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Stede is the first person to hold him while he cries for as long as he can remember. He hides his face in his hip and cries for the life he desperately had wanted.
Stede strokes his hair, unable to stop himself from pressing a kiss to the top of his hair. He has no words to say
He doesn't think he's ever been so upset with someone as he is with Edward. Even as someone who had a....tenuous relationship with Israel, for his dedication to be repaid with this...
"I'm so sorry, darling." He murmurs. "It's alright. You're safe. No one can hurt you here."
When he has finally cried himself out, he goes back to terrifyingly blank. He lays there motionless as stede gently unwraps the bandages, grimacing at the blood. "Oh, my darling.' He murmurs.
Izzy has taken good care of it, at least. There’s no sign of infection. It's a tiny relief
He cleans it so gently that Izzy starts crying again, runs reverent fingers over the warmed flesh. "You're safe" He promises, again, sitting down by the head of the bed to stroke Izzy’s hair once the bandage was secured. Izzy blinks up with glazed, half-open eyes, confusion on his face
He gathers Izzy up in his arms and the smaller pirate lets himself be moved without protest, held securely under Stede’s chin. Warm and safe and Alive.
He dreams of tentacles breaking a dinghy against the rocks. He dreams of watching angels drown.
He wakes up screaming and terrified and...and stede is there. Stede is stroking his hair and cradling him and calling him Good and Sweet and he shakes his head no but stede holds on anyway.
He twists to the side and throws up, gagging on the taste of flesh even if there's nothing there. "OH, oh baby," Stede whispers in horror, cradling Izzy to his chest, and stroking his back. "That's it, sweetheart, better out than in. You're doing so well for me."
When Izzy is a little calmer, Stede coaxes him up into his arms. "Come on, darling. I think you deserve a bath." "N...n..no" Izzy chokes out, something other than blankness finally evident on his face. "That...that's y..your room h...he...he's..." He gives a broken sob.
"Oh, oh darling. No, sweetie, Come here. Come here. Look at me. You don't have to go anywhere near him, not until you're ready. Ok? I promise. Come on, baby, let me take care of you?"
He isn't sure where the pet names come from. He strokes Izzy's hair and, when he gives a tiny nod, gathers the first mate into his arms. "There you go" he murmurs. "I bet it's been a while; you'll like baths with me, I swear."
He carries him to the bathroom. Ed isn't in the captain's quarters, thankfully, so stede makes a quick stop at his auxiliary wardrobe.
"What's your favorite color?' Izzy gave a half-hearted shrug but stede waited patiently. "P...purple." "good boy" he murmurs.
He finds the softest, purplest pajamas. The bathroom is in good shape, so he gets a warm bath drawn and eases Izzy's clothes away making a small, horrified sound.
"Oh, my sweet boy. I'm so sorry Israel. You're safe, I promise." Izzy's body is littered with open wounds and bruises.
He gets in the bath with Izzy, leans the first mate against his chest, and gently starts to clean him with as soft a washcloth as he can get.
Izzy is motionless, shivering slightly, but the panic on his face was calming slowly and he looked almost content.
"Alright baby. We're gonna get you cleaned up and then I want to take care of these cuts, okay?" He nods, eyes sliding closed as stede...takes care of him. Cleans away the dirt and the blood, presses a kiss to every fucking bruise. It's overwhelming.
He's almost asleep when they get out. The pajamas are almost painfully soft, and then he's snuggled up in a chair while stede strips the bed.
He doesn't leave Izzy's side for days. Jim brings them food. Roach makes light things, things that don't hurt Izzy's stomach with how little he's been eating, and checks his wounds. (He's so thin it's scaring stede.) Stede naps one day and finds Lucius reading quietly to Izzy.
Five days after the...reunion Izzy wakes to cannons. He's on his feet in an instant, sword, and gun in his hands before stede can try to stop him (he would never be able to, anyway).
Stede follows. Izzy is fighting off two boarders before he makes it onto the deck, but he follows
His foot aches and he's still weak but even like this he's a better fighter than most of them even if his hands were tied behind his back.
They're winning when it happens. Izzy turns and sees Ed, eyes wild and drunk out of his mind, about to get fucking stabbed.
Izzy shoves the guy off the boat.
"Get behind me" he growls. Ed is staring at him like he's a fucking miracle from the heavens
"Iz" he doesn't answer, just...turns around to stab another guy and then. Then izzy is falling falling, turning too fast on his damaged foot, and a man is lunging with a rapier
Ed stabs him through the heart.
It's a quick clean up, after that, but Izzy is staring at Ed in abject confusion. "Ed?' He whispers like he genuinely thinks the man has been body swapped.
"Yeah, iz." Ed doesn't go near him. Doesn't touch him. And it should feel better than it does. "You killed him. For me?"
"Yeah, iz.' Ed dropped down so they were at eye level, to hell with his knee, and izzy chanced a glance at his face. The kohl was gone, as was the worst of the violent mania. Ed looked very small and very tired and very, very guilty.
"C'mon." Stede’s voice sends both of them flinching in surprise like they'd forgotten he was there. "Let's do this somewhere more comfortable, shall we?'
"You don't kill people." Izzy is staring at Ed, still. "You kill people for me. Always have." "So you don't HAVE to."
"Fuck, Iz! He was gonna fucking kill you! Of course, I had to. Of course, I wouldn't do anything but save you.'
"Edward." He chokes out, tears in his eyes. "Edward." Stede reached down, wrapping a hand around Izzy's arm and helping him up before doing the same for ed.
Stede makes tea. Izzy curls up small on the couch. Ed sits on the floor.
"Alright. We all need to talk, but you two need to talk first. I'm gonna stay here to mediate if that's okay?'
"Iz. I know you're gonna apologize for...pushing me, for trying to...you were just trying to make me happy. You didn't deserve *any* of what I did to you and I'm so fucking sorry iz."
Izzy shuttered. "Captain" he breathed, the way he has during some of the best nights of their lives. "I...please?"
"I...I should've...let you be you I shouldn't have... I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." "No, my sparrow. No. It was all my fault but I swear I'm gonna make it up to you if it takes the rest of my entire fucking life."
Izzy shutters and reaches out for them both. Stede presses a kiss to his knuckles and Ed moves oh-so-slowly to gather Izzy's hand in his like it's something precious. "It's alright, sweetheart," Stede murmurs. "We have you, it's alright."
He falls asleep in Stede’s lap, as he has basically every night since stede came back. But tonight, it's with Ed leaning against Stede’s shoulder, his hand in Izzy's hair. It feels like progress.
It feels safe.