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Lucius had adjusted surprisingly well to the new management aboard the Revenge, all things considered.
Ivan heard him hit the water that awful night almost three weeks ago, and pulled him back up and got him to cough up the water in his lungs with Fang’s help. After Lucius explained what Blackbeard had done, the three of them hastily devised a plan: the boy would stay hidden in the secret passages of the ship and the rest of the crew would bring him rations once a day wherever they could meet him.
Over the next fortnight, the plan was refined. Jim and Frenchie were let in on the ship’s biggest secret and they both promised to keep Izzy off their scent. When Jim was locked in their room and Ivan was assigned as their prison guard, Fang became the primary person to feed Lucius, citing how they wouldn’t suspect him.
“Blackbeard doesn’t know about us, and I’m not scared of Izzy,” he told Lucius.
So that was their routine, now. Every night, Lucius would wait behind the wall of Fang and Ivan’s room and wait to hear Fang give the signal that he was alone (knocking on the door five times before entering the room). Then Lucius would pry back the panel and crawl out from behind the wall and they’d eat together.
It wasn’t glamorous. At this point, all the fresh food Stede and Roach had purchased had either been eaten or spoiled, so all that was left was dried fruit, dried meat, and hardtack. Since he was only eating once a day, Lucius was voraciously hungry by mealtime. Fang often had to remind him to slow down so he didn’t make himself sick.
It wasn’t glamorous by any stretch. He desperately missed the rest of the crew, and fresh food, and sunlight, and using more than a basin of cold water to clean up with, but Lucius did not complain. It was better than drowning.
“I know I’ve said this like, a hundred times before, but you really are a lifesaver,” Lucius said before stuffing another bit of hardtack in his mouth. He hardly chewed it before he swallows, then continued, “When this is all over, I’m gonna owe you so many sketches, or chores, or whatever.”
“Aw, don’t worry about it, Lucius,” Fang said with a sheepish grin. “It’s really no trouble.”
“Are you kidding? If Izzy finds me we’re both dead,” Lucius said, laughing nervously. He squeezed his hands together tightly, smashing the food between his sweating palms.
“Oh, I wouldn’t worry about Izzy the Spewer,” Fang nudged the other man’s shoulder with his own.
The boy got like this sometimes, even before his encounter with the Kraken. His mind would spin ‘round and ‘round with all the ways something could go wrong, and he’d start shaking and sweating. Normally Pete would be the one to calm him down, or Stede, or Jim, but since none of them were available, Fang took up the mantle.
“Or- oh shit, what if Blackbeard finds out?” Lucius gasped.
“I never see him these days, he’s too busy drinking and moping,” Fang assured him.
Lucius was breathing heavily now, the piece of hardtack reduced to a small doughy ball in his iron grip. “What if he finds out Jim and Ivan and Frenchie are in on it too?”
“Breathe, Lucius-”
“I’m putting you all in so much fucking danger!” Lucius cried, pulling his knees up to his chest. He looked like a caged animal, wild-eyed and trembling, and it broke Fang’s heart. Worse than that, however, was the fact that they’d definitely get caught if the boy kept panicking like this.
“It’s going to be okay Lucius,” Fang wrapped his arms around him and shushed him. “I knew the risk I was taking when I agreed to this, right?”
“Y-yeah,” Lucius said shakily, trying to match his breathing to Fang’s.
“We all agreed to keep you safe until Bonnet comes back, or we make it to a port where we can sneak you off, right?”
“Yeah,” Lucius nodded.
Fang rubbed his back, “So all you need to worry about is staying alive. Let Ivan and Jim and Frenchie and me handle the rest, okay?”
“Okay,” Lucius said quietly. He laid his head against Fang’s chest, listening to his heart beat steadily in his chest. The man was warm and solid, and it was nice to have this contact after spending most of his time in narrow passages keeping quiet and still.
“There’s a good boy,” Fang smiled, kissing the top of his head. He took a slice of dried plantain and handed it to him.
They ate together quietly after that. Lucius looked drained from his little attack. Fang wasn’t sure how much longer they’d have to keep him hidden, but he hoped he could make an escape soon. The boy’s face had grown pale from a lack of sunlight, and despite their efforts to keep him fed, his clothes looked more ill-fitting each week.
“Have they said where we’re heading too next?” Lucius asked quietly.
Fang shook his head.
Lucius frowned. “It’s been weeks, we’re going to run out of supplies soon.”
“I know,” Fang sighed. “I think Izzy’s trying to get us someplace to resupply, but Blackbeard’s in a bad way, mate.”
“Yeah? You don’t say?” Lucius asked bitterly.
Okay, Fang deserved that, “I don’t think any of us knew he’d take someone leaving him so hard.”
“Well, he doesn’t have to take it out on the rest of us,” Lucius muttered. “I mean, just because he’s-”
“Shhh!” Fang put his finger to his lip quickly and made a slicing motion across his throat.
They heard heavy footsteps in the hallway.
There was no time for the boy to sneak back into his hiding spot, they both realized. The color drained from Lucius’s face. Fang took his hand in his and squeezed it.
Someone pounded on the door. Definitely not their secret knock, which meant it could only be two people. They shared a desperate look before Fang took a deep breath. “Yes?”
The door slammed open and Blackbeard stepped inside. “Fang, I need someone to-”
Time seemed to slow to a crawl as Lucius stared at the man who pushed him overboard. Edward- no, Blackbeard - looked worse than the last time he had gotten a good look at him. His face was smudged with layers of kohl that had been applied, unsuccessfully washed off, and reapplied. His hair was unkempt, the normal pattern of waves and curls utterly ruined by a lack of maintenance. He also reeked of alcohol, even from a distance.
Blackbeard squinted at the two men sitting on the bed. Calmly, he asked, “Fang, what’s he doing here, mate?”
“Uhm,” Fang looked at Lucius then back at him. “I don’t know what you mean, Captain.”
“Thought I threw him overboard,” Blackbeard said. Lucius shuddered. He continued, “Thought he was dead.”
“What? Don’t be silly Captain, he’s been here the whole time,” Fang said, wrapping his arm around Lucius to keep him from trembling too noticeably. “Didn’t Izzy tell you I’ve been taking care of him?”
“Taking care of him?”
“Mm-hmm,” Fang nodded, “The boy’s not been feeling well, right Lucius?”
“Uh-huh,” Lucius coughed, leaning heavily against him to emphasize how obviously unwell he was. He had no idea what Fang’s plan here was, but he knew that if he didn’t play along there was no chance in hell of making it out of this situation alive.
“He’s just been sick this whole time?” Blackbeard sounded lost.
“Yes,” Fang lied. He patted the boy’s back. “But, I think he’s finally on the mends. Hopefully, he’ll be back on deck with the rest of us soon, right, lad?”
Lucius nodded.
Blackbeard wrung his hands together. “Why didn’t Izzy tell me?”
“I dunno, Captain,” Fang shook his head. “I would have told you, but I really did think you already knew.”
“Maybe he didn’t want to worry you?” Lucius offered meekly. Blackbeard blinked at him, then stepped towards the bed. Lucius swallowed, then coughed to play off his nervousness as illness, and continued, “Since you’ve got a lot on your plate right now?”
Blackbeard stopped at the edge of the bed and stares down at them.
God, he really does stink, Lucius thought as he keeps himself from pulling a face.
Tentatively, Blackbeard reached out and touched the back of his fingers to Lucius’ cheek. He exhaled, breath heavy with alcohol, “You’re alive.”
Lucius’ face twitched into a facsimile of a smile. Then Blackbeard dropped his knees onto the edge of the bed with a wail, throwing his arms around the boy. He sobbed desperately into his shoulder. It was not a pretty sight to see.
“Oh, you don’t have to do all of that,” Lucius said.
“I thought you were dead,” Blackbeard hiccupped.
“Well, it was touch-and-go there for a while,” Lucius rolled his eyes and patted his arm. “Thankfully the lovely Fang here took care of me.”
Blackbeard cried for what felt like a small eternity. Lucius and Fang offered their hollow platitudes and shared looks over his head. When his tears slowed down, he looked up at both of them with watery eyes.
“God, you look like shit,” Lucius said before he could stop himself. He slapped a hand over his mouth, “Oh my god, I’m so sorry, I don’t know why I said that!”
Blackbeard laughed weakly and scrubbed at his face. “Nah, ‘s okay mate, you’re right. I must look like a fucking mess.”
“Boss, I know things aren’t easy right now, but, uhm, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be taking care of yourself,” Fang said gently, “We all need to be in our best shape.”
“You’re right, mate, you’re right,” Blackbeard nodded. He stood up and wiped his face on his sleeve and grimaced at the mess he left behind. “Christ, I’m gonna need a bath before we get to port. Oh! Right, that’s what I came down here for. Fang, Izzy says we need someone to make a list of everything we need in port. I guess now Lucius can help you with that if he’s feeling up for it. And we need someone to go watch Jim for a bit so Ivan can eat.”
“I’m on it, Captain,” Fang said.
As Blackbeard left and closed the door, Lucius breathed, “Holy shit.”
“You said it, mate,” Fang laughed.
“He was definitely drunk, right?” Lucius asked.
“He usually is these days,” Fang said.
“God, what a mess,” Lucius looked up at him. “You think he’ll remember all that?”
“I think he will, he didn’t seem completely off his rocker.”
“Good,” With that settled, Lucius climbed into Fang’s lap and kissed him soundly. They broke apart Lucius murmured, “You’re a fucking genius, Fang, you saved my ass,” before kissing him again.
“I’m just glad you’re okay,” Fang said between kisses. He pulls back, lips tingling from Lucius’ handiwork, “And not that I don’t appreciate it, but… why all this?”
“Well, I told you I owed you big time, didn’t I?” Lucius licked his lips. He slid his hands under Fang’s shirt and grazed his nails over the man’s back. “Thought I better start paying you back now.”
“Oh, right, of course,” Fang grinned and moved his hands down to grab Lucius’ ass, “Well, we better get to it quick before someone else comes knocking.”