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My crew was ahead of me, on board the revenge I could hear the rage of battle. I stared at the rope ladder, anticipation bubbling in my chest as I knew what I had to do. In order to do justice to my crew, I must board the revenge and claim it.
The moment my feet landed on the ship, it was as if a force of God told him I was here. He whipped around, long dark hair cutting through the air. His eyes landed on me and his rage from battle quickly softened into those eyes he used to stare at me with, then suddenly without a second passing his expression broke into a sob before a rage I'd seen before but never was directed to me. All within the span of a second being on the deck, I was the centre of his attention, and he rushed me.
I sidestepped, narrowly missing a stab to my right lung, and drew my sword just fast enough to parry. "Edward!" I shouted to him but he just attacked again "You left my crew to die!" I countered, twisting his blade away from my body "You left me." He spat, and I turned to thrust my sword at him. He quickly caught my blade with his own and twisted it to take control of my blade then kept his sword on mine and thrust it towards my head, I only had a moment to twist my blade and sidestep. "So you decided to leave my men to die? To kidnap Frenchie Jim and Lucius?" I demanded, my heart pounding as I swung my blade towards his side and he simply parried before striking down toward my head. I stopped his blade and twisted the blade around, stepping to his side quickly. He hit the deck of the ship face first. I raised my blade to attack his behind, then stopped, instead I grabbed his sword hand. I tried to disarm him, and it was like he just let go. He turned to me amidst the chaos, tears in his eyes as his shoulders slumped. It was clear he didn't want to fight, not really, and honestly neither did I.
I sheathed my sword and held a hand out to him. I could feel the crews around us watching us as they halted their battle. "We need to talk this through Ed." I smiled tightly as he took my hand and pulled himself up. After standing he reached for a hug, and I pushed him away slightly. "Let's go talk first, privately." I glanced at our crews and smiled "We will be back, please refrain from the stabbing for just a moment?" I asked, after the crew all awkwardly nodded with a flourish of my hand I lead Edward to the captain's quarters.
Inside I immediately saw the difference, and just nodded understandingly. "I see you kept Mary's painting," I noted and Edward just sat down in the window. "What is there to talk about? How you left me waiting until dawn broke by the sea, clinging onto hope you might have just been a tad late?" He asked sharply, and I sighed as I sat on top of the table which appeared to be the only other bit of furnishings he kept aside from a dresser and some curtains. "I want to stay Edward. I left you on the pier because while I wanted to run away with you, I was afraid. The idea of running away with you, I wanted it, but it was so overwhelmingly frightening Ed." I stared down as I kicked my feet, and I could feel Edward tense as I explained myself to him. "You could have told me that though. You know you could have told me anything Stede." "I couldn't though. Because I didn't even realize it until I was held at gunpoint by Chauncey. He woke me just before we were going to escape and took me into the woods, he told me how I ruin things, Edward; People think I ruined you. I thought I ruined you." I took a deep breath and looked at Edward feeling my chest swell as I watched him look away pushing his grey hair out of his face. "I know now that he was wrong. That you simply grew and changed, and while I didn't do that I was there for it. That your growth was not your ruin." I promised him
A few weeks later I found myself laying in bed with him, just quietly taking in our new life together. How we now had the world ahead of us, running away with our crew. I laid my head on his chest and I could feel the soft rumble in his chest as he spoke "If you truly meant it about wanting to stay this time, and coming to find me, then why didn't you hold me when you got back?" Edward asked, and I simply could hear his voice trying to bury his hurt with a wave of quiet anger "Because I was hurt, Ed, I know I hurt you, but you hurt me too. When I found my crew, my family, abandoned on the sandbar; I was livid. I came rushing off to find you and demand an explanation, nothing could get in my way." I explained, tracing the familiar lines of his tattoos "Then when I found you; my rage, it all simply vanished. It burned away into this ache, and all I wanted was to hold you. Yet you still hurt my crew, and therefore me, and I just couldn't hold you then." I looked up to his brown eyes, and they glistened in the dark atmosphere, no longer harsh and upset as he stared at me "I know now it was wrong, I knew it then. Yet I still decided to do it." He admitted, eyes never leaving mine as his shaky breaths broke between his words "I told you before, I'm not a good person Stede." He stifled a sob, and I quickly sat up and took the red scrap of fabric I'd found out to wipe away his tear, streaking away his makeup. "You could be though," I told him simply, cleaning his face of that fake beard. His hand reached for mine, and I placed the red silk into his fingers and placed our hands to his face. "You can always choose again and again, just like now I choose to stay with you, Ed. I choose to stay with you because I love you." I whispered, lingering close to him before breaking away. Taking a shaky breath I then left him there, letting him keep his red fabric as he watched me walk away.