#history of sea voyage

[katerinaaqu]

Odysseus’s ship

(Courtesy of the page people.hsc.edu)

Lo and behold the Penteconter a ship that has 50 oarsmen which most likely is a strong candidate on the ships used by the Greeks at the bronze age. (Known from other writings like Argonauts as well)

This type of boat has 50 oars (25 at every side) and a single mast and a sail. The sail was playing auxiliary purpose (the oars were still needed). So the ship was including 50 oarsmen, one navigator and a captain (roughly 53 people per shift) perhaps we can expect a few more people per ship if there is a change of a shift. We also do not count slaves and livestock.

So we expect that Odysseus started the trip from Ithaca to Troy with a crew somewhere between 625-725 people and counting the bare minimum losses at the trip more or less we get to have the people that oar back home. You can imagine also how tired his men were at the final parts of the journey when we expect the oarsmen were not sufficient even to row the boat (if they were less than 50) and they could not change the shifts

Honestly I understand why they wanted to stop at the island of Helios despite the fact Odysseus told them not to.

[illustratus]

Mayflower II on her sailing trials in the waters off Brixham, South Devon, April 1957 by Montague Dawson

[historiavn]

HISTORICAL TIME PERIODS

1700’s

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ we are about to brave the storm in a skiff made of paper ❜ ── the second continental congress

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ these are the times that try men’s souls ❜ ── the american revolution

1800’s

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ a house divided against itself cannot stand ❜ ── the american civil war

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ glittering on the surface but corrupt underneath ❜ ── the gilded age / the age of big business

1900’s

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ blood and steel built belfast’s pride and joy ❜ ── before the voyage / titanic’s construction

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ ever westward on the sea ❜ ── rms titanic’s maiden voyage

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ turn the tragedy into spectacle ❜ ── titanic’s immediate aftermath / the inquiry

ALTERNATE UNIVERSES

FANDOM

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ a visit for the season ❜ ── bridgerton

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ history comes to life ❜ ── night at the museum

ALTERNATE TIMELINES

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ the most undefinable yet paradoxical of things ❜ ── time travel

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ this universe is only one of an infinite number ❜ ── multiuniverse travel

MUSE SPECIFIC

ROBERT TODD LINCOLN

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ the prince of rails ❜ ── first son of the united states

ANASTASIA ANDREWS

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ professor of magical history ❜ ── anastasia andrews in the wizarding world

CONSTANCE MORGAN

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ now is the time to seize the day ❜ ── the 1899 newsboy strike

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ fortune favors the bold ❜ ── the princess of wall street

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ mother of the titanic ❜ ── mr. andrews’ apprentice

ABRAHAM LINCOLN

✎ ; universe / timeline ── ❛ with malice toward none ❜ ── sixteenth president of the united states

MORE TO BE ADDED

[stairnaheireann]

Soldiers Point, Dundalk, Co Louth

Bronze sculpture “Sea God Managuan and Voyagers” at Soldiers Point, Dundalk Bay, Co Louth by the artist, Ann Meldon Hugh. Manannan is the Celtic God of the Sea and is the leader of a group of the Fair Folk whose values and ideals are associated with the water element and the deep blue-green light of the ocean. Image credit | Derek Smyth Photography SaveSave

[criphd]

At the outset of H. G. Wells’s The War of the Worlds (1898), Wells asks his English readers to compare the Martian invasion of Earth with the Europeans’ genocidal invasion of the Tasmanians, thus demanding that the colonizers imagine themselves as the colonized, or the about-to-be-colonized. But in Wells this reversal of perspective entails something more, because the analogy rests on the logic prevalent in contemporary anthropology that the indigenous, primitive other’s present is the colonizer’s own past. Wells’s Martians invading England are like Europeans in Tasmania not just because they are arrogant colonialists invading a technologically inferior civilization, but also because, with their hypertrophied brains and prosthetic machines, they are a version of the human race’s own future.

The confrontation of humans and Martians is thus a kind of anachronism, an incongruous co-habitation of the same moment by people and artifacts from different times. But this anachronism is the mark of anthropological difference, that is, the way late-nineteenth-century anthropology conceptualized the play of identity and difference between the scientific observer and the anthropological subject-both human, but inhabiting different moments in the history of civilization. As George Stocking puts it in his intellectual history of Victorian anthropology, Victorian anthropologists, while expressing shock at the devastating effects of European contact on the Tasmanians, were able to adopt an apologetic tone about it because they understood the Tasmanians as “living representatives of the early Stone Age,” and thus their “extinction was simply a matter of … placing the Tasmanians back into the dead prehistoric world where they belonged” (282-83). The trope of the savage as a remnant of the past unites such authoritative and influential works as Lewis Henry Morgan’s Ancient Society (1877), where the kinship structures of contemporaneous American Indians and Polynesian islanders are read as evidence of “our” past, with Sigmund Freud’s Totem and Taboo (1913), where the sexual practices of “primitive” societies are interpreted as developmental stages leading to the mature sexuality of the West. Johannes Fabian has argued that the repression or denial of the real contemporaneity of so-called savage cultures with that of Western explorers, colonizers, and settlers is one of the pervasive, foundational assumptions of modern anthropology in general. The way colonialism made space into time gave the globe a geography not just of climates and cultures but of stages of human development that could confront and evaluate one another.

The anachronistic structure of anthropological difference is one of the key features that links emergent science fiction to colonialism. The crucial point is the way it sets into motion a vacillation between fantastic desires and critical estrangement that corresponds to the double-edged effects of the exotic. Robert Stafford, in an excellent essay on “Scientific Exploration and Empire” in the Oxford History of the British Empire, writes that, by the last decades of the century, “absorption in overseas wilderness represented a form of time travel” for the British explorer and, more to the point, for the reading public who seized upon the primitive, abundant, unzoned spaces described in the narratives of exploration as a veritable “fiefdom, calling new worlds into being to redress the balance of the old” (313, 315). Thus when Verne, Wells, and others wrote of voyages underground, under the sea, and into the heavens for the readers of the age of imperialism, the otherworldliness of the colonies provided a new kind of legibility and significance to an ancient plot. Colonial commerce and imperial politics often turned the marvelous voyage into a fantasy of appropriation alluding to real objects and real effects that pervaded and transformed life in the homelands. At the same time, the strange destinations of such voyages now also referred to a centuries-old project of cognitive appropriation, a reading of the exotic other that made possible, and perhaps even necessary, a rereading of oneself.

John Rieder, Colonialism and the Emergence of Science Fiction

[cloudzoro]

Fate | Buggy x reader x Shanks ♡

✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

genre: smut, nasty nasty smut (minors dni) and a tiny little bit of fluff at the end

pairings: buggy x reader x shanks

wc: 13.3k

cw: fem!reader, bartender reader, semi public sex, a lap dance, a LOT of dirty talk, biting, piss kink, omorashi, so much oral, jealous!buggy, buggy is actually really sweet, brat tamer shanks, spanking, pussy slapping, spitting, some parts are dialogue heavy, buggy's detachable dick, shanks lowkey has a clown fetish, squirting, overstimulation, aftercare, love confessions

masterlist | one piece masterlist

✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

Your childhood friends, Buggy and Shanks, both found your bar around six months ago and have been hooking up with you ever since. The connection the three of you have runs much deeper than mindless sex so you finally get them in the same place at the same time so you can fuck like animals and confess your love.

a/n: I'm so fixated on buggy right now i literally can't think of anything else

✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

You're just starting your evening shift at your bar when a familiar hat and blue pigtails comes sauntering into the building.

“Hi, Buggy,” you call, and your old friend wanders up to the bar with a grin on his face.

“Hi, sweetheart. We’ll have whatever you got. We're celebrating tonight,” he says. You nod and signal to one of your security guys to go down to the basement and get the big barrels you're not strong enough to carry. You don't need to worry about any trouble at the bar when Buggy and his crew are there, though you worry that one day he'll be here at the same time as the actual pirate whose protection you're under.

The small island your village is on is under the jurisdiction of red-haired Shanks. Your mayor hasn't officially accepted Shanks’ offer yet. Still, you have a feeling that with all the business their pirate crew brings to your village—buying from your local farmers and frequenting your bar—he'll formally accept when Shanks returns from his next voyage. The lack of permission from your mayor doesn't matter to Shanks; he's ultimately just using this island as a base to place you under his protection.

You, Shanks, and Buggy were all on the same pirate ship as youngsters. You'd been impossibly close, inseparable at all times. After they'd had a falling out at the site of your former captain's execution, you'd refused to pick a side, and Shanks had taken you with him so he could drop you off at a quiet island where you leave your pirate life behind you.

However, after Shanks and Buggy had made a name for themselves, your history of piracy had worked its way into your present. Shanks had been the first to find you, having been the one to drop you off, and wasn't surprised to see you now owning and running one of the bars in your village. He'd walked in by himself and jokingly asked if your bar was pirate-friendly. Your security guy was about to launch forward but was stopped by you, who had called his name and ran around the bar to launch yourself into him. He hugged you back with one arm, and you welcomed his crew into your establishment. Your staff were on their best behaviour that day and respected you more after finding out you were close friends with one of the emperors of the sea.

Buggy had accidentally stumbled upon your bar but was beyond shocked to see you. He had initially threatened your village, but upon receiving a smack and stern talking to from you, he gave up embarrassingly quickly and asked politely to frequent your bar. You allowed him, glad to see him alive and warned him that you were under a different pirate’s jurisdiction. You ordered your staff to be hushed about the pirate being Shanks, so you don't scare off Buggy.

Since then, they'd been coming to your island intermittently, competing with each other without even knowing. Shanks knows there's another pirate who sometimes docks up on your island, and Buggy knows another pirate is trying to lay claim to your land, but neither of them knows it's the other. How they've avoided each other for this long is a mystery to you.

“Hello? Sweetheart?” Buggy's voice draws you from your memories, and you look up at him with a smile. What're you smiling at? You weirdo,” he says, reaching over the bar to flick your forehead. One thing both Buggy and Shanks never grew out of was their childish teasing. Buggy, in particular, likes to wind you up. Whenever you would tattle to your old man, Rayleigh, about the boys teasing you, he would insist that it was because they had a crush on you.

“Nothing, Buggy. I was just reminiscing about the old days,” you say. He rolls his eyes and calls you a sentimental fool. Buggy turns his attention to the bar behind you. He detaches his hand from his body and reaches for the top-shelf whiskey. He's too much of a lightweight for it. You know that much, so you snatch it back and scold him for using his power to rob you of money. You never realised how differently you view your ‘lovers’ compared to everyone else until your staff asked how you have the balls to tell them off and flirt with them, fearing losing a limb for messing with an emperor. Buggy begrudgingly listens; you're the only person he can't bring himself to argue with. He can tease you and wind you up until the cows come home, but if you look genuinely upset, he fills with guilt immediately.

Your security guy comes back with a barrel of cheap booze and helps you set it up. You start to serve it up, beginning with Buggy and then calling over his crewmates. You ensure everyone is served before returning to cleaning glasses and steins to ensure you're on top of things.

Buggy keeps a keen eye on you as you move around the bar, busying yourself with odd jobs. You can feel the clown watching you, and you feel your skin heating up. Your friendship with Shanks and Buggy has always been more than platonic, especially now that you're all grown adults and you own a bar. They're always sneaking you off on breaks or taking you home after to fuck you. They're very different in the bedroom; Shanks is confident and in control, whereas Buggy takes care of you, but ultimately you're in charge. Buggy’s an emperor of the sea now, so you're curious to see if that's helped his confidence. Insecurity usually had him doubting himself in the bedroom, leading to him easily bending to your will for a bit of praise. He appeared to be more sure of himself when he walked in, so you take that as a good sign.

You're focused on the bottles behind the bar when you feel a tug at your skirt. You look down to see a hand creeping under your skirt. The hand slides around to squeeze your ass, and you turn around to see Buggy, handless, staring at you. His hand works its way to the front and slips beneath your panties, collecting your wetness on his fingers. You want to scold him, tell him off for touching you in public, but the predatory grin he's giving you right now is turning you on so bad. Typically, if you told him off, Buggy would drop to his knees and ask to eat you out as an apology, but you're curious to see if his boldness can translate into something more dominating.

You ask your friend to cover you while you go on a break. Buggy follows you as you round the bar and go through the back door to the staff-only area. He wasn't subtle about it. You know most of his crew just saw him go in here.

Buggy catches up to you when you're near a staff storage room, and he attaches his hand back right in time to push you into the room and turns you around to back you up against the door. He immediately attaches his lips to yours. His kiss is heated and messy, hot tongues pressing against each other. Buggy’s hands come up to squeeze your tits through your top, and he drops his kisses to your neck. You were thankful he had come in without makeup tonight, so you don't have to explain to your staff how your neck ended up covered in red lipstick. It happened to you once and was embarrassing for both of you, so you appreciate the consideration. He drops to his knees, kissing your thighs, and as his hand reaches for your panties, you stop him.

“Bug, wait. My break is only ten minutes. We don't have time for all this.” You say, pulling him up by his hair. “Just fuck me properly”, You whine, pulling him into a kiss. He lets you guide it before you get tired of messing around. You want to see how his status as an emperor and newfound confidence has changed the way he fucks you.

“You want me to fuck you?” he asks, turning you around and grinding his hard cock against your ass.

“Yes, and I want you to fuck me hard. You're a Yonko now. Where's all that power and aggression?” you ask. Your teasing question works; Buggy's voice is barely above a growl when he responds.

“You wanna see my real power?” he asks, punctuating his question with a slap to your ass. This is exactly what you've been waiting for with Buggy. You nod, and he turns you back around again. He doesn't look mad. There's no dark glint in his eye, and he just looks excited. You know Buggy, he'll never be a hard dom, but you just want to see more control from him, and that is exactly what he's showing. “I need words.”

“yes. I want you so bad.” Buggy smiles at your consent, leaning against the storage cupboard wall. He pushes you down on your knees and undoes his belt and trouser button.

“If you suck my dick for me right now, I promise I'll take you back to my ship and destroy your tight little pussy” You nod and waste no time reaching up to free his cock from his trousers. Buggy laughs at your eagerness. He doesn't receive this kind of sexual attention much, so you tend to fluster him, though he's not letting it show tonight. When you finally get his hard cock in your mouth, he moans embarrassingly loud. He throws his head back, staring at the ceiling as you work him into your mouth. He's all too aware of the fact that he'll cum down your throat the second he makes eye contact with you. “What would people say about you if they opened this door to see you on your knees for a pirate captain? And an emperor, no less,” he says, hips bucking into your mouth slightly as he gets closer to his orgasm. “What would Shanks say if he saw you like this?”

You moan around his cock at the question, and his hips stutter forward, breaking his rhythm. His cock harshly hits the back of your throat, and you gag slightly, pulling off of him. He uses his grip on your hair to pull you back to his cock. You want Shanks and Buggy to fuck you together more than anything. He's never spoken to you like this before, making you gush.

You slip a hand between your legs as you take his cock back into your mouth. Buggy finally looks down at you and groans when he notices what you're doing.

“Are you really touching yourself to the thought of red hair catching us?” he asks, scoffing. “I bet a horny slut like you would want him to join in” You know, Buggy's just as attracted to Shanks as you are, and you feel his cock twitching in your mouth at the mental image of sharing you with him. It doesn't take him much longer to cum. He cums down your throat and helps you wipe off any stray drops of cum that missed your mouth. He pulls you into a kiss as you tuck him back into his underwear and zip up his trousers for him. Buggy almost looks embarrassed at how quickly he's cum, but he quickly gets over it when he realises how turned on you are.

“I'm the boss here, you know. I can cut my shift short if I want to,” you say, pulling him in for another kiss. Buggy feels a stirring in his stomach when he kisses you. It's been happening for years; he chalks it up to being impossibly horny and refuses to look further into it. You go back into the bar and tell your staff that your shift is over, and you trust them to lock up. As you walk back to the Big Top with Buggy, he tells you stories about what he's been up to since he last left your island.

Buggy brings you onto his ship and down to his captain's quarters. As soon as you're in his space, the door is swung shut, and Buggy all but pounces on you. He pulls you into a rough kiss, walking you to the middle of the room. You occupy his thoughts all day, every day. He fantasises about your pretty self putting on a show just for his eyes. He sometimes wants to ask you if you can dance and see if he can ask you to give him a private performance. He’s finally got a chance to fulfil multiple of his fantasies at once, so he doesn’t hesitate in taking it. He pulls away, breathing heavily. He sits down on his throne, which has been pushed up against a wall, and leaves you standing in the middle of the room.

“Take it off for me, give me a show,” he says, leaning back. “make it flashy.”

You start with your top, taking care to remove it slowly. You feel one of his hands squeeze your tits. You whimper at the stimulation, and Buggy laughs. You carefully push your skirt's waistband over your hips until you can drop the garment to the floor. You turn around and hook your fingers in your panties, pulling them down your legs. You go to kick off your heels, but Buggy's hand grabs your ankle to stop you.

“keep ‘em on,” he says. You turn back around to look at him and see he's shirtless, hair down, palming his hard cock through his trousers. You notice he's become more like Shanks now that he's trying to take control. His hand grabs hold of yours so he can drag you over to where he's sitting. He pulls you to his lap so you're straddling him. He guides his cock to your entrance and kisses your neck and shoulders as you take him to the base. “ride me, baby,” he growls.

You obey, lifting your hips upward and slamming them back down. You both moan at the way his cock feels dragging against your walls. Buggy soaks in your pretty noises as his fingers dig into your hips to guide you.

You lean down to capture Buggy in a kiss, tilting your head to avoid his cute nose. Kissing Buggy always feels like you're unravelling a secret; the big scary clown pirate emperor is really just your silly man who wants to take good care of you. You feel close, and you start to drag your hips, grinding down on him. You whimper into the kiss, prompting a laugh from Buggy, who uses his grip on your hips to hold you in place while he fucks up into you.

“I'm gonna cum”, you moan, dropping your head to his shoulder.

“Yeah? Go on then. Make a mess for me”. All it takes is a few more thrusts to reach your high. Buggy watches intently as your orgasm crashes over you. He groans as you scratch at his back. He manages to hold off his orgasm as you come back to your senses. “Can you give me another one?” he asks.

“Didn’t you promise me you were going to destroy my pussy?” you say, pulling him into another kiss.

“I did, didn't I?” he says, before moving forward and laying you down on the fluffy rug spread across the floor. He's on his knees, hovering over your body. He pushes his cock into you again, groaning at how sensitive you both are. He braces himself with his elbows on either side of your head, and then he starts to fuck you properly. He grunts in your ear as he fucks you down into the floor. His cock fills you up so well that it is almost embarrassing how you whimper about it. Buggy loves the rush of adrenaline he gets from fucking you. How you cling to him and whine about how good he feels makes him feel like he could do anything. Your hands fly to his hair as he rearranges your insides, and he moans as you harshly tug at his hair. “That's it. Let me know how good I'm fucking you.”

Your second orgasm hits you like a freight train. He sinks his teeth into your shoulder as you gush around his cock. His orgasm follows closely behind, and he bites down harder as he fills you up with his cum. He tries his best to fuck you through both of your orgasms, and when your walls finally stop pulsing around his cock, he slips out of you carefully. He cleans you up with tissues and then carries you to his bed. He changes into pyjamas and then climbs into bed with you.

“Stay here for tonight. I'll take you home in the morning,” he says, moving a piece of hair out of your face. Buggy is not typically so affectionate with you after you sleep together; he’s never mean to you, but he’s never this soft. It makes you wonder what's changed.

“Are you leaving tomorrow?” You ask, cuddling up to his chest.

“Nope, we still have one more day here.”

✩♬ ₊˚.☁️⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

Buggy returns to your bar again the next night. He’s doing his usual routine of staring at you, drinking less than all of his crew and waiting to get you alone so that he can fuck you. He’d reminiscing about his previous trip to the island after you’d left the ship that morning, and he’s been having shameful thoughts about trying a specific gross kink with you. You and Buggy had hooked up before. You're no stranger to his wilder kinks, but there's still one that he's been keeping from you up to this point. He thinks he's finally got you comfortable enough to try it. He's been trying to buy you drinks all night, but you've insisted on being a good little bartender and drinking water instead, which was his plan all along. You don't realise Buggy has only had one drink, wanting to stay sober for what he's going to do with you tonight.

He overhears you complaining to one of your coworkers about needing to piss, and his cock twitches in his trousers as he thinks about the night he saw you piss yourself.

It had been an accident; you'd been out drinking with him, and there wasn't a toilet around, but you didn't want to go outside, so you had to try and make it to the next bar without pissing yourself. You were almost there when you felt it start to come out. You made a run for it, and Buggy followed you to guard you. However, he didn't turn around to check for onlookers. He just shielded your body from view with his own. He was too busy staring at the puddle you were making on the floor as you pulled your already-wet underwear down so you could go in the alley. It should have been gross, but he couldn't look away. He couldn't stop thinking about burying his face between your legs.

He hears you ask your coworker to cover you so you can go to the bathroom, and she denies you, saying you close in ten minutes and asking you to hold it. The way you whine in response reminds him of how you whine to him when he teases you. He turns around, facing you. You're standing behind the bar in little black shorts, a crop top and heels, driving him insane. He's grateful for your bar's questionable short and all-black dress code.

After ushering the Buggy pirates out of the bar, you rush through your cleaning and leave your coworker to lock up. You step outside the bar and are met with Buggy waiting for you, leaning against an opposite wall. He's watching the way you walk over to him with a grin on his face. You're wobbling, desperate to piss, and trying to hold it in. You're fidgeting, and it makes Buggy laugh. You scold him, which he pays no mind to before lifting you over his shoulder and carrying you to your home, which isn't far from the bar.

As soon as he's in the door, he puts you down and watches as you run towards your bathroom. Like the predator he is, he lures you into a false sense of security by encouraging you to go to the toilet while he puts your stuff down. However, when you get to the bathroom door, you're greeted by one of his hands holding it closed. You try to get it to let go, but it's no use. Buggy is stronger than you. You scream Buggy's name in anger, and suddenly, his hand is joined by the rest of him.

“Can I help you, sweetheart?” he asks, feigning ignorance and moving his hands to your hips now that his body is blocking the door.

“Please move, Bug. I need to go so bad. It's not funny,” you whine, nearly in tears from the pressure on your bladder. Buggy pulls you into a messy kiss, and when you pull away, he expects to see you glaring. Instead, you're looking up at him with teary eyes and the cutest little pout. He wants to ruin you. “I need the toilet,” you whimper.

“There's one right here,” he says, patting his thighs, and you immediately stop struggling in his grasp. You look up at him in bewilderment.

“That's not funny.”

“I'm not joking,” he responds, leaning down to kiss your neck. “If you think it's too gross, I'll move, but I want to feel you let it go so bad.” He groans into your ear before resuming his kisses. He can tell you're thinking it over.

“What about the mess?” You ask, voice shaky and unsure.

“I'll clean it up.”

“Okay,” your voice is small and desperate, but having your permission launches Buggy into action. He lifts you and carries you over to the guest bedroom that he sometimes crashes in when he's docked here. He dumps you on the bed and helps you strip down to your underwear. Your hands instinctively fly between your legs to cup your pussy, but Buggy is quick to swat them away. He grips the back of your thighs and pushes your legs up towards your chest. Buggy leans down to kiss your stomach, leaving red lipstick marks in his wake. You moan as you finally start to relieve yourself. Buggy leans back, gaze fixed on your cunt.

“Yeah. That's it, baby. Let go for me,” he encourages as he watches you make a mess of your underwear, the sheets, and his trousers. You almost hate how good it felt. Buggy leans down to kiss you, but it's a kiss full of aggression and desperation. “That was so fucking hot,” he growls into the kiss.

He pulls away from the kiss to stare at you, from his makeup all over your skin to your soiled underwear; he wishes he had a camera on him right now. He reaches down and pulls your underwear off, tucking the soaked fabric into his trouser pocket to take with him when they depart from your island. Your exposed pussy has him drooling, and then he hears you whimpering for him to do something other than stare at the mess you made. He can tell the embarrassment is starting to creep in, so he leans back down to your face, shushing you and kissing your lips. He savours the kiss, knowing you probably won't kiss him for the rest of the night after what he's about to do.

Buggy drops to his knees on the floor and drags you closer to the edge of the bed. He then dives right in, licking and sucking at your pussy. He buries his tongue in your hole, moaning loudly at the taste. He'd fantasised about doing this to you for months, but none of his dreams come close to how it feels to have you with him right now, indulging in his dirtiest fantasy. He drags his long tongue back up to your clit and suctions his mouth around it, flicking his tongue over your sensitive bud. You're so close to cumming, and with the relief you've already had tonight, you feel tears start to pool.

“Please, Buggy. I'm so close,” you moan, bucking your hips up into his face. Buggy's hands hold you in place as he sucks harshly on your clit as pushes two fingers into you. You moan and arch your back as he fingers you open. His tongue feels so good, and the extra stimulation of his fingers has an orgasm washing over you easily. You moan Buggy's name as tears roll down your face. He's completely focused on drawing your orgasm from you. He licks at every drop that leaks from your sweet pussy.

When you've calmed down, Buggy rises to his feet. He stares down at you like he's staring at his last meal. Your makeup is just as smudged as his. Your skin is covered in remnants of him. You're a vision of pleasure, panting and drooling as you come down from your intense orgasm. Buggy commits the sight to his memories. He towers over the bed, reminding you of how big Buggy is.

“You ready for me?” he asks, detached hands groping your body. When you nod and give him permission to fuck you, he grins something evil. He attaches his hands and manoeuvres you up the bed so your head is against the pillows. He wastes no time pushing his cock into you; if you haven't woken up the neighbours yet, then you definitely will when Buggy starts to thrust his hips. “You look so pretty under me,” he coos. “I should take you to sea with me so I can fuck you on my ship every day,” he says. You know you're close; you feel the tension building inside you. Buggy knows it, too. He can feel your pussy clenching down around him. Right as the tension is about to snap, Buggy pulls his cock out of you, stopping your orgasm in its tracks. You cry out in frustration.

“It's okay, I got you. I just need you to turn over for me,” he says, helping you turn onto your hands and knees. He slowly pushes his cock back into your waiting pussy. He slides a hand over the skin of your back, and then he pauses. He spots the mark on the back of your shoulder. It's a love bite Shanks had given you during your last hookup a few days prior to Buggy arriving. “Who else are you fucking?” he asks, filled with rage. You want him to continue, but you're unsure how he'll react to hearing Shanks' name after all this time.

“Bug, listen-” He doesn't listen. Buggy’s insecurity and the feelings for you he's mostly ignored have risen to the surface. He drapes his whole body over yours to speak directly into your ear.

“If you want to cum, you better tell me who else has been inside of my woman” His voice is low and threatening, and it has you gushing and clenching around him.

“Shanks,” You say, trying to move on Buggy's cock that's still inside of you. Buggy goes completely silent, not growling and panting like he had been seconds ago. It's like his rage has been quelled.

“red-haired?” he asks in shock. You nod the best you can while being squished underneath him. You're expecting another spell of rage, but you feel Buggy's smile against your skin instead. “you promise it's only us?”

“Yes, Buggy. I promise. Now please make me cum” you whimper. Buggy gives in immediately, rutting his hips against yours with reckless abandon. If anything, he's more passionate and determined to make you cum after finding out you've also been with his self-declared nemesis.

“Cum for me,” he says, voice easily cutting through your moans. Your body obeys him without question, slamming face-first into your orgasm like you were made just for him. He cums along with you, pulling out and spilling over your back. Once you've both finished, he reaches for the tissues you keep on the bedside table and wipes his cum off your back.

He then carefully picks you up and carries you to the bathroom, setting you down on the toilet seat. He starts running the shower. As he waits for the water to heat up, he brushes his teeth and tongue with the spare toothbrush you keep for him. He jokes that you can kiss him now and laughs when he looks down at you to see you puckering your lips. He indulges, pressing an overly dramatic kiss to your lips. He tries to calm his heart when you laugh at his silliness, but he can no longer deny his feelings. To distract himself, he ushers you into the shower so he can clean you up properly. He's got both of you clean and in your bed within no time.

He lies next to you in bed, indulging himself in the domestic side of you despite knowing he's got to leave for another voyage tomorrow. He lets you press kisses all over his face and ask him questions about his adventures that he's more than happy to fill you in on. After a while, a comfortable silence fills your bedroom, and Buggy thinks you're finally going to fall asleep so he can leave. He's not quite so lucky; amidst the silence, you raise a hand to cup his cheek and say something that makes his heart feel like it's about to burst out of his chest.

“You're so pretty without makeup, Bug” He's not used to these kinds of compliments, and he buries his face in your neck, grumbling at you to ‘shut the fuck up and go to sleep.’ You listen, giggling as you get comfortable against your pillows.

You hear Buggy call you the most precious jewel on the grand line and realise he must think you’re asleep. You don’t have the heart to wake up and embarrass him so you keep your eyes closed as you take in his sweet compliments and confessions he could never say to you whilst awake.

When you wake up, Buggy is gone from your bed. You check the guest room to see new sheets have been put on the bed, and you look out the window to see your soiled sheets freshly washed and on the line. You smile to yourself as you go downstairs to make breakfast for yourself. Both of your men now know you're sleeping with both of them and if your calculations are correct - and all goes well on their voyages - then both of your men will return to your village on the same day.

✩♬ ₊˚.☁️⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

A few days pass, and your shifts feel boring without your pirate men bothering you the whole time. You had taken to dressing up a little more for work just in case one of them comes back early and walks into the bar while you're on shift.

Tonight, you're wearing a black minidress and thigh-high boots. You know you look good, having spent 10 minutes staring yourself down in the mirror before leaving the house. Neither of your men showed up at the bar. You'd heard whispers about a pirate ship docking up and gotten your hopes up. You swing open your front door, sulking over the lack of your not-yet boyfriends. However, when you wander through the door, you notice a tall figure blocking the doorway to your living room. At first, he startles you, but you give him a warm smile when you finally realise who it is.

“Hi, Mr.Beckman”, you say, offering him your hand, which he presses a kiss to. He informs you that his captain is waiting for you in the living room, and then he takes his leave after apologising for invading your privacy. You tell him he's welcome anytime and thank him as he leaves your home, leaving you with the red-haired man you find sitting on your sofa.

“Shanks!” you yell, surprised that he's come home a day early. He stands up to catch you as you run into his arm. He picks you up and spins you around, leaving a kiss on your forehead. “You're early”, you point out.

“We were ahead of schedule, and I wanted to see my girl,” he says, pulling you in for a proper kiss. “this dress looks so good on you”, he groans into the kiss before pulling back and asking you to do a twirl so he can check you out properly. He whistles lowly as his eyes take in every inch of your body, all dressed up for him.

“I wore this for you. I've been waiting for you to come back. Why don't you come see what's underneath it?” you say, guiding his big hand under your dress. When Shanks finds his path to your cunt, unobstructed by any panties, he laughs. He moves his hand from your dress, smoothing down the skirt of your dress and then lifting his hand to your chin to tilt your face towards him.

“As much as I want you to give me a proper welcome home, I need to talk to you,” he says, pecking your lips and sitting on the sofa. Shanks pats the space next to him, and you sit down, tucking yourself into his side. “I heard rumours kicking around that my sweet girl has been getting cosy with another pirate”, he says, and you roll your eyes at him, partially because he won't be mad when he finds out who it is and partially because you're not exclusive with either of them.

“It's Buggy,” you say, swinging a leg over Shanks to straddle his lap. His momentarily stormy expression relaxes when he hears the name of the third party in your trio.

“Buggy?”

“I know, I was surprised too. It's like fate is trying to keep us together. I've always belonged to you guys,” You say, grinding your hips down over his hardening cock. Neither you nor Shanks have ever been shy about how you feel about Buggy, but he was always too prideful to admit his feelings. Shanks is smiling now that he knows you haven't been disloyal to him. “he'll be back tomorrow if everything goes to plan,” you say.

“I'd bet you'd like having us both together, wouldn't you, baby?” he teases, bucking his hips upwards and knocking you forward into his chest. “you'd like to take both our cocks in this slutty pussy” The addition of Buggy, though he's not physically there, has ignited Shanks. He's launched into action, talking filthy in your ear as you grind your bare pussy over his crotch. “But you'll have to deal with just me tonight. Is one cock gonna be enough to fuck my greedy girl?”

You nod frantically, adjusting yourself so that you're grinding against his thigh. He chuckles at your eagerness and guides your hips over his leg. You ride his thigh as he leans back into the sofa cushions and watches you. He keeps his hand settled on your hips as you drag your pussy over the muscle of his thigh. Shanks notices you're getting close to an orgasm and tightens his grip to stop you from reaching your high. You whine in protest, and he can tell you're about to start complaining, but he cuts you off himself.

“I want to taste your cum”, he says, pushing you to stand up. He laughs as you stand on wobbly legs. He tugs at the bottom of your dress, signalling for you to take it off while he removes his clothes. He pauses between removing articles of clothing to watch you shimmy the dress down your pretty body and kick it off. Seeing you naked is better than any treasure Shanks could find at sea. Once he's naked, he lies back against the sofa and then beckons you back over to him. “take a seat”, he instructs, helping you straddle his face without falling off the couch.

You lean forward, taking a testing lick at his cock as his tongue makes contact with your pussy. He wastes no time shoving his tongue into your hole and licking at your walls. You moan loudly as you begin to take his cock into your mouth. His cock is thick, and it tests the stretch of your pretty lips. Shanks moves his tongue so your clit, licking and sucking at it as you start to bob your head.

You're both laser-focused on making each other cum. Shanks suctions his mouth around your clit, flicking his tongue over it as he makes out with your pussy. Considering he only has one arm, his grip on you is steady as he holds you in place. You try your best to take his cock as far as you can, and when you take him to the base without choking, you feel the vibrations of his moans against your pussy. Shanks is always vocal, letting you know how good you are.

You start to struggle when you get close to your orgasm. You can't focus on sucking him or bobbing your head while you're moaning and whimpering.

“OK, baby. That's enough,” he says, squeezing your thighs to keep your attention on his words. “Just let me make you cum”, he says, pulling back down to his face once again. His grip is sturdy and keeps you steady as your orgasm crashes over you in waves. He loudly cleans up every single drop from your cunt. Your tense, shaking muscles don't phase him as he holds you in place. He only lets go once he's sure you're done.

Shanks helps you up before standing up and grabbing your hand, letting you pull him through the house and into your bedroom. He lifts you with one arm and kisses you before planting you onto your bed. He tells you to lay back against the pillows, and you follow without question. Shanks climbs onto the bed, sitting on his knees between your legs.

“You're so beautiful”, he says, staring at your naked body so intensely that his gaze has you shifting in discomfort.

“stop staring at it and just fuck me” you whine. Shanks looks up at you with a dark grin that reminds you of who you're dealing with. You've had your soft, warm welcome home, and now it's playtime. Shanks is far more in control than Buggy; riling up Shanks isn't as easy. A little bit of attitude and lack of manners is a good start.

“You wanna tell me what to do, princess?” he asks, you know it's a rhetorical question but you answer anyway.

“I'm not telling you what to do. I'm just giving you a heavy-handed suggestion,” you say, batting your eyelashes at him. He rolls his eyes at your attitude, but you know he's enjoying it; his cock is hard and leaking. He uses his strength to turn you over onto your hands and knees. Once you're in position, he lands a smack on your bare ass, making you gasp.

“How's that for heavy-handed?” he says, massaging the area he had smacked to soothe it.

“More”, you sigh, “Please, Captain”. He groans at the title. You had taken to calling him captain in the bedroom; it is his official title, and it's a reminder of his strength and power. He obliges, giving you a few more swats on the ass before rolling you back over so you can lean your head against the pillows.

“Do you misbehave for Buggy too, or are you a good girl for him?” he asks, leaning over to look into your eyes. He knows your answer is going to annoy him when he sees the cocky smile that settles on your face.

“It's neither. Buggy is a good boy for me,” Shanks laughs, not at all surprised by your confession. “Although he did take charge last time, I guess being a yonko boosted his confidence,” you said, smiling while remembering your most recent time with Buggy. Shanks is still looking at you with his eyebrow raised. “And I was good as gold for him”, you tease, tangling your hands in his red locks and pulling him into a kiss.

“You can behave for other men, but you can't help yourself with me," he says, pressing his fingers to your mouth. You obey his wordless instructions and take them into your mouth. Now that you're gagged, Shanks can speak without backtalk, and your pussy drools with every word that leaves his mouth. “I was going to be nice; fuck you nice and slow and make love to you, but you just can't help running this bratty mouth. I missed my sweet girl and her perfect pussy, but now I have to deny myself to teach you a lesson.” he pulls his fingers from your mouth, waiting to hear a quiet “sorry, captain” from you.

When you apologise, he presses his thumb against your clit and rubs in circles, chuckling at the way you moan out and open your legs. He pushes two spit-soaked fingers into your hole and warns you to keep still as your hips buck up into his hand. You try your best to stay still as Shanks, who holds an unbothered expression on his face, plays with your pussy. He rubs your clit with his thumb while he fingers you. Having one arm has aided with his fingering skills. He hasn't set a rule on volume, and he never has; in all the punishments he's given you, he's never cut off your ability to tell him how good he makes you feel. He's too enamoured with your voice to gag you for more than two minutes. You moan and whimper and beg for him to speed up. The stimulation he's providing you with feels so good, but it's not enough to send you over the edge.

His cock is red and drooling precum. You know he's as desperate as you are, but he's holding himself off.

“Don't you wanna feel good, Captain? I can jerk you off,” you say, reaching out towards him. He shakes his head, pulling his fingers from your cunt only to slap it, fingers smacking harshly against your clit, making you yelp. You're so close to cumming.

“thought I told you to keep fucking still”, he growls, returning to his task of slowly fingering for you. He looks up at your face, expression faltering at the tears starting to pool in your eyes. “Just be good for me, sweetheart,” he says, his voice softening. His cock twitches when he hears you say an obedient “Yes, Captain.”

He speeds up his fingers, fucking you right close to the edge and then stopping as he feels your walls start to spasm around his fingers. Having your orgasm ripped away from you prompts the tears to start falling. Shanks leans down to kiss away your tears, whispering about how pretty you look. You know what he wants to hear.

“I'm sorry, Captain. I promise I'll be good,” you beg. Shanks smiles softly, pressing his fingers to your entrance. “Please, I need to cum. I promise I won't be a brat.”

Shanks cuts off your begging by kissing you, messily pushing his tongue into your mouth. He pushes his fingers back inside of you and thrusts, curling them against your walls.

“Cum whenever you want,” he says against your mouth, intimidating demeanour gone and replaced with your sappy, loving man. You cum with a cry of his name, legs attempting to close around his hand. He works you through it, cooing at you as you gush around his fingers. He pulls his fingers from your pussy and licks them clean as you regain your breath. “tastes so fucking good.”

You watch him intently as he spits onto your pussy and uses his cock to spread it between your folds. You're still sensitive and the feeling makes you twitch. Shanks smiles at you as he pushes his cock inside you, pressing kisses on your face as you whimper at the way his cock stretches your pussy. He starts to thrust, making you arch against him. Your hands reach up to his hair as he sloppily makes out with you. When he pulls away from the messy kiss, you whine his name.

“What is it, princess?” he asks. You wordlessly open your mouth, tongue lolling out. Shanks doesn't need to be told what you want. He spits into your mouth, whispering praises as you swallow. “See what happens when you're a good girl for me?” he says, kissing you again.

Shanks is committed to making you cum, hips laying heavy thrusts as his cock all but splits you open. His lips trail over your skin like a fountain pen on paper, signing his name in invisible ink. His voice has your mind reeling. You feel delirious. You're close already, and Shanks can tell.

“Wait for me, baby. I'm almost there”, He groans, feeling the first signs of his own orgasm. You're not sure if you can hold off any longer, and you tell Shanks as much as your nails cling to his back muscles. He gives you permission to cum, and you fall right over the edge along with him. Your pussy spasms around his cock, milking him for all he's worth while you gush around him. He says something to you, but all you can make out is your name. As you start to calm, Shanks stays inside you, laying his full body weight on you.

“you wanna know something, baby?”

“hmm”

“I've been in love with you since we were eleven,” he says like it's nothing. You go to protest, but he cuts you off to continue. “Buggy is too.”

“This is just the pussy making you talk crazy,” you say, too tired to deal with Shanks's bullshit.

“Nuh-uh. Bug and I used to talk about it whenever you went crying to Rayleigh that we were picking on you.”

“That was a long time ago.”

“We found our way back to you, didn't we? Do you really think we'd be using this tiny island in the middle of nowhere as a base if we weren't obsessed with you?” He says, hand-drawing patterns over your skin.

“Whatever. Just pull out and go to sleep” You huff, and Shanks does as you ask, gently pulling out of you and rolling onto his back. He waits for you to roll over before tucking himself against your back, pulling flush against his chest. He presses a kiss to your shoulder and lets you get comfortable. Just as he's about to drift off, you softly call his name.

“Yes, sweetheart?” he asks.

“Say I do love you back; what would happen?”

“Honestly, not much. We'd just be official. We can stop acting like this is just sexual. If Buggy can man up and admit his feelings, we can admit nothing between us was ever casual, and it was always supposed to be this way,” he says matter of factly. You nod, turning over in his arm so you can Bury your face in his chest.

“Good night, Shanks.”

“Good night, Baby.”

✩♬ ₊˚.☁️⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

The next morning, Shanks follows you around town like a lost puppy, shadowing you as you buy groceries for the bar. He helps you carry the bags back and even helps you put away your bags when you get back. He can't help but sneak kisses between tasks, not being discreet about your feelings for each other. He's also more antsy than usual; he's sticking close to you, looking around like a meerkat and absentmindedly playing with the fabric of your top when he isn't carrying something for you.

“Are you okay? You're not usually this antsy,” you say, pressing the back of your hand against his forehead like you're taking his temperature.

“I'm just keeping an eye out for Buggy” It's kind of sweet how desperately he wants to include Buggy.

“You'll hear him before you see him,” you say, making Shanks chuckle fondly. “And that probably won't be until later tonight. When he docks up here, I usually don't see him until my shift,” you inform him. Shanks nods, chilling out with your words.

A couple of his crewmates are already drinking in your bar as you clean up, so you're ready to open. Shanks’ men are nicer to you than Buggy's. Beckman is always a gentleman; he's even played security guard for you several times, kicking out patrons who wouldn't take no for an answer. When you ask Yasopp to lift his feet so you can sweep under his table, he swings his boots onto the chair opposite him with a sharp salute and a “yes, ma'am” that has you rolling your eyes.

In comparison, Buggy's crew aren't as welcoming. His business partners have never caused any problems when he's brought them in. Crocodile and Mihawk were initially intimidating, but you won them over with your selection of wine and the knowledge that you were once an apprentice of the pirate king. Alvida was happy to have another woman to talk to after being stuck with Buggy for so long. Outside of those three, his underlings had been rather cold, and you've occasionally had to shut down the bar due to their rowdiness. You dread the two crews meeting tonight and hope the relationship between the captains can enforce an amicable atmosphere between the crews.

Your coworker comes in to complete the opening and leaves you to get ready in the staff room. Your outfit consists of a black mini skirt and a matching black top. You've already done your hair and makeup, and you know Shanks is going to have a hard time keeping his hands off of you until Buggy shows up.

As you walk back into the bar, your heels clack against the wood floor. You get a few whistles from Shanks' crew, and you're all but ambushed by the red-haired man himself, who basically corners you against the bar. His crew are no strangers to the affection between you and Shanks, so once they're done teasing their captain, they leave you be. Shanks wraps his arm around you, complimenting your outfit choice.

“Do you think you can behave yourself until Buggy gets here?” you ask as Shanks' hand cheekily slips beneath your skirt. You're suddenly reminded of Buggy doing the same thing to you with his hand. You roll your eyes at the similar tastes of your men.

“I don't know. You look good enough to eat”, Shanks growls, pressing a sloppy kiss to your cheek with an embarrassingly loud ‘muah’ noise that has your coworker fake gagging behind the bar. Shanks reluctantly lets you go and takes a seat at the bar. He watches you busy yourself with refilling his crew's drinks while you both wait for Buggy's arrival.

You don't have to wait long. About half an hour into your shift, the door swings open and Buggy storms in. He's by himself, meaning he probably saw Shanks through the window and sent his crew away. He's also red in the face - whether from embarrassment or rage is unclear.

“SHANKS” He yells, the top half of his body flying over to where Shanks is sitting while his legs run to catch up. Shanks looks up at Buggy fondly, and memories of your time together as a trio come flooding back as you observe them. Buggy screams something about Shanks embarrassing and betraying him, which Shanks merely laughs off. Buggy pauses mid-rant when his eyes land on you. “Hi y/n”

“Hi, Buggy,” you smile back, leaning over the bar to pull him into a kiss that clearly shocks him as it almost knocks his hat off. Shanks tilts his hat back onto his head and kisses Buggy's cheek, making him so flustered that you can practically see the steam radiating off him.

“Why don't we take our girl home and have a real conversation?” suggests Shanks. Buggy, unable to respond coherently, just nods, and Shanks tells you to get your stuff ready. You apologise to your coworker on the way out, who simply says she already knew this would happen. You and Shanks animatedly talk about the past while Buggy is uncharacteristically quiet, interjecting with his own point of view every so often. When you enter your house, you sit on the sofa, leaving your men to sit on either side of you.

“Why do we have to talk,” Buggy grumbles, tugging at the fabric of your skirt. “Why can't we just tear this off you, fuck you and then talk another time.”

“Because I don't want any problems between my favourite guys,” you say, batting your eyelashes at Buggy. Buggy gives in embarrassingly quickly, looking up at Shanks, who's bearing a similar expression to you. Buggy's heart squeezes as the feelings he's spent years suppressing rise to the surface.

“I'm not sure what I did to make you hate me,” says Shanks, but Buggy cuts him off.

“I don't hate you. I never hated you. I was willing to follow you through hell. We were supposed to find the one piece together, but then you changed your mind. I felt betrayed”

“I'm sorry, Buggy. I really am.” Shanks says, reaching across you to caress Buggy's cheeks. Buggy leans into the affection, making you smile warmly.

“Whatever. Can we get to the good stuff now? we'll handle all the emotions later.” Buggy says as his detached hand grazes Shanks’ crotch. “Besides, I think our princess wants some attention.” Shanks turns his attention to you, laughing at the pouty expression on your face. He is not done revelling in the fact that he finally has his two favourite people in front of him, so Shanks pulls Buggy in for a kiss that Buggy reciprocates with a quiet moan. They're clearly happy to have each other back, so while they kiss, you lean in and push Shanks's coat off his shoulders, pressing a kiss on his neck as you do so. When Shanks pulls away, he has a smear of lipstick around his mouth, making both Buggy and you laugh.

“You want some lipstick too, baby?” he asks, pulling you in for an enthusiastic kiss. Your teeth almost clash with how much force he puts into the kiss. It reminds you of how Buggy kisses you. It feels like he's overwhelmed and trying to pour some of his feelings onto you with his tongue, which he pushes into your mouth. You feel Buggy's mouth pressing against your neck as his hand plays with the front of your skirt. Buggy also lifts his head when you pull away from the steamy kiss. You can see how hard Shanks is, and you're sure Buggy is no different.

“There's more room on my bed than on here,” you say, starting to stand. Shanks also rises and lifts you over his shoulder. Buggy leads the way to your room, though Shanks is more than familiar with the layout of your house and lets one of his hands fly over to your ass. Your skirt isn't long enough to cover your whole ass in this position, so Buggy takes the opportunity to squeeze and grope your ass. You're thankful that Shanks is sturdy enough to be unphased by your squirming. Shanks drops you on the bed, leaving both of the men towering over you at the edge of the bed.

“There's still one thing that hasn't been addressed”, Says Shanks, twirling Buggy's hair around his finger. “Our insatiable girl has been fucking us for months behind each other's backs” You go to defend yourself and remind them that you were never exclusive with either of them, but Buggy's hands grab at you and pull you to sit up at the edge of your bed.

“You're right. I think she should have to answer for her actions. Any flashy punishments in mind?” Buggy asks. Shanks thinks it over for a second, picturing in his head all the positions both he and Buggy could put you in.

“You know how sensitive she is”, says Shanks and Buggy nods, more than familiar with how receptive you are to his touch. “I say we give her exactly what she wants; make her cum over and over again until her pretty body can't take anymore.” He says. It almost frustrates you how well they know you. Overstimulation is easy to achieve with you, and it's the perfect punishment that involves getting their dicks wet.

“I say one orgasm for every month she was hiding us from each other. When did you start seeing us, sweetheart?” Buggy asks, using his hand to keep your eyes on him. You know you can't lie. You started seeing Shanks first, and he's fully aware of how long he's had you back.

“Six months”, you say, your voice quiet. You're not even sure if you can handle that many orgasms, but you're willing to try. Both men start to strip as Buggy gruffly tells you to do the same. You're completely naked, and the two men are both in their underwear. Shanks instructs Buggy to sit up against the pillows on your bed. You do as you're told, as Shanks tells you to sit between Buggy's legs and back against his chest.

When you're in position, Shanks lies on his front, pulling you slightly down the bed so he can get a better angle to lick at your cunt. He shoves his tongue into your pussy, eating you out with vigour. He drags his tongue back up to your clit, lapping at it and then sucking at it. Your back arches away from Buggy as you cry out in pleasure. Buggy reaches up to play with your tits, adding to your stimulation. Shanks pushes two thick fingers into your pussy, as he all but makes out with it. Your fingers tangle in Shanks's beautiful red locks, similar to how he's tangled up in your heartstrings.

“Talk to us, pretty girl. Does that feel good?” Buggy asks, taking the lobe of your ear between his teeth. You frantically nod, and Shanks's tongue sends shockwaves through your whole body.

“Feels amazing”

“You gonna cum?” he asks, and you nod again, gasping out a yes as you feel the familiar stirring in your stomach. “You hear that, Shanks? She's gonna cum”

Shanks waits until your moans start to shake and then pulls away, slipping his fingers out your soaked cunt and over your shoulder into Buggy's waiting mouth. Having your orgasm ripped out from under you has you crying out and writhing in Buggy's arms. Buggy's unbothered by your whining as he sucks your juices off of Shanks’ fingers. He moves his arms down to wrap around your waist. The sigh has Shanks palming himself through his underwear. Shanks looks down at you, heart softening as your eyes, wet with frustration, blink up at him. You're not being bratty today, something that surprises him. You're far too excited to have both lovers in one place to act up now.

“I said we'd give you six orgasms. I didn't say we'd give them to you easily,” says Shanks, making Buggy laugh in your ear at the way you groan. You should've known the punishment would go further. Shanks leans back down to finish his meal but stops short of actually pressing his mouth to you to tease his fingers at the entrance to your hole. You beg him to do something, eyes screwed shut in frustration. Both men coo at your desperation. “I would if only I had something a bit thicker to fill up this pretty pussy with,” he says, holding his hand out to Buggy, who grumbles something about Shanks being annoying. You can feel that Buggy’s hard cock is no longer pressing against your back, and when you open your eyes, it's in Shanks's hand. “Open that pretty mouth and stick out your tongue”, he orders.

When you open your mouth, Shanks spits onto your waiting tongue and lays Buggy's cock down on it. You hear Buggy hiss at the sensation of your tongue against his cock. Shanks spits over Buggy's cock, using his tongue to spread the saliva. You can't believe how turned on you are by this. You didn't even consider using his power in the bedroom like this. Buggy is whimpering in your ear; the sound only makes you wetter.

“Stop teasing. We're supposed to punish her, not me,” says Buggy. Shanks apologises and pulls away, instructing you to suck Buggy's cock. You obey, egged on by the praise Buggy throws at you. Shank's pulls Buggy's cock from your mouth and pushes it into your hole. Both you and Buggy moan. Shanks's eyes are fixed on where Buggy’s cock is stretching you out. He slowly starts to move, and Buggy's grip on you tightens.

“How does she feel, Bug?”

“Warm. So fucking tight,” Buggy moans. Shanks leans down to continue his earlier task of licking at your sensitive clit. This time he doesn't stop licking and sucking until you're sent over the edge. Buggy is close too but holds off the best he can while your pussy clenches around him. You moan their names as Shanks stays in position between your legs, licking you through your high. When he finally sits up on his knees, he pulls Buggy's throbbing cock from your pussy and holds it up to your lips.

“Be a good girl and finish him off”, Shanks says, whispering encouragement as you accept it into your mouth.

“Fuck, Shanks let go of it. Hold her head in place,” growls Buggy. Shanks listens, moving his hand to get a firm grip on your hair, holding you in place as Buggy starts to face fuck you. You can feel Buggy clinging to you, telling you how good your mouth feels. It doesn't take long for Buggy to cum down your throat, and you do your best to swallow the whole load. Some drips from your mouth, which Shanks is quick to clean up with his tongue. Buggy's cock goes back to his body while Shanks helps turn you over so that you're straddling Buggy. Buggy immediately pulls you into a messy kiss as Shanks sits back to appreciate the two of you.

“You're both so pretty” He coos.

“You red-haired idiot, don't say things like that”, Buggy whines, obviously flustered.

You let Shanks guide you to the middle of the bed and bend you over, shoving a pillow beneath your hips for comfort. You hear Shanks ask Buggy to hand over his belt; moments later, your hands are secured behind your back. Shanks, who's now removed his underwear, slides his hard cock between your folds. He teases your hole, pushing his tip in and then pulling away. He waits a second to take in your pretty noises before giving in to your whining and pushing his cock. He's been hard since he saw you at the beginning of your bar shift, so it's a miracle he doesn't cum as soon as he feels your pussy wrapped around his cock. He lets out a moan that has both you and Buggy drooling from how good it sounds. Shanks starts to thrust and tells Buggy to watch how well you take his cock.

Buggy, who's tying his hair out of the way, looks up at Shanks, who tells him how pretty he looks. Buggy hasn't adjusted to how sappy Shanks is and flushes completely red. Instead of answering, he just pulls Shanks into an aggressive kiss. You can hear the sounds of their kisses behind you, and the sound makes you gush around his cock.

“You feel so fucking good”, groans Shanks, reaching, running his hand down your back to grip your hair and pull you upward against his chest. Buggy moves on the bed and is now in front of you. He kisses you and reaches a hand down to rub your clit. You moan into Buggy's mouth as he speeds up his fingers. “You're squeezing me so hard,” says Shanks, heavy thrusts jolting you forward.

You cum as Shanks ruts into you, chasing his own high. Your cries of pleasure make it difficult to kiss you, so Buggy moves his mouth to the crook of your neck, cooing praises into your skin. You hear Shanks behind you moaning and cursing, dangerously close to the edge with the way your pussy walls clench around him. He cums with a shaky groan, filling you up with his cum. He relinquishes his grip on your hair, chuckling fondly as you slump forward against Buggy. Shanks massages the sore area with his hand, giving you a moment to breathe.

“How many orgasms have you had now, pretty girl?” asks Shanks.

“Two”, you say, a satisfied smile spreading across your face.

“Good girl, make sure you don't lose count.” Shanks and Buggy both guide you to lie on your back, and Shanks tells Buggy to hold your legs open. Buggy does as he's told, holds your legs spread, and pushes up your chest. Shanks grabs hold of Buggy's hair and pushes him down between your legs. “Clean her up for me.”

Buggy nods as he sticks his tongue inside of your cum filled Buggy. Shanks watches as Buggy eats Shanks's cum out of you. Buggy is eager to please as he licks at your cunt. It took him a while to get the hang of eating you out when you first started hooking up, but now he has an understanding of your body that no one else has. He works you over with his tongue, your post-orgasm sensitivity pushing you to the edge quickly. If you're this sensitive already, you dread to think how you'll feel after the next few orgasms you've been promised. Shanks looks from Buggy's face to yours and immediately recognises how close you are. He tells Buggy you're near and to make you cum now. Buggy pays extra attention to your clit as you attempt to buck up into his face. He holds you down as his tongue sends you over the edge and straight into an orgasm.

You writhe as you cum, drenching Buggy's face. Buggy remains unmoved, tongue still working at you even when you start to come down again. In fact, Buggy doesn't let up at all when your third orgasm quells; he pushes two fingers into you, ready to send you into a fourth orgasm. You're ascending from one plane of existence to the next as Buggy has the next orgasm building so quickly after your last. Every nerve in your body tingles and an odd feeling settles in your lower stomach.

Shanks looks on in awe; watching his two fated mates so animalistic has him too enamoured to even worry about his hardening cock. He's sure the way you're crying out for them is disturbing your neighbours, but he doesn't have it in him to care. Shanks watches as Buggy adds another finger. The pleasure is so intense that you shift up the bed, instinctively searching for something other than the sheets to grip. Shanks moves his hand from Buggy's hair to your face, caressing your cheek and running his thumb over your lips.

“Don't run from it, princess. Let Buggy make you cum” he says, voice soft. As if on cue, you're launched into another mind-blowing orgasm. It takes a second to register that you're gushing all over Buggy's face because Buggy seems completely unbothered by it, continuing to work you through your high and prolong your orgasm. Your body feels momentarily numb as you arch off the bed, shaking as you soak the sheets beneath you. Buggy finally relents, shifting back onto his knees, wiping his face with the back of his hand and messing up his makeup. You notice the way his face, neck and torso are dripping with your juices. You feel panic rise at the fact you've just squirted everywhere, but Shanks immediately stomps it back down by pulling you into a kiss.

Once you're rolled into a spot where you're not lying in a pool of cum, you get a glance of yourself in the mirror and almost recoil in shock. Your hair is messy, and your face is covered in smudged and transferred makeup. Your body is littered with remnants of lipstick and hickeys. When you look up at Shanks and Buggy, who look equally roughed up, they're staring at you with fondness in their eyes. You can't believe the men above you are looking at you with such hunger when you look this much of a mess.

“You're so beautiful,” says Shanks. Buggy's lipstick transferred onto your face almost makes it look like you have messy clown makeup on, and it causes a stir in Shanks’ crotch that he takes note of for future reference - maybe he’ll ask you to dig in Buggy’s makeup bag. Buggy is kneeling next to him, leaning on his shoulder to catch his breath. Most of his makeup is gone, having been transferred onto you and Shanks, but he still looks radiant to you. He has a smile settled on his face, a soft, content smile you don't see often from him. It makes your stomach warm to know you have this level of connection with two people. “Do you want to stop? We can stop if it's too much. Four orgasms is alot,” says Shanks, eyebrows furrowed in concern as he observes your ragged breathing. You frantically shake your head, immediately having an answer for him.

“I don't wanna stop,” you whine. You might be sensitive, but you crave as much of them as you can get. “Please. I want more,” you beg. You move your exhausted body to kneel in front of Shanks and push him down to lie on his back. Shanks easily does what you want him to, lying back but using his elbow to hold himself up and watch you.

You crawl on top of Shanks, straddling his hips and stare down his torso, examining the canvas on which you and Buggy have made art; bright red lipstick and shiny lip gloss cover his neck and chest. You don't waste any more time, grabbing ahold of his hard cock and guiding it to your hole so you can sink down on it. You feel Buggy's presence behind you and pull him closer to you so he can help guide you down. Buggy tells you to bend forward so he can join in. He grabs a bottle of lube from the night side table, spreads it over his fingers and pushes two against the tight rim of your hole. You gasp and clench around Shanks, who groans but is careful not to jolt you. Buggy works you open with his fingers until you've had enough and beg him to fuck you properly.

“Please put it in. I can take it. I need it so bad,” you beg, knowing Buggy would give it to you anyway. Shanks laughs from beneath you.

“Weren't you all fucked out from four orgasms like ten minutes ago?” He asks, amused by your sudden eagerness. “I didn't know you had crazy stamina,” he comments. Neither did you. Buggy pulls his fingers out of you and lines his cock up with your ass hole. His hands grip your hips, a steady presence as he pushes inside you.

You let out a strangled moan as they're both bottomed out inside of you; you've never been this full before. The three of you take a second to breathe, and in the silence, it hits you: you're physically connected to the two people you love most. You've always been theirs, always connected with them beyond romance, and always believed that your very livelihoods are intertwined. You're overcome with a feeling of genuine love.

“Please move. I need you so bad,” you whimper. Your heightened emotions have tears building in your eyes that don't go unnoticed by Shanks, who looks over your shoulder at Buggy and signals him to start moving. Both men begin to thrust, and it feels so good you find yourself clawing at Shanks’ chest. Shanks’ cock twitches inside you at the thought of the marks that will be left behind. The feeling of both men filling you up quickly overwhelms you, and the tears spill down your cheeks.

“Oh, pretty girl, you're crying for us. Does it feel that good?” coos Shanks. He reaches his hand up to wipe at the tears. Buggy’s lips trail your shoulder blades as he whispers praises into your skin. Your legs start to shake, and you can barely support yourself. You're about to cum again, and both men can feel it.

“You feel so good, sweetheart. Your ass feels amazing,” moans Buggy. “Cum for us. I know you want to,” he says, hand reaching around to rub your clit. Your hand intertwines with Shanks’, and you pin it down to the bed by his head, squeezing his palm as you approach your orgasm. Shanks tries the best he can to fuck up into you harder, planting his feet on the bed for leverage.

Your orgasm is intense, and you sob about how good it feels as you lose your balance and slump forward to bury your face in Shanks’ neck. Shanks and Buggy continue their movements, chasing their orgasms. You barely have time to recover before you cum again, holes spasming around your men. Your vision goes white, your body goes numb, and you gush all over Shanks’ torso. Buggy is next to follow, teeth sinking into your skin as he fills you up. Then Shanks cums with a pretty moan before stilling inside you. You all stay in this position; naked, connected and in a sticky mess of cum and sweat. You're on the verge of passing out, so Buggy is uncharacteristically gentle as he pulls out, shushing you when you whine at the feeling. Buggy helps Shanks lift you off of him, and then the pair of them get you over to the guest bed so Buggy can clean you up. Shanks strips your bed and prepares your sheets for cleaning first thing in the morning. Buggy finishes cleaning up the mess of cum between your legs and over your hips and starts to wipe at your makeup that was ruined by his own cosmetics. Shanks returns to the guest bedroom and leans against the doorframe to watch the intimate moment between you and Buggy. A smile settles on his lips as he watches Buggy steal a kiss while wiping your makeup off.

“Ready for bed, you two?” he asks as Buggy throws away the wipes. Your bed is only a double, so the sleeping arrangement ends up being you fully on top of Shanks, resting your head on his chest. Buggy tucks himself into Shanks’ side and rests an arm over you.

“Love you,” you mumble as you drift off. Buggy doesn't respond, as he is too flustered. Instead, he kisses your temple and lies back down to you in slumber.

“I love you too, baby. I love both of you,” says Shanks before closing his eyes.

✩♬ ₊˚.☁️⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

You wake up with your whole body feeling sore and drained of energy. You're noticeably alone, but you can hear the hushed voices of your lovers. You roll over to see them standing by the window, engrossed in conversation. Shanks is tucking Buggy's hair behind his ear, and Buggy looks like he’s been crying. You can’t see Shanks’ face, but imagine his expression must be similar.

“What are you guys talking about?” you ask, sitting up. Both men turn to you, looking startled. They hadn’t expected you to be awake yet. Buggy quickly wipes his tears, and Shanks wanders to the bed, sitting beside you.

“We were just clearing the air. You know that a lot happened between us, and Buggy and I were just working out our share of issues so that we could move forward with each other,” he says, leaning in to kiss your forehead and lips. Buggy hasn’t moved from his place by the window. “How are you feeling?” he asks, voice soft and deep.

“I’m okay. I feel sore, though,” you say, pouting at the two men who are the cause of your physical exhaustion. They both smirk at your pouty face, knowing damn well that you had asked them to wreck you.

“That's cute, baby. I didn’t mean that, though. I meant, how do you feel about our relationship?” Shanks clarifies. He calls Buggy to come and sit down with the two of you.

“I want to be official - no matter what happens, I'll always be yours - but how will it work? If you’re working towards being king of the pirates, you can't keep coming back here, or you’ll make no progress,” you say. Shanks nods, looking towards Buggy. The sombre atmosphere lifts as a smile splits across both of their faces.

“We spoke a bit about that earlier. It won’t be safe for you to stay here. If info about you gets out and other pirates try to go after you, you need to be somewhere we can protect you. So we think it would be good for you to come with one of us.” Buggy says, pausing to gauge your reaction. It’s been a long time since you’ve been on a pirate ship, but you have always been pretty good with a sword. Part of you feels nostalgic about being aboard a pirate ship again. Buggy and Shanks are both emperors so no matter who you went with, you'd be safer.

“If I do go with one of you, then what about the other?” you ask, not wanting anyone to be offended that you didn't pick them.

“Then we’ll keep in touch via den den mushi and letters. I'm sure we’ll also cross paths on some islands,” says Shanks.

“It’s been a long time since I've been part of a pirate crew, but I think I can go back if it means being with you”, you say, finally wearing a smile to match those of the men sitting next to you.

You still have a few days to think over and choose who you go with, so for now, you hold out your hands and insist one of them, who ends up being Buggy, carries you to your bathroom so that you can shower together. Shanks stares at you both with hearts in his eyes, and Buggy whisks you off to the shower.

“C’mon, red-haired, our girl needs us”, he calls from the bathroom, and Shanks appears in the doorframe moments later to see you seated on the counter while Buggy turns on the shower. You’re still naked, having not been clothed after last night, and Shanks walks over to you to stand between your legs. He leans in to press little kisses all over your skin, which you interrupt by pulling him up for a kiss.

“You two better behave in the shower, or I'll kick you out”, you say, gently scolding them for all the work they put your body through the night before. You glare at both of them, and Buggy rolls his eyes, pushing back the shower curtain so Shanks can lift you and place you under the water. Both men join you and are delicate as they wash you. They don't apologise for any marks left on you; they're pretty proud of them, but they leave little kisses on them as a thank you for bringing them back together. You had previously thought you’d been fated to a life behind that bar until the universe got your boys back to you. This feels right; it feels comfortable, and you believe in soulmates more and more as every moment passes.

✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

thanks for reading!!! reblogs/comments are much appreciated! ♡

tag list: @bloodfixnd

pls drop a dm or ask to be added to the taglist (if you to be tagged in one specific character list just let me know!)

✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

[ltwilliammowett]

In door no. 10 we have a couple today. The US Brig Niagara and HMS Bounty, aren't they cute together?

More about them here:

The Bounty was a British three-master on which one of the most famous mutinies in maritime history took place on 28 April 1789 near Tonga. Since then, the story of the ‘Mutiny on the Bounty’ has repeatedly become the subject of novels, non-fiction books, films, theatre plays and radio plays.

The merchant ship, built in Hull in 1784 and originally used as a coal freighter under the name Bethia, was purchased by the British Admiralty for an expedition to the South Seas. After extensive modifications, it set off on a voyage to Tahiti in 1787 under the command of Lieutenant William Bligh of Spithead to bring cuttings of the breadfruit tree from there to the Antilles. After their exploits, the mutineers settled on the remote island of Pitcairn. Off its coast, they set fire to the Bounty.

The Bounty here, however, was a replica from the 18th century built in 1960 and 1961. It was built especially for the film Mutiny on the Bounty (1962). The ship was sometimes referred to as HMS Bounty II or variants thereof to distinguish it from the original, but neither the abbreviation HMS, which is reserved for British naval vessels, nor the numbers were part of the ship's name. After being used in several other films, she was used for charter and adventure trips with passengers and as a museum ship.

Unfortunately, she sank off Cape Hatteras during Hurricane Sandy on 29 October 2012 with the loss of two crew members.

The U.S. Brig Niagara, otherwise known as Flagship Niagara. This version here of ‘the Brig’ is a replica reproduction of Oliver Hazard Perry's relief flagship during the American victory at the Battle of Lake Erie on 10 September, 1813. All iterations of this ship were constructed within the sheltered natural harbour of Presque Isle Bay in Erie, Pennsylvania including this version which began construction in 1988. Her first sailing season commenced in 1992 and has been sailing nearly continuously since.

[jesslovesboats]

I guess it's time to start moving some content from twt over here! For those who don't know me, I'm a public librarian with a special interest in polar and nautical history, and I love nothing more than connecting readers with good books. I've managed to convert some friends to my way of thinking, and one of them coined the phrase "sad boat books" to describe the types of books that I'm always reading and recommending. Here is my first list of sad boat books-- I can personally vouch for all of them!

New to sad boat? Start here to see if it’s for you!

Endurance by Alfred Lansing

Madhouse at the End of the Earth by Julian Sancton

The Worst Journey in the World- The Graphic Novel Volume 1: Making Our Easting Down adapted by Sarah Airriess from the book by Apsley Cherry-Garrard

Frozen in Time: The Fate of the Franklin Expedition by Owen Beattie and John Geiger

Terra Nova, A GREAT first expedition!

The Worst Journey in the World- The Graphic Novel Volume 1: Making Our Easting Down adapted by Sarah Airriess from the book by Apsley Cherry-Garrard

The Worst Journey in the World by Apsley Cherry-Garrard

A First Rate Tragedy by Diana Preston

Robert Falcon Scott Journals- Captain Scott’s Last Expedition by Robert Falcon Scott

“I Love Ernest Shackleton” starter pack

Endurance by Alfred Lansing

Shackleton’s Boat Journey by Frank Worsley

The Endurance by Caroline Alexander

“I Hate Ernest Shackleton” starter pack

The Lost Men by Kelly Tyler-Lewis

Polar Castaways by Richard McElrea and David Harrowfield

Roald Roald Roald!

The Last Viking: The Life of Roald Amundsen by Stephen Bown

The South Pole by Roald Amundsen

The Last Place on Earth by Roland Huntford*

*DISCLAIMER: this guy hates Captain Scott and gets most of the Scott details wrong, read for Roald only!

The Franklin Expedition

Frozen in Time: The Fate of the Franklin Expedition by Owen Beattie and John Geiger

Erebus by Michael Palin

May We Be Spared to Meet on Earth: Letters of the Lost Franklin Expedition edited by Russell A. Potter, Regina Koellner, Peter Carney, and Mary Williamson

Non-polar sad boats

The Bounty by Caroline Alexander

Batavia’s Graveyard by Mike Dash

The Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger

In The Heart of the Sea by Nathaniel Philbrick

Sometimes a sad balloon can be a sad boat

The Expedition by Bea Uusma

The Ice Balloon by Alec Wilkinson

Karluk/Wrangel Island, the expeditions of my heart

Empire of Ice and Stone: The Disastrous and Heroic Voyage of the Karluk by Buddy Levy

The Ice Master by Jennifer Niven

The Karluk’s Last Voyage by Robert A. Bartlett

The Last Voyage of the Karluk: A Survivor’s Memoir of Arctic Disaster by William Laird McKinlay

Ada Blackjack: A True Story of Survival in the Arctic by Jennifer Niven

Miscellaneous sad boat books that are well worth your time

The Ship Beneath the Ice: The Discovery of Shackleton’s Endurance by Mensun Bound

In The Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette by Hampton Sides

Madhouse at the End of the Earth by Julian Sancton

Alone on the Ice: The Greatest Survival Story in the History of Exploration by David Roberts

Labyrinth of Ice: The Triumphant and Tragic Greely Polar Expedition by Buddy Levy

If you read and enjoy any of these, please let me know!

[lovelywritinglady]

Crocodile’s Tears- Part Two- New Beginnings

Sir Crocodile x fem!reader, Doflamingo x fem!reader(siblings)

In which your life has gotten a little more complicated as your freakishly tall older brother comes back into your life.

Angst, reader is traumatized, fluff, curse words, violence. Slighy spoilers for Marine ford. Maybe out of character Crocodile and Doflamingo. May be some canon as well as non canon things.

The ocean shone brilliantly as the salty sea air whipped your h/c hair back softly. You stood on the front of the boat holding the railing that surrounded it, feeling the cool metal against your palms. You took a deep breath letting the salty air fill your lungs as your eyes still felt raw from all of the crying you had done the night prior. Your heart was still aching from recent events. You had once been the wife of a very powerful man and now you were just you and you knew that at some point, you needed to come to terms with that.

The reason you chose Dressrosa was because despite the history there, you needed to be in the comfort of your family. You desired to see your older brother even though he was a horrible person and a hardened criminal. You were an adopted by his parents as they desired to have a ‘normal’ child. You chuckled at that thought squeezing the cool railing a little bit harder as you felt fresh tears pricking your eyes once again. You started to hate yourself for wanting to see him, as he was the reason your parents weren’t here anymore. But you knew that he would welcome you with open arms, he did promise that after all. You just wish that you knew where your other brother was as he was more of the ideal person to be with. He was kind, smart, and someone you knew you could rely on. But your older brother would have to do for now, he was still family.

“We will be arriving at our destination in 1 hour.” someone on the loud speaker announced

“Well damn, that voyage was a lot quicker than I thought it be. Guess I should call Doffy.”You spoke to yourself as you admired the sea.

You reluctantly let go of the railings and began waking back to your room that was located in the middle of the ship. Once there, you sat on your bed that was hard and uncomfortable. You then took one look at your transponder snail giving it a small smile before grabbing it gently Reluctantly, you dialed your brothers number waiting for him to pick up as the sound of the transponder snail filled your tiny room. And soon enough, the transponder snail stopped with a click sound.

“Who’s this?” A gruff voice spoke

“It’s me, Doffy. It’s y/n.” You responded cringing at yourself for being so timid.

“Well, well. Hello there I was wondering when I’d get a call from you. ” He laughed out. “I told you that Crocodile was not good for you did I not.” Doflamingo spoke once more bit in a more serious tone fully knowing why you’d call him.

“I know.” You whispered feeling embarrassed

“I’m glad you know, sweet sister. Now tell me where you are so I can come and get you.” He said in a more gentle voice thing to coax you to him.

“Funny enough, in a boat right now on my way to Dressrosa. I’m about an hour away.” You replied with a nervous expression.

“Fufufu, good I’ll see you soon then. Are you just visiting or do you want to stay?” He asked slyly

“I’m not sure yet Doffy. All I know is that I need my family.” You admitted feeling too emotionally tired to hide your true feelings.

“I’m glad you’ve come to your senses.” Doflamingo stated as that sentence reminded you of the big fight the two of you had when you first started dating crocodile. You then sighed trying to push down the thoughts of your husband down. “See you soon, y/n.” Your brother added before hanging up.

“Shit. What the hell did I just get myself into.” You admitted to yourself before you began packing your things getting ready to see your big brother again.

One hour later

You had finally arrived to Dressrosa. Taking your first steps off of the boat felt like you were waking home. The familiar warmth and sight of toys filled you with joy. However, the sheer number of them shocked you as you defiantly don’t remember there being this many. Shaking your head, you decided to put it in the back of your mind as you were dedicated to one thing and one thing only; your brother.

You began looking around for him thinking that he might be here to get you. However, knowing Doffy, he was not the kind of man to do that. You shook your head that this realizing that it had been some time since you had officially seen him and you seemed to have forgotten some of his manurisums.

“Well shit, I guess I’ve gotta walk there.” You spoke to yourself.

And so you went in the direction of the castle that sat upon the plateau called the “Sunflower hill.” As you began your journey, suitcase in hand, you had walked out five minutes before you were surrounded by three men that seemed to be dressed as guards.

“Miss Donquixote, we are here to escort you to the palace by order of the king!” The guard in the middle declared handing me an official document with my brothers signature proving the legitimacy to this man’s words.

“I see. Thank you! Mind carrying my bags then?” I responded handing one of the other guards my suitcase before they could answer. I then walked past them desperate to get to my final destination.

“C-certainly!” The guard squeaked surprised at my boldness.

“Wait, miss Donquixote! We are suppose to escort you!” The last guard yelled

“Well escort me then I’m not interested in waiting any longer than I already have.” You snapped back not having any patience to deal with your brothers goonies at that moment. You then continued your fast pace not caring if they were actually escorting you or not.

“Yes ma’am!” All three of them responded as you heard them quicken their footsteps behind you. And soon enough they were in front of you “escorting” you to the palace.

After about an hour of walking, you had finally made it to your brothers palace. You smiled to yourself feeling surprisingly happy that you were going to see him after so many years. The palace hadn’t changed much since the last time you were here. With the exception of a few more shitty portraits of your brother.

“Miss Donquixote, please follow us to the throne room.” The guard holding your bag told you.

“Thank you!” You responded feeling slightly relieved that you were finally here.

The guard then lead you through a long hallway with red velvet carpet adorned with gold accents. The doors ahead that opened to the throne room was solid gold and stood wall length. The other two guards then stood on both sides of the doors. As the two massive opened you were greeted with the strange and malicious smile of your older brother; Donquixote Doflamingo.

“Too you long enough my sweet sister.” Doflamingo smiled crossing his legs as he sat upon his massive golden throne wearing his signature pink feathered coat.

“My bad, your guards got in my way.” You joked walking up to him with a small smile on your face.

“Fufufu I’ll deal with them later.” He spoke looking down at you with his smile never fading from his face.

“It’s good to see you brother.” You admitted not interested in starting any small talk with him knowing full well it would go absolutely no where.

“You as well dear one. It’s been so long. Why don’t we catch up in private?” He asked although knowing him, it definitely wasn’t a question. “Why don’t we talk in my office?” He added as he got up from his massive throne and began walking.

“Sure thing.” You responded as you followed.

Soon the two of you arrived to his office. Once there, the two of you sat across from each other in big office chairs. His looked perfect for him while your looked like it was about to swallow you whole. His office was huge and like the rest of the decor of the castle, it was adored with good trimmings and beautiful paintings. One of the paintings in particular caught your eye. It was a painting of you and both of your brothers. With them standing side by side with you in the middle. The sight of that painting made your heart ache. You hadn’t seem your other brother in an ever longer time than you had seen Doflamingo.

“He’s still missing y/n.” Doflamingo chimed in once he took notice you weren’t paying any attention to him.

“I know, it’s been far too long. I barely remember him.” You spoke seldomly

“What do you remember?” He asked as he leaned in closer to you.

“That he was kind, quiet, and extremely clumsy.” You replied reminiscing in your head about the time he somehow slipped sitting down. You chuckled at that thought which, not to your awareness, made Doflamingo jealous.

“Yes he was, but onto business.” He said doing his best to hide his annoyed tone and trying to give you a sweet and loving smile instead.

“Yeah, I suppose you’re right. What would you like to know?” You asked him leaning back into your massive chair.

“Everything, start from the beginning. I need to know how much that mother fucker hurt you and if I need to kill him or not.” He sneered smiling in anticipation.

“I’ll tell you everything as long as you agree not to kill him.” You responded quickly trying not to get your ex husband kill despite your hatred for him. You were so glad in that moment that you took on more of the personality of your other brother.

“Deal, just tell me everything.” He replied in an annoyed tone.

“Fine, so it all started about a little over a week ago…” You started.

Meanwhile…

The news of Arabasta’s war conflict coming to an end and Crocodiles reign over was sweeping the nation and the world by storm. The news that “white chase” Smoker of the marines had defeated the infamous pirate became one of speculation and pride to the Marines. The king was respected once more and the lost princess Vivi went back to her kingdom once more. It was a joyous occasion as the chains that held Arabasta captive were finally broken. However, there was one in particular that was not gladdened with the news; Sir Crocodile.

There he sat in a large Marine ship with sea prism stone cuffs on both his hands and feet. Blood still on his face from his recent battle with the rookie “Straw Hat” Luffy. Crocodile was defeated through and through. Both mind and body spent as not only did his plans fail, but the one thing he held dear to him was now gone too, due to his own personal failure. The area of the ship he was in was dark and smelled of rats and moldy sea water.

“Damn marines, don’t even know how to clean properly.” He spoke to himself with a raspy voice.

His head leaned forward as he tried to make himself comfortable in these shitty conditions. However, he had no luck as he was so use to his luxurious ways. His constant cigar was gone so he couldn’t even find a slight comfort in that. Crocodile then sighed feeling tired from the sea prism stone cuffs that he was bound in. As his power felt like it was gone completely. He hated this feeling, he hated being weak, but most importantly he hates knowing that he lost. He hates himself for the words that he spoke to you when he should’ve been kind to you. You were(are) his wife and he loves you more than anything.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.” He spoke softly to himself as though he was speaking to you.

Where were you now? Were you safe? Did you still love him? These questions kept repeating in his tired mind as he sat and sat for what felt like an eternity. He knew where he was going, but in that moment all his mind wanted to think of was you. Your smile, your eyes, your body, your kindness, your love. You were the only comfort he had in that moment and he knew that you’d be the only comfort he would have in Impel Down.

“What the hell is she going to think?” He questioned remembering that he had never told you the full extent of his plan and the full truth as to why you were in Arabasta in the first place. All he told you was that it was the best place for the two of you to make money and you accepted. “Shit!” He yelled out slamming his hand and hook down on the floor.

“Hey! Keep it down in there!” One of the marine guards called out to him. To which Crocodile glared at him making the marine guard shiver. “S-sorry!” He stuttered out.

“Whatever.” Crocodile spoke leaning back against the wall and sighing.

He knew he fucked up badly. He knew the chance of you taking him back as your husband was slim, but he didn’t care. He loved you in his twisted but genuine way. You were his and he was yours and he needed you back in his arms. You were his salvation is this fucked up world. Crocodile then in that moment, no matter what, decided he would find a way to be by your side once more and he simply didn’t care how.

“Prepare the prisoner for transfer to Impel down!” Another guard shouted to Crocodiles.

“Yes sir!” The marine saluted. “You heard him p-prisoner. Stand up!” The guard stuttered.

“Sure.” Crocodile smiled sending another wave of nerves down the guard’s spine.

Now that crocodile was standing he fully now realized just how tired he was. However, that didn’t matter now. Now, he would have to endure literal hell for god knows how long. But, he knew no matter how long no matter how much they would put him through in that place, it would be more than worth it just to see you once again.

“Y/n, I’ll find you my darling.” He whispered is mind returning to nothing but sweet thought of you and he began walking straight into hell.

Back To You…

“And that’s what happened and why I’m here now.” You spoke finishing your story.

“I know you told me I shouldn’t kill him, but the events that you just told me make me think he deserves it.” Doflamingo spoke through gritted teeth as his fists were tightly squeezed together.

“His death really wouldn’t make me feel any better you know.” You bit back annoyed that he even thought to bring this up again.

“It would make me feel better.” He muttered as you rolled your eyes at his comment.

“I know it would.” You sighed. “I just don’t wish to see him. I can’t, especially after leaving the way I did.” You admitted as you started to feel slightly sad once more.

“Good, you won’t and I’ll make damn sure of it. You left because you knew you needed better and so you came to me. I’ll make sure you find someone worthy of a woman of your caliber, that’s a promise.” Doflamingo declared feeling righteous.

“I’m not looking to move on yet Doffy…” you said looking down at you hands as your eyes began to blur. “I just can’t.” You added as your heart ached with the memory of your husband.

“Fine, but you will one day, promise me.” Doflamingo spoke seriously

“I promise.” You replied. Although not fully meaning it as your heart still belonged to your husband despite how shitty he was.

“Good girl. Now you should go see the rest of the family I know they’re excited-”Doflamingo began

“Young master! Young master!” A guard burst in holding a newspaper exclaimed.

“Dammit what?!” Your brother barked back with visible anger.

“S-sorry, young master, b-but you need to r-read the news!” He stuttered handing Doflamingo the newspaper.

Your brother scanned it, reading it carefully not fully believing the article. You noticed a mix of confusion and excitement on his face as his familiar smile grew in size. It seemed like forever until he finally finished reading. Once he did, he gave you a smug grin as he handed you the paper that caused his amusement. He knew full well that this would fully shock you. So much so that you would most likely stay with him forever.

You took the paper from him and began reading. However, by the headline, you were already confused and horrified. A gasp left your lips as you continued reading. The true horrors that your husband committed came to light. Mixed emotions were flooding you as you finished reading and shakily placed the news paper down. Angry tears flowed down your cheeks as you looked at your brother who gave you a sympathetic smile, one he knew would make you believe that he had no clue about Crocodiles plan.

“I can’t believe he would be this horrible.” Yoi cried out as you cradled your face and began to sob.

“He is a pirate y/n.” Doflamingo said coming closer to you.

“I know he is, but taking over a country and planning to destroy it. That’s so fucked!” You exclaimed as you felt large arms around your body.

“I know it is. Shhh. Everything will be okay.” Doffy reassured pulling you closer to him with a satisfied grin. “I did tell you he was trouble.” He added.

“I-I know. I just thought he told me everything. He promised that he had.” You spoke through choked tears.

Your brother didn’t respond as he simply didn’t know what to say. On one had he was satisfied that you were with him once again. And that he finally had all of his family in once place. As well as the face that he was almost certain you’d let him kill Crocodile now. However, he also felt a unfamiliar feeling bubbling up in his chest. He did love you and seeing you so upset made him feel slightly sympathetic and worry for you. He hated this feeling but chose to ignore his confused emotions as this is what you needed.

“What am I gonna do Doffy?” You whispered as your voice was beginning to hurt from all of the crying you had done.

“You’re going to say here with me, sweet y/n.” Doffy responded pulling away to look at you.

“How long?” You questioned.

“As long as you’d like to but if it were up to me you’d stay forever. We’re family and it’s high time we reminder that.” He told you grabbing your now puffy face and wiping your tears.

“You’re right! You’ve been right about everything!” You cried out “I’m sorry Doffy.” You whispered hugging him once again.

“That’s all in the past now.” He comforted “Why don’t we go see the rest of our family soon?” Doffy suggested

“I’d like that, thank you brother.” You spoke excitedly

“Good.” Doflamingo smiled smugly

Two Months Later…

Your life at this point was much improved. You were now apart of the family and even had some authority. It was great and you even opened a little flower shop near the castle that you ran, which Doflamingo agreed. You had also gone to therapy and opened up a lot about your marriage and about your own personal problems. You were much happier knowing that your husband was serving time for his heinous crimes.

However, during these past two months you realized that Crocodile’s absence would always leave a hole in your heart. Despite how awful he was to you, you did love him. You thought a lot about him and even began to miss him and the times that he was sweet and loving to you. Truthfully he was that way for the majority of your marriage.

Every day was hard, but Doffy and the family had made your days easier. You and baby 5 had gotten along well and you even helped her with her attachment issues and have tried to convince her to go to therapy. The rest of the family was hard to really get close with again, but you had tried your best. After all, they were people that you had been close with once upon a time.

Today, was quite hot in the beautiful kingdom of Dressrosa. You were tending to your flower shop, making sure that all of the displays were absolutely perfect. While you were focused on the task at hand, the bell to your shop went off alerting you of a customer. As you turned around you were greeted with the familiar face of Doflamingo.

“Hello there, what might you need today brother?” You smiled to him

“I assure you I’m not here for your beautiful flowers sweet sister, but I am here to let you know that’ll I’ll be gone for at least a week.” Doffy informed you as he crouched in your shop due to his enormous size.

“Where to?” You questioned

“There’s gonna be an execution. One for the pirate Portgus D. Ace, commander of the White Beard Pirates.” He said proudly.

“But that’s result in an all out war!” You told him perplexed by this information.

“Exactly. I’m ordered to go but really I wanna see how this will turn out! It’ll be a spectacle!” Doflamingo laughed making you cringe slightly

“I guess I’ll see you in a week then.” You responded trying to change the subject as you turned back to your flowers.

“Yes, you could come with me you know.” He suggested

“I’ve got work to do here. And besides who’s going to keep your family in shape while you’re gone.” You joked hanging your brother a blood red rose. He took it with a smile before placing it in his pocket.

“I suppose you could watch the broadcast.” He suggested

“Not really sure I wanna see all of that” you admitted feeling slightly sick at the thought of watching that boy die.

“Fair enough, but I do hope you will change your mind.” Doflamingo laughed slightly. “Take care of our family y/n. I’ll be back soon.” He spoke one last time before he left leaving you to your work.

“See you soon, brother.” You whispered as a strange feeling erupted in your chest. “This won’t end well.” You spoke to yourself as you continued w continued with your work.

A Few Days Later…

Doflamingo had arrived in MarineFord Mmmm a few days ago and already the war had begun. The theatrics were already amusing him as he watched the carnage. Pirate versus marine, the strongest versus the strongest. This war was right up his alley. Doflamingo only wished that you could be here to witness this, but hoped that you’d watching the transponder snail feed.

“Ah yes! Who is just the marines or the pairates! It doesn’t really matter this war will change the tides forever! Fufufufufu!” Doflamingo exclaimed happily.

“Ahhhhhhhhhh!” Sudden voices yelled out from up above interrupting Doflamingo celebration.

“What the” Doflamingo spoke out looking up with a frown and then surprise at a massive marine ship somehow falling from the sky.

“Dammit, Ivankov!” A familiar gruff voice yell out in annoyance.

“Iva!” A child-like voice called out.

“We’re all gonna die!” Two male voices caked out in terror.

And just as fast as he heard those voices, they were sent plummeting down into the hole in the ice below that was made not too long ago. This spectacle was enough to catch the attention of everyone on the battlefield. Faces agape at the sight making the fighting stop.

“Dammit straw hat!” The same familiar gruff voice called only this time the person was much clearer.

“Well I’ll be dammed!” Doflamingo called out to none other than Sir Crocodile.

“Shit.” Crocodile whispered to himself

Doflamingo quickly made his way to Crocodile, killing random people on the way there. As he was approaching, he took notice of Crocodile’s sad attempt at attacking Whitebeard only to be stopped by both straw hat and one of Whitebeards commanders. Crocodile was sent flying backwards as blood dripped down his nose.

“Well hey there gatorboy!” Doflamingo greeted looking down at Crocodile.

“Doflamingo stay out of my business or else!” Crocodile but back wiping the blood from his nose.

“Your business! Fufufu! Your businesses is now thriving with me after you left her broken-hearted. ” Doflamingo laughed

“What the hell are you yapping about!”Crocodile responded

“Your dear wife came crying to me after she left you!” Doflamingo

“She’s in Dressrosa?” Crocodile questioned already starting to make a plan to go to you.

“Yes! Where she belongs.” Doflamingo spoke

“She’s my wife!” Crocodile barked

“And she’s my sister and I can assure you, you’ll never see her again!” Doflamingo laughed.

“Dammit Doflamingo! She’s mine!” Crocodile replied grabbing him by the shirt

“You know she might be watching gator boy! Wouldn’t want to let her see you assault her brother, would you now? Fufufu!” Doflamingo teased

Crocodile then promptly let him go feeling nervous that you might be watching. Anxiety then crept and he decided then that he’d better act right hoping that maybe you’d see that he was a better man than the last time you had seen him.

“Damn, didn’t realize my sweet sister had such a tight leash on you gator boy.” Doflamingo joked

“Maybe I just want to my wife to see the man she deseves.” Crocodile whispered sadly

“Let’s just hope she’s looking then.” Doflamingo responded seriously confused at Crocodiles change in demeanor.

Meanwhile, back to you a few moments earlier…

You had completed your work for the day. As you closed your flower shop and made your way back to the castle you thought of your brother mentioning the broadcast at marineford and how anyone could view it if they had a video transponder snail, to which the castle did.

“Fuck it.” You whispered realizing that you were very much in fact interested in what would happen.

And thus, as you walked into the castle you set your sights on the room you knew had what you needed. As you made your way there you wondered what was going on now and what did you miss. You felt as though something happened that you had to see. Something that could change everything for you and you had no idea why yet. So, as you arrived at the room you immediately started to turn on the video transponder snail in hopes that the broadcast would work. After a little trial and error you got the massive snail working and connected to the one at Marine ford. The feed started playing and immediately you saw the massive battle that had happened and was now continuing. Pirate versus marine, the best verses the best. This was, in your mind, the war that would determine the change the world forever.

“The fucking brutality.” You spoke out eyes glued to the screen.

You noticed your brother in the corner of the screen laughing and saying some big speech that you agreed with and then;seemingly out of nowhere, a missive ship crash landed in a almost too perfect opening in the ice below. You gasped at the sight not realizing what had just happened. It was bizarre to be sure but was most bizarre was the reaction your brother had to it. He was quick to leave his post and go to the action.

“What the hell is he doing?” You wondered knowing something like this was not likely to make your brother leave the comfort of his stand. He is a king after all.

You watched your brother closely as he landed right before a giant man seemingly made of diamonds and someone who had just gotten punched by him. The video was hard to see due to all of the fight king and debris in the air. But with further focus you finally realized the reason for Doflmingos haste and why he would even be remotely interested in leaving from his viewing spot. It was a person; a person still so dear to you and who you still loved deeply, much to your own disappointment.

“Crocodile?” You whispered to yourself feeling like the world itself had stopped.

Thank you so much for reading!💜 Gonna make 1-2 more part(s) for this story! Stay Tuned! Please let me know what you thought of this part!!

Tag list: @emmaiscool22 @carmendanny2 @oofitty @ushoppu @a-goblin-named-cherry @iloved1lfs0 @sunnyferr @lucacangettathisass @eyes-ofhell

Click here to see what I’ll write for and HERE for my master list.

Please feel free to like, comment, follow, request, and reblog!

•I do NOT own any characters except y/n•

-L.W.L

Part 1 /Part 2/ Part 3

[rea-grimm]

Sleep protector Shanks

You have travelled the world and with your little boat, you have broken records and written yourself in history. In the process, you managed to discover some new island or animal. 

Now you were preparing for another much more challenging voyage. You wanted to be the youngest person to cross the most dangerous and longest part of the sea in the shortest time. It was a difficult task that only the best sailors dared to undertake. Besides, you've made all your voyages alone, and this was to be no exception. 

As your voyage became more and more difficult, you became more and more concerned that everything would go smoothly. You were so scared you'd wake up screaming at night. You kept dreaming about how tragically your voyage had ended. 

Either you were attacked by a giant underwater monster, or you were attacked by cartoon pirates, or you ran out of food and drink, or the weather went crazy. You just felt like your dreams were telling you not to go to sea. 

It was late at night and you couldn't close your eyes because of the nightmares. Instead, you got dressed and made your way to a small bar just a few feet from your house. You went there whenever you were in some kind of problem and couldn't sleep. You had no idea what it was, but one drink was enough to make you feel better. 

You were used to the bar being half-empty most of the time when the regulars were there. Tonight was an exception, however, when the bar was bursting at the seams. 

It was crowded and cheerful. You could already hear loud laughter outside the door as everyone was having a good time. You walked in and ordered your regular drink. Then you looked around for a place to sit. Almost all the tables were taken. 

Finally, you noticed one small corner table for two that was empty. You sat there with all your drink and watched your surroundings. The cheerful atmosphere was contagious and slowly spread to you. 

You were enjoying the peace when a man with dark hair tied in a ponytail, scars on his arms, a cigarette in his mouth and a pint of beer sat down next to you.

At first you just sat there before you got into a little chat. You were so comfortable that you confessed your fears to him. You didn't even know why you did it, since you didn't want to burden him. 

He rubbed his chin and listened to your every word. There was silence between you for a while and you just watched your surroundings. The man took a drag from his cigarette and blew out the smoke. 

"Here, take this," he finally said, pulling a red teddy bear with a straw hat and a black coat from his coat. 

"A teddy bear?" You asked, taking the teddy bear.

"It will bring you good luck and guarantee you a safe voyage," he said and drank from the pint to the bottom. You looked from him to the teddy bear again, something about it soothed you. 

"I can't accept that," you said and were about to hand the bear back when you realized the man had disappeared. All that was left was the smell of a cigarette and an empty pint. You looked around and saw that the other patrons had disappeared as well, and suddenly the bar seemed particularly empty. 

You finished your drink and returned home with the teddy bear. You changed into your pyjamas and lay down in your bed with your teddy bear. It was nice and warm and soft. You noticed that he had three scars on his eye, like he'd been stitched up, and his left paw was missing. 

You snuggled him closer to you and closed your eyes. Before you knew it, you were asleep. But instead of troubled waters and misfortune, you were now sailing on calm waters.

You heard a noise from the cabin and went to investigate. As soon as you opened the door, you found yourself on the beach, and it was pretty lively around you. Everyone was having a good time and accepted you like nothing. 

All nightmares have since disappeared from your dreams, replaced by dreams of travel, full of adventure. Sailing the high seas, exploring new lands, and of course, the bar, where the same crew was always there, making merry. 

The loss of your nightmares finally allowed you to focus on preparing for your voyage. You were amazed at how much a good night's sleep did you good. 

You took a small nap on your boat, since you had been working on it since early in the morning and needed some energy for afterwards. But now you had at least an hour. 

Of course, you carried the red teddy bear everywhere with you, and it even had its place of honour on your boat. Now you had it in your bed as a makeshift pillow. 

Even last night, you felt like you were only dealing with the cruise. You wondered if you had everything ready and didn't care that you were walking on a beautiful beach.

You were so lost in thought in your dream that you didn't even notice when someone appeared in front of you. You were startled when you almost bumped into him. 

"You shouldn't stress yourself out like this," the man who regularly rescued you and relieved you of nightmares smiled at you. The nightmares shivered in fear in front of him. 

"I know, but..." you wanted to say that you couldn't do it any other way, that you were scared of everything working out. 

"But you should relax a little, too. Otherwise, it'll consume you. Why don't I buy you a drink?" He jumped in, one arm around your waist. Without waiting for an answer, he led you to a beachside pub. 

There, you came to completely different thoughts and with him by your side, you forgot all the stress that was building up inside you. 

He used to visit you like that in your dreams regularly, so you realized you only had eyes for him. In the real world, moreover, you were mostly devoted to your sport, and most of the people who were interested in you were fans or athletes who didn't care about you directly. 

Moreover, you were beginning to notice that you tended to look for the traits of the man you dreamed about in them. And even if someone looked a little like him, it still wasn't the same. It made you look forward to sleep all the more. 

With only a few days to go before the start of your voyage, the stress was trying to get to you again. You were walking with your protector on the white sandy beach, watching the sunset. 

During this walk, you confided your problems to him, knowing that he could always do something to help you or make you feel better. 

The man rubbed his chin as if thinking before a satisfied smile spread across his face. 

"Before you set sail, pack plenty of alcohol for the journey. I'm sure everything will be fine," he smiled at you, ruffling the hair on your head. 

You trusted him, but on the other hand, it was a dream. You weren't sure what alcohol could change. Maybe just that it would help you relax. Despite that, you decided to pack a small box full of alcohol.

D-day has come and you and your faithful ship have set sail. The sea was calm and you had a clear course. You decided to double-check your belongings when you realized you couldn't find your red teddy bear anywhere. 

You searched all over the boat, but you couldn't find him anywhere. And going back would mean starting the measurements all over again. You wanted to keep it with you, but you decided not to go back. 

You sailed a long way on the first day, heading into unknown waters. But you were going to take a few hours of sleep before you got there. 

You fell asleep without a problem, but after a while, you woke up. You were awakened by a noise coming from the deck. You didn't understand what it could be. You heard the loud noise of people, but when you looked out the windows, you didn't see a boat anywhere. 

You picked up the first heavy thing you had on hand to defend yourself. You quietly walked up the stairs to the deck, only to notice it was full of people.

You didn't understand where they came from, since you knew them mostly from your dreams. They were always around the red-haired man. 

You had no idea what to make of it. You thought it was just a very vivid dream. You turned to go back to the cabin when you bumped into someone. He caught you to keep you from falling and you looked up into his face. 

"Shanks?" You asked in surprise. Was this really a dream? A warm smile spread across Shanks' face and he kissed you on the forehead. 

"I'm sure this little box won't be enough to last us the whole trip, love," he said, nodding his head towards the liquor box. 

Now you get the picture. You knew from your dreams how his crew and himself liked to drink, and this wouldn't even be enough for one night. 

"We can stop in the next town..." you began to stutter, as you felt like you were completely out of your mind.

Shanks was well aware of this and smiled widely before he ruffled the hair on your head again. 

"I'm just teasing you," he said, and with his words, the rest of his crew disappeared from your ship and now it was just the two of you. He took you gently by the chin and kissed you on the ear. 

"If we were stopping, you'd have to start over. We can do that on our own. I promise I'll keep you safe and everything will go smoothly," he whispered before he tilted your head slightly and kissed you. 

Shanks Masterlist

Sleep Protector Masterlist

This chapter is for @manachiichan

[prophecyofwinter]

Se Rĩna Qilōni Iprattan Se Jēdar | I

Aemond Targaryen x Reader

Summary | Saera Targaryen daughter of Jaehaerys I ran away from Westeros to escape her fate. 45 years later her daughter Y/N Targaryen, with invitation from King Viserys wishes to go back.

Tags | TargCest, Smut, Standard ASOIAF content, I wanted to write something raunchy with plot, Aemond and Reader are First Cousins Once Removed.

Prologue | Chapter 2 | Masterlist

Chapter I | The Rest and More

With lots of persuasion from you and lady-lessons from your mother, she deemed you fit enough to sail to King's Landing. However she would not send you alone, she entrusted your safety to your slightly elder brother Vaegon.

He had trained for years in the Temple of Light to become a swordsman, and a fine swordsman he was. Brother or not he really did piss you off most of the time, now more than ever. Once he learned of your impending betrothal to the Targaryen Prince he soured up more than normal. He berated your Mother for days on how she could ever allow this.

He would of course still be a bastard even if you were legitimate, this was only so you could marry Aemond.

“What if he is ghastly! You know someone being unmarried for this long most likely means it’s for a reason!”

You weren’t sure what stick Vaegon had up his ass but you wouldn’t let him ruin this for you, this voyage was bad enough. Perhaps you’d be able to claim a dragon, there are plenty laying around on Dragonstone…

“I am sure I will be able to handle whatever Prince Aemonds complexion is, especially having to witness you for the past 19 years.”

————

“In King’s Landing you can’t wear these kinds of fabrics, these are a whores garments there.”

Your mother threw your old clothes to the side and motioned for you to turn around. She put a thick and hard piece of material around your waist and tied up the back.

“Alright my sweet, breathe in and-“

Suddenly all the air in your lungs was forced out in a shriek as your whole rib cage was crushed under the pressure of whatever the absolute hells this was.

“This is beauty in King’s landing! This will become your life, remember this is what you wanted.”

—————

You’d be at sea for about a month or less depending on the winds. You craved to be back on solid ground, your stomach was not agreeing with you. Sleep escaped you night after night, only catching small power naps multiple times a day before the rocking of the ship would wake you once again.

The tight clothes and strict codes for ladies your mother had laid upon you for survival in Westeros weighed in your head. You hoped your husband would not be as overbearing as you’ve heard of Westerosi men to be.

—————

Your mother had called some of her top prostitutes to come in and teach you the rules and ropes of intercourse.

“The merchants from Westeros really enjoy the girls who act sweet and innocent. You will be expected to provide as much as he pleases, and you mustn’t bore him.”

The brunette climbs on top of you and places her hips between yours, both of you fully clothed doesn’t make the moment less intimate than what you’ve had.

“Now, let’s act out how you cry out for mercy, how you beg for him to be gentle on your body.”

She begins to mimic the motions of intercourse to test and see if you are ready for what she claims will become of your life. A weird sense of embarrassment stings throughout your body, you weren’t expecting this kind of training. You didn’t know there needed to be this kind of training.

“Come on my lady, let's hear you!” She taunts you with a laugh, she grabs your wrists and pins them to the bed to really get it out of you.

——————

You could only spend most of your time reading, reading history books and other stories from Westeros. You could speak the language fluently enough, but you will get it fully soon.

Hopefully you won’t have to give up your favorite foods, the Targaryens should be rich enough to import all the finest things from Essos. Pomegranates, Watermelon, Blackberry Wine, Duck and the list goes on…

The salty air fills your nose, it would be lovely if you weren’t seasick constantly. Reading distracts your mind enough to forget your current feelings.

You haven’t heard anything about the other Targaryens outside of the history books, you don’t even know what the current ones are like…

Your mother doesn’t have good views of, well, anyone. She told you to expect the worst from most of them, if they were anything like her father then you should be watching your back at all times.

Amongst all things and her dislike for Westeros, she wanted to see you happy the most. She said time and time again she would allow you to come back no matter what.

She was sweet and kind where a mother should be.

——————

“What if I claimed a dragon? I could visit you at any time I wanted to, right?”

You asked your mother over morning tea, you were to set sail later today. This would be the last time you would see your mother for the foreseeable future.

Saera rubbed her aging finger over the rim of her cup and laughed to herself a little.

“A dragon isn’t something you can promise, most of my siblings never claimed a dragon in their lifetime.”

You huffed and pouted, your motivation to claim a dragon only increased tenfold. Ever since you were a child when you were told you couldn’t do something it would only make you want it more.

“However, if you were to claim a beast… you would fancy Silverwing I believe. Or if you seek to be bitter, my father would roll in his grave if he knew my child claimed Vermithor…”

Saera laughed to herself heartily, entertaining her child’s wild ideas. She doesn’t doubt you would attempt to claim but she doesnt be believe it would be successful.

——————

Viserys was not expecting Saera to accept his proposal. So he was shocked when Alicent burst into his chambers with a letter in and holding it out to him in anger.

“What is this?! You offer Aemonds hand to the daughter of a whore?! What were you thinking!”

He left out a guttural cough into the fabric of his handkerchief. The unexpected stress of Alicents

rage seething onto him, he was gonna tell her… eventually.

“He is my son too, I must leave no Targaryen unaccounted for. I cannot die in peace knowing there is a- a good Targaryen across the sea. You have been trying to get Aemond wed for years, it- it is the best choice.”

Alicent braces herself on a wooden chair and lets out a deep breath with her head down. Her husband is a fool, he will look like a fool to the seven kingdoms and this girl is proven to be used.

The Queen remembers how she would read to King Jaehaerys on his deathbed and he would mistake her for Saera. He would reach out to her and ask for forgiveness, the guilt would eat at her because it was not hers to give. Until the day his body gave out and he couldn’t muster words anymore he would ask for Saera.

To Alicent, Saera had made her choices and she wanted to be where she was. To bring her bastards into it was too far, she had no choice in the matter. Being the Queen didn’t matter if the King already made up his mind.

“You will force me to greet her I presume. You are far too ill to make it to the port.”

Gods, Viserys already fell back to sleep. Rotted skin exposed and clearly pain stricken. Alicent sighed out loud in frustration and stormed out of the room, guards opening and closing the doors for her.

While she would like to think she knows how Aemond will feel about such an arrangement. He has been without betrothal for all his life and the ladies of the court actively avoid him. Perhaps this is something he needs.

[illustratus]

The Mayflower heading for the New World by John Bentham-Dinsdale

[aziraphales-library]

Hello, do you perhaps know of any fics set on the Titanic?

There are quite a number of Titanic fics, including several human AUs, but I've focused on through the ages fics here...

RMS Titanic by Bloodrose84 (T)

Aziraphale really felt like he was part of a major piece of history – he loved it when that happened. All history was wonderful, of course, but he did enjoy being able to say to himself "I was there," when people were still talking about a thing decades or centuries after it had happened. ******** Aziraphale and Crowley take a trip on the ill-fated maiden voyage of the Unsinkable Ship. Needless to say, it doesn't go as either one had planned.

Nearer to Thee by canolacrush (T)

On April 11, 1912, the RMS Carpathia sets sail from New York City, bound for Gibraltar and other Mediterranean ports. On board are 743 passengers, about 240 crew members, and one stowaway demon. On the night of April 14, 1912, the RMS Titanic, carrying approximately 1,317 passengers, 885 crew members, and one trouble magnet of an angel, hits an iceberg in the North Atlantic Ocean. Cue history’s most daring, famous, and perilous nautical rescue in maritime history.

The Titanic: Feelings and Folly by Ecchima (T)

The date is April 10th 1912. The Titanic is leaving Southampton with a hedonistic angel on board and is headed to Cherbourg where a demon - who is definitely not nice - is waiting to embark as well. What could go wrong? This is the story of the only voyage of the RMS Titanic. Of the people on board, of the needlessly luxurious amenities and the beautiful silliness that happened before it all went down.

Ocean of Secrets (illustrated) by magicbubblepipe (E)

When Crowley uncovers a plot to sink a so-called unsinkable ship, he decides to take credit for it and collect a commendation from the safety of his London flat. That is, until he spots a certain flaxen haired angel with a weakness for expensive creature comforts boarding the ship. He's forced to take action, lest his beloved be horribly discorporated. TL;DR Crowley and Aziraphale were on the Titanic.

Apsides by Theluminousfisheffect (T)

Aziraphale knows what fate awaits all those onboard the Titanic before it even leaves the port. Crowley has no idea and Aziraphale would very much like to keep it that way.

Sinking Into the Sea by pocketknifeknight (T)

In 1912, Aziraphale's worries include his bookshop, his printing friend's sick wife, and how he's going to make his way to the first class dining room on the Titanic for an unforgettable meal. When his friend, a book printer, asks Aziraphale to go collect master plates from a publisher in America, he also offers Aziraphale his ticket aboard the Titanic. Aziraphale can't resist. The Head Office has nothing to say, so Aziraphale decides he's earned himself a vacation. Unfortunately, a demon, not the one he wants to see, is aboard causing trouble on orders from Hell. Possibly, a demon, the one he is desperate (but unwilling to admit he wants) to see, is also aboard, trying to find a way to save Aziraphale without anyone being the wiser.

What A Dangerous Night (to fall in love) by ahyperactivehero (T)

Both Crowley and Aziraphale are assigned a mission on board the luxury cruise ship, RMS Titanic. It goes about as well as expected. XXX "What're you gonna do?" a man from the group shouted. "Shoot us?!" The group seemed to intensify after that. There was something in the air now and it was a hell of a lot more dangerous than anything Crowley could have ever hoped to create. It was a group of scared humans. He stepped forward, moving so that he was completely in front of Aziraphale and put his hands on the bars. It would take a second, just a quick second to magic- Fire seemed to shoot through his side. Screams rang out around him as he let go of the bars and fell backwards.

Icebergs and Angels (Spicer Relationship Version) by The_Bentley (M)

It's 1912 and Aziraphale, not wanting to be lonely during his mission aboard Titanic, invites Crowley along for a cruise. But he boards the ship before knowing exactly what his mission is. When he learns Heaven wants to teach humanity a lesson for the claim even God couldn't sink it, it could damage his relationship with Crowley, who has his own views on Heaven's need to punish innocents. Can he repair things with Crowley and can they work together to save as many lives as possible? Please note: There are two versions of this, one rated Mature (for sexy times) and one rated Teen (friendship/ace-aro relationship, depending on how you choose to interpret it). The only difference is the level of relationship that adds some extra material in the M version. Otherwise, they're identical. This is the relationship version. My friend, whom I wrote this for, doesn't ship these two, but I do, which is why there are two versions. If you're looking for the one that could be either a friendship or ace-aro relationship, go here

A Diamond Sky Above Titanic by SeaBlueEyes (E)

The year is 1912, and one angel and one demon's lives are about to change forever as they embark on the fateful maiden voyage of the R.M.S. Titanic - and a relationship utterly forbidden by both Heaven and Hell. Rating and warnings for Chapter 13, the rest being far more mild. Some slight amendments to the 2011 FanFiction version, nothing major. Once again, I apologise to the fandom for reading a comedy and writing a tragedy.

- Mod D

[cantankerouscanuck]

Fuck it, I gave up on writing prose so I'll lore dump here about my rendition of Odile in a bunch of posts about her family history and the HS Albatross. The kinda stuff from my old fic;

https://archiveofourown.org/works/56770021/chapters/144326329

enjoy the stories that will never be written

First, we have her dad, Kisaragi Mifune (artwork by @catdile )

He's a retired whaler who was once part of the whaling ship, the HS Albatross. Like other hunting ships, they fought all manners of Leviathans, the Albatross one of the few that would return to all manners of ports with valuable meat, teeth, bones, hides and more from whales, krakens, sea serpents, etc. Mifune was a lancer and a good one, regarded as a master spearman. It was during the infamous voyage to the south pole that things went wrong, the ship nearly trapped in ice during the late autumn. Although they escaped winter, a quarter of the crew died, including Mifune's love, Odile the First. She saved him from falling through the ice at the cost of herself, a moment that haunted him for the rest of his life.

He lost his leg and interest in love, but sailed a few more years aboard the Albatross. He had a fling with a shipmate that led to her pregnancy, but upon the baby's birth, she had no interest in it and left at the first port in her native Vaugarde. Mifune was left alone with his new child, naming her Odile the Second. Due to needing to raise her, his last voyage was back to Ka Bue where he retired from sailing. Two of his shipmates joined him, fellow lancer Rictus and the cook/surgeon, Canker.

Due to being born aboard the Albatross whilst on the open sea, Odile actually has a forged birth certificate. She's aware of this, but still considers Ka Bue her home. Yet she likes to joke that “I had an entire ship as my cradle”. But when her father resigned from the crew, he took ruined sails from the ship's hold, eventually sewing together Odile's coat from all the fabric for her 21st birthday.

As a father, Mifune did his best. He was illiterate thanks to a serious head injury he suffered, but encouraged Odile's academic pursuits. A common practice of theirs was for Odile to read aloud to him as he was working, he always liked hearing her voice. Due to his career as a fisherman, it meant long hours and he rarely ever made much money. Yet the two were happy, Odile learning many practical skills from him. And while her father couldn't really help her with her studies, he was no less supportive and made the effort to attend school events. Upon her graduation, he was boisterous for weeks.

Concerning the time Odile first learnt of Familytales, she confided in her father about it, even about longing to see what Vaugarde was like. And Mifune simply vowed to help her achieve that however he could. He gave her his savings, helped her plot out the route to Vaugarde and got in touch with former shipmates to find her passage across the ocean. Although sad to see her go, he was insistent on her finding her own path forwards and was proud of her.

[victorie552]

Ok, so Noldolantë, "The Fall of the Noldor" is a lament composed by Maglor about what happened before, during and after First Kinslaying at Alqualondë. It's such a good song that it's played regularly in Aman and Valar listen to it often (I swear, I swear it was in the Silmarillion I just can't find it now).

It's also a more or less common fanon that Maglor continues writing Noldolante through the whole First Age. Makes sense - it's about fall of the Noldor, and Noldor did a lot of falling back then.

Headcannon time: So my first thought was that Noldolante must a long, long, long epic of a song. So it probably has many parts, right? Iliad has 24 books/parts, somehow I think Noldolante would be at least just as long, and there are longer epics. And again, just like Iliad, unless you're a scholar, in the daily life you don't really listen to/read the whole thing, just reread and repeat the most dramatic fragments. What I'm trying to impress upon you all is that the story would have different segments, or chapters, if you will.

And if Maglor continues to write the story during the FA, there would absolutely be a moment in the lament where the OG Noldolante becomes Noldolante 2, and even Noldolante 3. There may be the same musical motif or something, I decided that Maglor IS that good of a bard to keep it all consistent enough so you know it's all the same story, but the style changes a lot - it's been 400 years in the making, let The Music Elf have fun!

So, Point 1: Many, Many Parts, basically Maglor's FA WIP

My second thought was that, while Feanor invented his alphabet, elves learned their history mostly through oral tradition aka songs and spoken stories. Noldolante is definitely a historical record, where a historical event was archived for future generations.

(It was a also a way to deal with grief, guilt and blame Maglor and all Noldor have faced regarding First Kinslaying - free therapy! But that's not what this post is about)

Archived.

My 2.5 thought was that Noldolante isn't just recallings of how pretty and horrified the beach looked during the murdering or how mad and sorrowful the sea was at everyone during the voyage or even how awesome and charismatic Feanor looked during his speeches that every single Noldo was ready to fight Morgoth barehanded in his name - no, this is a record of who killed who, who got killed by whom, and how.

Noldor and Teleri knew each other (were friends, even!) before the First Kinslaying, so I'm confident that after a lot of interviews, detective work, and cross-referencing, Maglor could and would create a very good... name list. Practically every Noldo and Teler present during First Kinslaying would get a stanza in a song, more if he killed someone, most if he killed many people. Killers and killed would show up twice, first in a fragment listing the killers and their victims, then in a part listing the victims and their murderers. Basically it's the same thing twice, but from different POVs. With when, where and how included.

(It was seen to be in bad taste to compare kills during Maglor's Regency, when most of his interview-part work happened. People did it anyway. There were a Saddest Kill, Funniest Kill, and Weirdest Kill discusions. There was a Tier List. These were weird times to be a Feanorian Noldo.)

(It WAS in Bad Taste, but at least people talked about it. I cannot stress enough how much free therapy this lament provided)

(Little did they know, when Teleri started getting reembodied in Aman, they had very similar discussions, but more in a "I can't believe he killed me like THAT" way. Long, long, long after the First Age. Noldolante is a gift that keeps giving)

So, Maglor had all the historical grith and no common shame to create a "We Killed All These People And We Feel Bad About It" banger of a song, and every Noldo had a very personal reason to at least remember the fragments they are in. It's a hit on a scale never seen before.

(I'm not sure how to tackle the issue of Nolofinweans and Arafinweans learning about Noldolante after crossing the Ice. But there were discussions. There was anger, there was "????", there was controversy. Basically, the song got bigger and bigger rep no matter what your opinion on it was. By the time of Mereth Aderthad it was an important cultural and political piece and at least Fingon's forces were included in the main song. It had parodies.)

Point 2: Archive Function/Kill count storage. Cultural phenomen, every Noldo included

This is where my personal nonsense begins: Main Noldolante was done, there was nothing more to say about First Kinslaying, all killings and deaths were well documented.

But the Siege started. And the Noldor kept dying.

It was less dramatic than it sounded - between the big battles the siege was maintained, but orc raids also happened and sometimes one to few Noldor died in skirmishes. The legal procedure was to document the death of a fellow elf and send a word to king Fingolfin. The cultural procedure, technically started by Feranorians but adapted by many more, was to send the name, common characteristics and cause of death to Maglor's Gap. After few months, King Fingolfin would send reinforcements, short condolences and financial compensation if they had family. After few months, family of an elf would also receive a personal lament for them and a place for them in a Noldolante.

Yes, every lament Maglor created in that time was technically part of the Noldolante. Noldolante 1.5, if you will. Laments make in that time were very customized, and simpler than Noldolante Main, but were still considered a part of the same song. Of course, nobody was expected to know and remember laments for every single Noldo, younger Noldor born in Beleriand could even only know fragments about their family members. Only Maglor would ever know Noldolante in full, but it was understood that everyone had their place in The Song.

The results of Great Battles were harder to document, but Maglor did that. Of course, Dagor Bragollach was hard on him personally, but he worked his way through.

(High King Fingon forbade creating laments for his father. There were no songs for Fingolfin. Apart from in Noldolante, of course. Of course. Maglor did not share the lament with anyone, but he sat long hours and many nights with a blank paper before him, looking at the candle flame and thinking of the past and the future. The song unsung, but there)

Nirnaeth was... Maglor was never more hated and more approached at the same time than then. Still, Noldolante grew and grew, as if people knew the end was near.

It was Second Kinslaying that destroyed the myth of Maglor's song. Feanorians didn't know the Sindar they killed, but surely, they couldn't just left their names unmentioned like they did with orcs? So, Noldor talked, but the battle happened in caves - it wasn't uncommon to find dead bodies in empty rooms, with no witnesses to what happened. Surviving Sindar didn't want to share any names, even when Maglor strong-armed some into talking with him, and good for them. Maglor made a big lament anyway. Maglor, wild, with no shame and dead brothers, with legacy crumbling around him. Noldolante, with holes.

After Third Kinslaying, Noldor didn't want to talk. Lament for Sirion didn't have any names. Clearly, songs weren't a way to go anymore, it was always about live witnesses. And so Maglor raised the twins.

Lament for Maedhros was sung repeatedly. There was no one to hear it.

Point 3: Only Maglor knows Noldolante in full. But that doesn't matter, because everyone knows the important part: the Noldolante is finished. The Star of Hope rises in the West and the story goes on. The Fall has ended.

[familyabolisher]

At the outset of H. G. Wells's The War of the Worlds (1898), Wells asks his English readers to compare the Martian invasion of Earth with the Europeans' genocidal invasion of the Tasmanians, thus demanding that the colonizers imagine themselves as the colonized, or the about-to-be-colonized. But in Wells this reversal of perspective entails something more, because the analogy rests on the logic prevalent in contemporary anthropology that the indigenous, primitive other's present is the colonizer's own past. Wells's Martians invading England are like Europeans in Tasmania not just because they are arrogant colonialists invading a technologically inferior civilization, but also because, with their hypertrophied brains and prosthetic machines, they are a version of the human race's own future.

The confrontation of humans and Martians is thus a kind of anachronism, an incongruous co-habitation of the same moment by people and artifacts from different times. But this anachronism is the mark of anthropological difference, that is, the way late-nineteenth-century anthropology conceptualized the play of identity and difference between the scientific observer and the anthropological subject-both human, but inhabiting different moments in the history of civilization. As George Stocking puts it in his intellectual history of Victorian anthropology, Victorian anthropologists, while expressing shock at the devastating effects of European contact on the Tasmanians, were able to adopt an apologetic tone about it because they understood the Tasmanians as "living representatives of the early Stone Age," and thus their "extinction was simply a matter of … placing the Tasmanians back into the dead prehistoric world where they belonged" (282-83). The trope of the savage as a remnant of the past unites such authoritative and influential works as Lewis Henry Morgan's Ancient Society (1877), where the kinship structures of contemporaneous American Indians and Polynesian islanders are read as evidence of "our" past, with Sigmund Freud's Totem and Taboo (1913), where the sexual practices of "primitive" societies are interpreted as developmental stages leading to the mature sexuality of the West. Johannes Fabian has argued that the repression or denial of the real contemporaneity of so-called savage cultures with that of Western explorers, colonizers, and settlers is one of the pervasive, foundational assumptions of modern anthropology in general. The way colonialism made space into time gave the globe a geography not just of climates and cultures but of stages of human development that could confront and evaluate one another.

The anachronistic structure of anthropological difference is one of the key features that links emergent science fiction to colonialism. The crucial point is the way it sets into motion a vacillation between fantastic desires and critical estrangement that corresponds to the double-edged effects of the exotic. Robert Stafford, in an excellent essay on "Scientific Exploration and Empire" in the Oxford History of the British Empire, writes that, by the last decades of the century, "absorption in overseas wilderness represented a form of time travel" for the British explorer and, more to the point, for the reading public who seized upon the primitive, abundant, unzoned spaces described in the narratives of exploration as a veritable "fiefdom, calling new worlds into being to redress the balance of the old" (313, 315). Thus when Verne, Wells, and others wrote of voyages underground, under the sea, and into the heavens for the readers of the age of imperialism, the otherworldliness of the colonies provided a new kind of legibility and significance to an ancient plot. Colonial commerce and imperial politics often turned the marvelous voyage into a fantasy of appropriation alluding to real objects and real effects that pervaded and transformed life in the homelands. At the same time, the strange destinations of such voyages now also referred to a centuries-old project of cognitive appropriation, a reading of the exotic other that made possible, and perhaps even necessary, a rereading of oneself.

John Rieder, Colonialism and the Emergence of Science Fiction