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I guess space and time
Takes violent things, angry things
And makes them kind
He awakens to the glow of the early morning sun. Inside their little nest of blankets is deliciously warm, the rich velvet curtains isolating the sleeping nook from the outside world so the only sounds that can be heard are the waves and Stede’s soft snoring. Ed blinks his eyes open slowly, luxuriating in the feel of the soft rays of light on his face and the gossamer of fine linens, the gentle weight of the silken duvet.
He hasn’t always been able to take his time waking up like this.
Not long ago, it wasn’t uncommon to wake with a pounding head from too much rum, a stiff neck from a night in the captain’s chair, the occasional knife to the throat or the roar of cannon fire—now, he thinks to himself as he turns his head to admire the way the light catches his lover’s golden curls—now he gets to wake up feeling warm, and safe, and loved.
It’s enough to make a man cry and shit, honestly.
Ed curls onto his side to tuck himself better into the crook of Stede’s arm where he continues to doze, nosing at the curve of his jaw and admiring the soft scratch of stubble. The man’s been growing it out lately, and Ed can’t say he doesn’t like it. It accentuates the line of Stede’s jaw, emphasizes that dazzling smile of his, tickles his lips when they kiss. His own facial hair, well—
Ed doesn’t go much for the long beards these days.
He smiles fondly at the memory of the first time Stede had caught him shaving. It was a few days after their reunion, after they’d talked it out, and Stede had walked into the en suite and in on Ed carefully sliding a straight edge razor down the side of his cheek. The man had been mid-sentence and had stopped immediately, and Ed still remembers the white-hot burst of anxiety that had bloomed like a flare in his gut as he awaited the other man’s reaction.
It was one thing for the Dread Pirate Blackbeard to shave his beard off under the threat of the military, but out here on the open sea, in the privacy of his own ship? Stede’s words at the academy clamored in his head—How can you be Blackbeard without your beard?—but in the end, he was an idiot for worrying. Stede had merely strolled into the room, gingerly taken the razor from his hands and with an affectionately chiding ‘you missed a spot, darling,’ had taken over for him without a single question.
Ed blinks back the sudden burn of tears at the memory. Because honestly, what else had he expected from the only person who had ever truly seen him?
Stede snuffles a bit, still sound asleep, and Ed takes the opportunity to continue to trace his lover’s features in the early morning glow. He tucks his nose behind Stede’s left ear and inhales deeply, heart fluttering at the familiar smell of bergamot and lavender soap. Never thought he could be the heart-fluttery type, but well, Stede’s changed a lot about what he thought he could be. He presses his lips to his lover’s pulse point, breathing in his smell and reveling in the soft pulse of his heartbeat against his mouth. Strong and steady, just like the waves beating against the hull.
“Mmn..Ed?”
Stede’s voice is soft, still thick and sweet as honey with sleep. Ed smiles, warmed through at the sound of it and presses another kiss to his skin. Fuckin’ heavenly.
“Someone’s awfully affectionate this morning,” Stede says with a drowsy chuckle.
Ed’s smile quirks into something just a touch more mischievous, kisses just a taste more teasing. He trails them up Stede’s neck feather-light, then nips the side of his jaw. The giggle that he makes sends Ed’s heart spiraling into the stratosphere.
“What, ‘m not allowed to say good morning to the most beautiful bastard on the seven seas? Sounds pretty fucking unfair, if you ask me.”
Stede turns over on his side to better face him, all soft curls and warm skin and gauzy linens. Even his night cap looks so endearing it makes Ed want to kiss him stupid. He doesn’t extract his arm from where Ed’s laying on top of it, but rather drapes his other one over his side, encasing Ed in the cocoon of his arms. All around him is the smell of lavender soap and sea salt and Stede, and it’s bliss.
“Well, that won’t do at all, now, will it?” Stede tuts affirmingly. “No unfairness on our ship, no sir.”
That little possessive—our—still sends a thrill down Ed’s spine. To think someone like Stede would want to share something like his ship (his home…his life!) with someone like him will never cease to astound him in the best of ways. He tucks his head under Stede’s chin, suddenly bashful.
“Mnnnope. So shut up and good morning.”
He can feel Stede smiling. Beautiful bastard, indeed.
“Good morning to you too, my dearest.” Ed feels his arms tighten around him. “How did you sleep?”
“Like a fuckin’ rock.” Ed sighs happily. They’d just gotten the duvet from a merchant vessel off the coast of Jamaica, the pillows from their last stop in Barbados; A gift from Mary, of all things. Lovely woman, clever as a fox at cards. Turns out she and Ed get along swimmingly, much to both Stede and Doug’s horror. “Your ex-wife has surprisingly good taste in bedding.”
“Yes, well, Doug was telling me that little Louis is starting to have quite the eye for fabrics. Turns out he helped Mary pick them out.”
“No shit!”
“Mhm,” The apples of Stede’s cheeks flush a darling rosy color. He cocks an eyebrow in feigned seriousness, which is all but impossible with that night cap still on his head. “Meanwhile, I hear that Alma is quite keen on having her dear Uncle Eddy teach her that…oh, what did she say…that, uh, ‘cool thing with the knife’?”
Ed doesn’t have the audacity to look the least bit sheepish. In fact, he pushes up onto his elbow, staring down into Stede’s face with glee. “She did? Ahhh, she’s gonna be a little hellion, I knew it!” He cackles. “We’ll have her raiding ships before she even debuts.”
Stede barks out a laugh despite himself and it warms Ed down to his toes. He loves being the reason Stede laughs. “Let’s not get too ahead of ourselves, dear. I think Mary might have a word or two to say about that.”
“Mary, Mary, Mary.” Ed tuts, straightening the collar of his lover’s nightshirt. “Y’know, I still need to pay her back for kicking my ass at cards last time we were there, so teaching her daughter how to throw knives I think is perfectly acceptable revenge. Practical, even.”
“You know she’s my daughter, too.”
“Point being, mate?”
“My point, dear, is that maybe we should have Jim teach her. If—“ He adds quickly when he sees the shit-eating grin growing on Ed’s face. God above, he loves this ridiculous man. “And that’s a big ‘if’, mister, Mary okays it. After all, Jim can pin a fly’s wings with a dagger at twenty paces.”
Ed shrugs. He has a point. If Alma is going to learn, Ed will be damned if it’s not from the best. And Jim’s the best mark he’s ever seen with a knife, Ed can’t even take that personally. He flops back down into Stede’s waiting arms. He bites back a pleased hum when he begins to comb his fingers through his hair. “Alright. Fair enough, man.”
Stede continues to run his hand through his sleep-tangled tresses, gently undoing the knots and scratching his scalp with his well-manicured nails. Between the soothing attention to his hair, the gentle rocking of the ship, and the warmth of his love’s body and the dappling of sun, Ed feels his eyelids grow heavier. Fuck it, why not doze a little more? King George himself doesn’t have it better.
Ed feels the soft press of Stede’s lips against his brow. He burrows closer into the blankets, closer into Stede’s side. He presses his lips against every bit of Stede he can reach with drowsy adoration.
It’s incredible how easy it is to love Stede. Easiest thing he’s ever done.
Stede’s other hand trails down Ed’s shoulder to trace the intricate floral stitch of the dressing gown Ed likes to wear to sleep. It was an easy choice to make back in the early days, to commandeer it when he’d returned to the Revenge alone. It had smelled like Stede, had held the comforting softness and finery Ed associated with the man he’d fallen for, and even in his darkest points he could never bring himself to be rid of it.
Stede presses another kiss to his forehead, but this time he lingers, as if just breathing Ed in. After a time, he asks quietly, “Why don’t I ask Lucius to bring us some toast and a bit of that yummy marmalade you love so much? We could have breakfast in bed, make this a real decadent morning.”
Ed pushes himself up just enough to press his lips to Stede’s. Even now, it’s still like a gunpowder spark. Breakfast sounds divine and he could eat a whole jar of that marmalade with his bare hands, no question, but he doesn’t think that he’s quite ready to give up this little paradise they’ve found themselves in quite yet. He falls back into the pillows and pulls Stede to follow with a gentle hand on the back of his neck, swallowing his lover’s hum of delight.
“Mmm…five more minutes?”
Stede smiles down at him, cloaked in gold and sunlight and he’s the most beautiful thing Ed’s ever seen.
“Tell you what,” Stede says with a conspiratorial whisper, and Ed’s never been more grateful in his life than in this moment, with this man in his arms that’s worth more than all the finery in the world. “I’ll give you ten.”
With golden string,
Our universe was brought to life
That we may fall in love
Every time we open up our eyes