pain in his nose. It’s clear to him as he gets himself settled again that Izzy very much does not want Stede to see his beloved again. So it’s really not about ‘saving Blackbeard’ after all, although Stede never had delusions about Izzy selling them out in the first place. He knew from that smug look that it had always been about getting Ed away from Stede.
“Did you hear a word I just said, Bonnet? Shut it while I try to get your sorry ass out of this mess!”
Frenchie jumps from his perch near the cabin door and rushes over toward Izzy. “I heard footsteps. We’re screwed.”
“Fuck,” Izzy snaps in a low tone that promises danger. “Fang, get Bonnet into a dinghy right now.”
The door slams open before Fang can push Stede toward the edge of the ship. The heavy boots make his presence known and stop everyone in their path. Stede looks up, wide eyed toward the dark figure in the doorway.
Edward wears his leathers, his hair falling in every which direction in tangles and knots. His beard is short, but coming in full. Stede imagines it may only be a few more months before he can boast something more like the beard he wore when they met. It’s his eyes, however, that draw attention. They’re coated in a thick layer of kohl, more defined than the others. His gaze flicks across the crewmates with venom until it lands on Stede standing with his arms tightly contorted behind his back.
“Ed, thank God. I’ve been looking everywhere for you. I’m so happy to see you,” Stede says brightly. The rest of the crew seems to hold a sinister silence as they look to their captain. It isn’t the same respect and hero-worship they had when they first met the famed captain.
Ed just snorts and shifts his gaze to Izzy. “What’s this then?”
“He jumped from his ship. Swam across to get up,” Izzy says. “Wanting to talk to you.”
“And you were going to refuse him?” Ed snaps. His eyes flare like fire.
For a moment, Stede thinks Edward is happy to see him before he pulls out the knife at his belt and flips it in his hands. Stede’s smile falls as Edward saunter’s up, still flipping that blade until he stands just before Stede. Another few inches and Stede could kiss him. If Fang would only let go of him, he’d be able to embrace his beloved.
“Edward,” Stede breathes and his eyes flick down to his mouth. God, he wants to kiss him so badly.
Edward pressed the knife to Stede’s throat before he can voice the admiration. The cold brace of the metal sinks Stede back where Fang holds him steady. His mouth goes completely dry at the view of Edward looking very much like he wants to kill him.
It’s a farce, Stede tells himself. Some posturing for Izzy’s benefit. Izzy did betray them in the hopes of getting Stede killed after all. This must be his way of playing the part. And the moment Stede has a moment alone with him, he’s going to wrap his arms up around him and drag him into the kiss he wishes he’d given him on that beach. His chest tightens with the anticipation.
“I think it’s time we show our guest what happens to anyone who tries to board us,” Edward says grimly. Stede tries not to imagine Edward pressing him up against the wall in a very different way, running his hands along his chest, pulling up his shirt, and… Stede fails to form anything coherent in his head and just huffs.
“Captain, perhaps we should give him a moment to explain himself,” Izzy says, sounding more reasonable than Stede would expect.
“Trying to prolong the inevitable, Iz?” Edward offers. “Fine, he can certainly spill his guts before I do.”
Edward removes the blade from Stede’s neck and stows it safely in his belt again. He steps back, his eyes firmly held on Stede as he nods for him to speak. Something about his gaze feels wrong. He’s not acting. It’s anger. His body seems to buzz as if he wants to do something drastic.
“Speak, dog!” Ed orders. “And if you’re good, I’ll make your death quick.”
“Edward, really. There’s no need for that. I–” Stede looks to the other crewmates. All of them seem to slink back and cringe, and Stede realizes too late what he’s walked into. Ed is far too hurt to listen to anything he has to say, so he can only offer the words he hopes will keep him alive.
“I’m sorry,” he says. Edwards nostrils flare, but that’s the only indication he makes that he’s heard anything. “Disappearing that night was a mistake. I should have just told you how I felt. I was scared and–”
The knife returns with a vengeance to Stede’s throat. “Are you scared now?!”
Stede flinches and it's just enough to nick himself on the blade. He yelps out his next few words. “I love you! Edward, please. I know I hurt you. Let me make it up to you. I know who you are, this isn’t who you are. Ed!”
“Ed is dead,” he replies, but he doesn’t cut Stede open yet. All it would take is the press of his knife, but he holds back, looking Stede in the eye with such an adamant rage that the look alone could be what kills him.
“Then, kill me,” Stede says.
“Bonnet,” Izzy snaps, but Stede waves him away.
“No, I’m serious. Because if my Ed is dead then I don’t want to be a pirate. Ed Teach is everything to me, do you understand? I love him more than you could possibly imagine, Blackbeard.” Stede searches Blackbeard’s face for signs of Ed. He still doesn’t soften. “But if there is any part of Ed still alive, let me make it up to you.”
Edward eyes him harshly and after a long, silent moment, he removes the blade from Stede’s neck. “Take him to the brig,” he mumbles as he puts away the blade.
“Captain, our other guest,” Izzy says.
“I don’t give a fuck, Izzy! Just take him to the brig,” Edward snaps. “Let them both rot there.”
“And the other ship?” Izzy asks.
“Shoot it out of the water or capture it. I don’t care. Just make sure I don’t have to deal with it.” With that, Edward turns and saunters back into the captain’s quarters. The door slams angrily causing everyone on deck to jump.
Izzy lowers his head to avoid Stede’s gaze. “You heard him. Take our prisoner to the brig.”
“The crew is alive,” Stede hisses toward Jim and Frenchie. “Don’t let Izzy shoot them.”
At the mention of the rest of the crew, everyone freezes. Jim’s expression is hidden like many of the knives on their person, but Frenchie looks bewildered, like he never imagined that the rest of the crew would be alive.
“You heard the captain,” Izzy snaps. “Take our prisoner to the brig.”
“But Izzy, the crew,” Frenchie offers. Something about the way Frenchie speaks to him catches Stede off guard. They never talked to Izzy like that, like he was on their side, like he was a crewmate too.
“Don’t get your panties twisted. I’m not shooting the crew down. We need the extra crewmates.”
Stede frowns and Fang begins to lead him away toward the lower deck of the ship where the brig will be waiting. He isn’t sure just what’s happening as he gets his last view of the crewmates he’d lost. They all seem to react calmly to Izzy. Less like a commanding officer and more like a companion. Stede’s shoulders hunch as he’s led below.
Something is wrong; very wrong indeed. How bad was Edward off that the crew had grafted onto Izzy as a friend instead of a brutal enemy. They had struggled to stay on the same ship together when Edward and Stede had sailed as co-captains. Ed had been a hero to them, but now.
Stede keeps his eyes toward the ground as Fang leads him down into the brig. It’s dark and the lack of light makes Stede blink as they step inside.
When he was building the ship–or really having the ship commissioned–he’d paid little attention to the brig. It was something that a ship ought to have, but when asked how big or how to set it up, Stede had shrugged his shoulders.
He should have put more thought into it. There’s one port window that barely lets in a wink of light on one side of the room, not viewable from inside the single cell. The vertical bars are sturdy enough and close enough together that no one could squeeze through. It would not be advantageous to have a secret passage connecting to the brig, but Stede wishes for a moment that he’d put one in.
Fang pulls out the keys to the cell and in doing so, lets go of Stede entirely. It would be a perfect time to grab a weapon, knock Fang out and escape, but Fang is such a lovely fellow, and Stede is sure he can convince him to let him out some time.
“Perhaps we can just put this behind us,” Stede says. “You can take me back up to the captain’s quarters. I can hash this out with Edward. You don’t have to lock me up.”
“Sorry, Captain,” Fang says as he unlocks the cell. “I don’t think that would be a good idea. Blackbeard wanting to kill you and all.”
“I’m sure that’s not true. He must have changed his mind when he heard what I said.”
“I’m sure Izzy’ll have a plan.” Fang opens the door and motions for Stede to enter.
“Yes, about that. Should we really be putting Izzy in charge of all this. He did try to kill me, twice, actually.”
Fang shakes his head. “Things have been different since you left, Stede. It’s not easy around here with Blackbeard in charge.”
“Please Fang, he’s not just Blackbeard. He’s still Ed,” Stede offers as he steps inside. Fang closes the door behind him, leaving him alone in the little cell.
“I’m not so sure about that.” Without another word, Fang locks the cell and leaves, closing the door behind him.
Stede sighs and looks around him. He can’t quite see all the details of the dark brig yet. His eyes haven’t adjusted, and the long dark corner feels a bit too sinister to go curling up in, so Stede sits down on the small bench and hunches his shoulders.
He wishes his mind could wander away from this dank cell, to Edward and all the things he wishes he could tell him. A single apology and “I love you” isn’t enough to encapsulate everything he feels for the man. Instead, he very quickly notices a slow movement from the darkened corner of the brig. He thinks for a moment that it’s rats, but as he blinks, he can see the long silken fabric, images of birds throughout. Much too big to be a rat underneath.
“Hello?” Stede asks. Izzy mentioned something about a guest. Perhaps this is it, the other prisoner on the ship. Stede tries not to shiver at the idea that this may be a pirate more terrifying than the legendary name of Blackbeard.
The figure moves, shifting into a standing position, and as he steps out of the darkened corner, Stede’s jaw drops. Edward stands in the corner, a long robe, the same one Stede wore the night that Calico Jack budged onto the ship, tied loosely around his waist. His eyes are rimmed in red, like he’s been crying for hours, but that kohl makeup is nowhere to be seen.
“Edward,” Stede exclaims, a sudden burst of joy slamming his heart forward. He has the urge to go to him, to wrap his arms around him, to kiss him, but he holds himself still for the moment. After all, Ed just threatened to kill him on deck. Stede doesn’t know how he got in here from the captain’s cabin, but he’s willing to ignore that technicality because Edward looks so very happy to see him.
Before Stede can move, Ed has dropped to his knees, wrapping his arms around Stede’s middle and leaning his head against his leg. He whimpers quietly into Stede’s thigh.
“Why did you leave me?” Edward demands in a sobbing voice. “I thought you liked me, I thought–”
“I do!” Stede presses too quickly. “I do like you, Ed. I love you, in fact. I’m sorry to have left you. I’m so so sorry.”
“Stay,” Ed whispers, and tightens his hold. “Please stay. I can’t do this anymore. I can’t do this without you.”
Stede places a tentative hand on Edward’s back. The fabric of the robe is luxurious, but Stede knows the thickness well. Edward can’t be wearing anything underneath it, and the thought makes Stede turn a bright shade of red to match the robe.
“Edward,” Stede says after a moment of quiet embracing. “What are you doing in here?”
Ed looks up, his eyes wide and so deeply brown. Stede wants to just fall into them, but he keeps staring, hoping for an explanation that will explain why he’s down in the brig only a few moments after threatening to kill him on deck…and why his beard is gone.
Stede didn’t notice it at first, but now he’s certain. Edward is missing his beard. The soft looking scruff he was in the process of growing when they met on deck is gone and replaced with a clean, open face. Like the day they first kissed.
“I’m just glad you’re here,” Edward answers, or perhaps refuses to answer. “I’ve been all alone here for so long and I thought I’d never see you again.”
“I’m glad to see you, too, I just need some answers.”
“Kiss me,” Ed begs. He leans up toward Stede’s face, still situated on his knees, so close and draping himself over Stede. It’s enough to make Stede’s mind go completely blank as Ed leans in, situating himself between Stede’s knees. His stomach grows warm and tingly as Ed closes in.
“I-I don’t know if–”
Stede doesn’t get to finish his thought. His mind goes blank looking into Ed’s eyes, and soon he’s leaning in too, catching Ed’s mouth softly with his own. The kiss is soft at first, an echo of that first kiss, and Stede relishes the feeling of Ed’s firm lips against his.
Ed takes his hand and deepens the kiss, causing Stede’s mind to fall just as empty as that first time. He can only form half the thought that this may be how every kiss with Ed turns before Ed’s tongue presses into his mouth, and Stede lets him in, discovering Ed’s tongue with his own.
Stede moans into the kiss, completely unaware of any thought or question he might have. It hardly matters that Ed threatened to kill him on deck or that he seems to be a completely different Ed. He simply kisses this beautiful man and feels himself go hot with desire.
When Ed breaks the kiss, it’s with a soft, open look near to crying. From this angle, his head is cranked up, revealing the long column of his neck and the adam’s apple there. He swallows, Stede’s mind immediately turns to dirtier thoughts.
No.
Answers first. He needs to know how Ed managed to get here after that display on deck and why he was was so determined to hide his true feelings. It doesn’t make any sense. Why does Izzy seem to be on the crew’s side now? Why did Ed threaten to kill him? Why did Stede believe the threats?
“Ed, what is going on here?”
“He locked me down here,” Ed says. “Said I could rot like a dog in the brig.”
Stede’s mind reels. “Izzy?”
Edward cocks his head to the side in a way that makes Stede’s knees weak. This isn’t the reunion he wanted, held close in the captain’s quarters instead of threatened on the deck.
“No,” Ed replies. “Blackbeard.”
Stede just blinks at him, convinced he’s heard that wrong. “Ed, you’re Blackbeard.”
Ed shakes his head and lays his cheek against Stede’s thigh. Stede runs his fingers through his tangled hair, trying to clear his lovely face instead of thinking about what it would feel like if Ed got a little bit closer.
“So you’ve met our other prisoner,” a ragged voice breaks through the silence. Stede bolts to his feet as he notices Izzy standing before the bars of the cell. He’s not sure exactly how long the first mate has been standing there, or if he can tell just how red Stede’s face has turned.
“What is the meaning of this?” Stede demands. Beside him, Ed pulls himself up to sit on the bench, his shoulders hunched, making him look small.
“You haven’t put two and two together yet?” Izzy asks. “You met Blackbeard up there and Eddie down here.”
“But…there’s…” Stede drops off as the realization comes. Ed’s beard disappeared in the span of a few minutes. He changed out of his leathers and into a robe all in the time it took Fang to bring Stede down here. And he was already in the cell when Stede arrived. “There’s two of them.”
“Now he gets it,” Izzy says. “Yes, the other one just showed up one day after Blackbeard went on a bender. Blackbeard had us put him in here and since then, he’s become worse and worse. It’s sheer luck he hasn’t asked me to kill him yet, but I’m sure that day will come too. Probably around the time he kills you.”
Stede looks to Ed on the bench. “You’re Ed.”
Ed nods solemnly.
He looks to Izzy. “And up there, that’s Blackbeard?”
“Why did you come back?” Izzy asks. It’s not the same disgusted demeanor he gave Stede before. His expression borders on genuine concern that Stede didn’t know was possible.
“Because I love him,” Stede admits. “We were supposed to run away together. We…Which one is the real Ed?”
The room goes quiet. No one has an answer and Stede looks to Ed in the hopes of one. He just lowers his gaze as if he knows Stede won’t like the answer. The silence lasts much too long for Stede’s liking before Izzy clears his throat.
“They both are,” Izzy says. “As far as I can tell, upstairs is the man who’s terrorized the seven seas. The captain of this ship. And that, that’s Ed, the one who fell in love with you. He exposed his soft underbelly, and I guess now he can’t go back.”
“But how did this happen?” Stede asks. Edward scoots over closer to him and reaches for his hand. Stede lets him have it.
“Your story,” Ed says in a low, melancholy voice. “He wished upon a star.”
Stede freezes. Pinocchio. He hasn’t read that story to the crew since he was here on the Revenge with Ed. It hasn’t felt right to tell that story, not until the crew was home.
Blackbeard wished upon a star, and one became two.
“Izzy,” Stede begs, letting Ed’s hand drop as he crosses the distance to the bars. “You can’t let Blackbeard kill the crew.”
“The crew’s going to be fine, you dunce. I already have them being brought over. Blackbeard won’t even notice. As long as he hears cannon fire, he’ll think everyone’s drowned.”
“Good,” Stede says. “Good.”
“I’d be more worried about yourself,” Izzy continues. “Blackbeard wants to see you tonight. He’ll probably kill you and your crew will have to clean up the mess. Wouldn’t be happening like this if you’d listened to me.”
“You weren’t exactly explaining the situation.”
“Nobody ever listens to me,” Izzy laments. “I’ll give you some alone time with Eddie. It’s probably the last you’re going to get.”
Stede watches with some frustration, but mostly confusion as Izzy walks out of the brig, leaving Stede and Ed alone in near darkness. Something is different about Izzy, like Blackbeard’s wrath has broken him, and he’s just been scrambling to keep himself afloat.
Turning to Ed, Stede lets his confusion remain plain as day. Ed looks just as he did when they kissed on the beach, his hair falling over his shoulders and his eyes soft with affection. Stede goes and sits next to him on the bench. He lets a soft sigh escape his lips.
“Are you okay?” Ed asks.
“I don’t know,” Stede answers simply. “I’m going to be killed by my own true love and there’s nothing to convince him otherwise.”
“You mean it? You really love me?”
Stede tries to smile, but it feels forced. Something about this version of Ed feels wrong. He’s lacking all his rough edges. He looks more like the man Stede had found crying in his bathtub all those months ago.
“I do. I love you very much, Ed.”
Stede doesn’t know who kisses first, but suddenly their lips are upon each other. Ed pulls himself desperately into Stede’s lap as Stede runs a hand into his hair. Their kiss only deepens from there. Stede lets his tongue run along the seam of Ed’s lips, seeking entry. When Ed opens, the warmth causes Stede to gasp into his mouth.
The feeling of Ed’s bare thighs against his hips makes Stede’s head feel a little fuzzy as Ed kisses along his jaw and all the way down to his neck. Stede lets out a tiny gasp with every kiss. He doesn’t quite realize until Ed pulls away that he’s crying through each kiss.
“Ed,” Stede whispers, cradling his face with his hands. His cheeks are smooth and bare in a way Stede wouldn’t expect. Had Ed taken up shaving daily in the brig?
“I’m sorry,” Ed says. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what to do. I only just got you back and I’m going to lose you.”
“You know him better than anyone,” Stede says. “Is there anything I can say to make him change his mind?”
Ed shakes his head and then buries himself in Stede’s neck. His short breaths bristle across Stede’s stumble, making his own breath hitch. With Ed pressed up so close, Stede is dreadfully aware of the tightening in his britches. It’s not the time, he tells himself. He’s going to be dead by the end of the night. It’s not the time.
Slowly, Ed pulls back to look at him, his eyes wide and wet. Stede wishes desperately to comfort him, but with the hot feeling running from his neck all the way down his belly, he can’t utter a single word.
“Do you want me to take care of you?” Ed says. He sounds brokenhearted, but his eyes quickly drop from Stede’s face down to the front of his britches.
“I…” Stede stumbles for something, anything.
“If this is the only time we get to be together before…”
Stede blinks and his face goes an even deeper shade of red. He doesn’t know if that’s even possible at this point. He takes Ed’s hand and kisses his knuckles instead. He notes that there are no tattoos on Ed’s hand as he kisses each knuckle, trying to bar the thoughts of sex from his mind. It doesn’t work.
Before Stede can get his mouth to form any more words, Ed reaches down with his free hand and palms Stede through his britches. The sudden friction causes Stede to let out a weak moan as he loses himself to the feeling. Any semblance of words leave him, escaping to the back of his brain. All he can think about now are Ed’s hands, Ed’s bare legs, Ed’s mouth.
Ed kisses him deeply before returning his attention to Stede’s neck. He kisses at Stede’s pulse point as his hand pulls along the ties of Stede’s britches. They feel way too tight, but Stede can’t form a word to tell Ed to take them off. Ed doesn’t need words, it seems. He has his own ideas.
As Ed’s lips pull away from Stede’s neck, he lets out a disappointed groan, but before long, Ed is kneeling down before the bench and pushing Stede’s legs apart to give him some room. His hands go to the ties on Stede’s britches, deftly untying them. They loosen enough for Ed to reach his hand inside and grab his cock.
Oh. Stede’s body goes rigid as his hard cock escapes his clothes and Ed notices with easy delight. He wraps his hand tight around Stede and gives a few slow tugs. Stede throbs against every movement, soft moans dropping from his lips.
He finally finds the strength to say a word. “Ed.” It comes out as breathless moan.
Ed smiles at him, rubbing his thumb lightly along the head, spreading pre-cum down the length of him. Stede bucks up suddenly as the feeling of Ed’s hand all over him, but Ed is quick to hold him down. His other hand presses into Stede’s hip, keeping him firmly held to the bench.
“I want to hear you,” Ed says in a soft, sultry voice that makes Stede fall apart. Ed gives a few more tugs before he pulls himself a little closer between Stede’s legs.
Ed’s hand wraps tight around the base of his cock and he gives Stede a few tentative kitten licks along the head. Stede can’t help the sound that escapes him as Ed licks and licks along his cockhead. It’s only a few more licks before Ed opens his lips and slides the head into his mouth.
“Ed, Ed, fuck Ed,” is the only thing Stede can manage as Ed licks circles around him.
Then, with a soft moan, Ed sinks deeper, letting his mouth cover Stede’s length as far as he can. Stede feels his cock reach the back of Ed’s mouth and before he knows what’s happening, Ed is hollowing out his cheeks and sucking Stede down.
Instinctually, Stede bucks up against Ed again only to be held down by his firm hand as he keeps sucking Stede down. Stede closes his eyes and just gives himself over to the sensation as Ed bobs his head, moving at a slow and deliberate pace along the shaft.
“Darling, Ed,” Stede babbles with every bob. “Sweet, beautiful Ed. Please.”
It isn’t much more than a few more turns of Ed’s tongue that Stede is begging and babbling. He doesn’t have the strength to warn Ed before his seed is spilling down his throat. Ed takes it all, swallowing him down once more as Stede convulses and shudders from the feeling of his spend.
Slowly, Ed drags himself off of Stede, letting his cock drop against his undone britches. When Stede looks down, Ed has his big doe eyes looking up at him. A drop of his spend is hanging from his lips and Stede can only marvel at how beautiful he looks down there.
“You’re incredible, Ed,” Stede says weakly.
Ed smiles sweetly. “I love you,” he says in return.
Below, the open robe reveals the soft brown expanse of Ed’s chest all the way down to the cock standing erect against his belly. Stede quickly imagines himself in the same situation. How would it feel to have the weight of Ed’s cock against his tongue? When Ed notices Stede looking, he pulls the robe closed.
“Wait, I can…Shouldn’t I return the favor?” Stede asks.
“I don’t want you to,” Ed says. “Just, hold me close to you.”
“Are you sure that’s all you want?”
“I’m sure.” Stede doesn’t question it and simply wraps his arms around Ed as they guide each other to the wooden floor, wrapped up in the warmth of each other’s arms.