#ship: i know that youre scared (because hearts get broken) | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

uglypastels · 1 year ago

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Not Wholly Evil |IX| pirate!Eddie au [NSFW]

a/n we are getting so close to the endddd oh my god i am so excited and sad at the same time because i don't want this story to end as much as some of you, but I also cannot wait to share my next lil projects with you 🥰 thank you for all the support on the last chapter!

this chapter will include explicit scenes. Minors DO NOT Interact. 18+. if you have read the previous chapters but do/should not wish to consume this content, please read:

Chapter 9 (safe for work version)

Series Masterlist

word count: 13k

"semi dark fic" - READ the warnings:. (gun/sword)violence. blood. mention of severe wounds. minor character death. allusions to suicide. kidnapping. imprisonment. alcohol. open and deep sea. near-death experiences in water. men are pigs: mentions of non-con, but it does not actually occur. [in-dream] non-consensual behaviour. malnourishment and weight loss. paranoia. mention of poisoning. abuse. manhandling. lying. small wounds inflicted by fire. blackmail. binds and knifes. SMUT 18+ ONLY, MDNI - p in v sex. oral (f receiving). no condom (this isn't the 18th century. wrap it before you tap it). choking. thigh riding. jealous!eddie.

Chapter 9: Paragon

“Perhaps the wolf wasn't quite so dangerous as he pretended. Unfortunately, there was only one way to find out for sure——give him a little rope and see if he hung himself… And pray that he didn't tie her up with it instead.”

― Sabrina Jeffries, Dance of Seduction

He looked like he saw a ghost. And maybe he had. You didn’t feel like yourself, so who was to say if you were still alive? You had comprehended how you carried yourself back to the Hellfire. Standing in his room felt like you were looking down at yourself. Aware of everything around you but understanding none of it.

‘I thought you had left.’ He stepped into the room, leaving the door wide open. As he walked, you noticed he was clearing the way for you, allowing you to leave if you wanted to. His eyes were intently focused on yours and threaded lightly. Like any wrong move would cause you to disappear.

‘I wanted to,’ you admitted. You still wanted to. Your thoughts had screamed through the night for an escape. Yet, something tied you down to this ship and made you return.

‘Then why didn’t you?’ He came closer, and so did you. That string pulled at your ribs again, pulling you two closer. You had tried long enough to fight it to no avail. Whatever you thought you wanted did not compare to your subconscious need to be next to him.

‘I don’t know.’ Deep down, you knew the reason, but the time was not there yet to admit it. In your mind, you still despised everything about him, this ship, the crew, and, therefore, yourself for needing his touch as much as you did at this moment. It was weak to give in to him like you did.

The candle’s light fell upon him at angles that brought something new out in him or maybe revealed what had always been there. The signs of the wear and tear of a life at sea. He wasn’t hiding it any more, letting all that pain be visible, and he looked beautiful. You held back from reaching out and tracing the thin scar against his brow or the flawed line of his nose that must have been broken once. The longer you looked at him, the more you realised that you could look at him in this way forever.

And that scared you.

Munson walked past you to his desk, occupying himself with whatever he could reach. It would have been good for you to have something to focus on instead of him, but you stood in the middle of the room with nothing but him to clutch onto. Neither of you spoke, stuck in an awkward limbo, tiptoeing around one another to see who would be the first to step over that line. The line that had kept you, your heart, safe until now. You could impossibly predict what was to happen if it was crossed.

The ship creaked as the tide softly bounced off it. For the rest, it was uncharacteristically quiet on board.

‘Is the rest coming as well? Will we be departing soon?’ It was ridiculous to change the topic in this manner, but you simply did not know what else to say, and this barrier between you and him was dreadful. You could sense it in the middle, waiting for that catalyst to burst. And you wanted it to. Just how?

‘No, I doubt they realised I’ve gone.’ He finally turned back to face you, leaning against the desk, arms crossed, eyes on the ground. If he could just look at you—would that make things easier or that much harder?

‘Why did you? Leave the tavern, I mean.’ With your heart pounding in your throat, tightening your breath, you stepped toward him.

‘I noticed you were gone. Then I heard you had gone to the harbour with some man and I thought…. I grew worried.’

‘Why?’ You could not imagine him caring for you to go out, away from his crew and his festivities, to look for you.

‘I know what you’re thinking, and at first, yes, I was thinking about the money,’ he admitted, which took you aback. You took a step closer. ‘But then I—when I realised, or thought, that I had actually lost you, I thought about how I would never see you again, and I realised—’ his words faded as you took your final step towards, letting your chest press against his. He finally let his eyes meet yours.

‘Realised what?’ Considering your proximity and seclusion, you hadn’t meant to whisper, but it felt right.

‘That I was scared’ His breath was shaky as his eyes took all of you in. ‘Of loosing you.’

‘I was scared too.’ And maybe that is what kept you from leaving. The idea that if you would go, there was a possibility that you would never see him again, and it was enough to hollow out your entire being with dread. It felt wrong. But that gnawing in your chest stayed there the whole night, even when you had returned to the Hellfire, and it only left once you felt his fingers intertwine with yours. A flutter of a touch at the fingertips.

‘And? Are you still scared?’ He matched your hushed tone with his response. The question was simple on its surface, but only the facade for an obliterating iceberg was the truth.

‘No.’ Standing in front of him, feeling his breath on you, the warmth that radiated off him, his gentle touch on your skin, seeing the smile hiding in his features, you saw nothing to be scared of anymore. There was nothing to fear anymore. The voice in you that had screamed for help all those days was silenced for a final time when you leaned in to kiss him.

His lips were chapped, cheeks rough with scars and the light shadowy scruff of a beard. His touch was featherlight, as if he was scared to pursue it as if you were to break underneath him. It starkly contrasted the force he had pulled you in with hours before. The intensity had been dizzying, and yet this was what genuinely shut your mind down entirely. But you could tell that he was not there yet wholly. Something kept him guarded.

You pulled away, but your lips still shared the same breath. When you opened your eyes, you were met with his and how they were shaking with uncertainty as he took all of you in.

‘Is there something you’re still afraid of?’ you asked.

‘Many things,’ his hand found its place on your waist, ‘but mostly of myself,’ and gently pushed you away. ‘And what I will do to you. I have made so many mistakes, mistakes that hurt you, already in that I will have to live it for my eternity, but I do not know what I will do if I make one again.’

There was silence as you took in his words. You understood them, possibly more than anyone could, for they were yours. As your lips met, you thought if what you were doing would lead to your doom, if it would all end in a disaster, but could something that felt so right be so devastating?

He had let his eyes fall to the ground. You reclaimed the one step he had made you take, closing the gap between you once more and letting your hand guide him to look up at you.

‘Do you think that kiss was a mistake?’ Your heart beat faster than it ever had as you waited for an answer, but his lips remained shut, so you continued. ‘If so, do not play with my heartstrings, but tell me, and I will leave. I will return to my cell, and you can lock me up and never see me again until you bring me back home.’ It would only be a couple of days, and it would hurt to mend this extremely fragile piece of you that you had just opened, but like all wounds do, it would heal eventually.

‘Answer me, captain.’ You kept your voice as steady as possible, regaining the confidence you had built up since you got onto the ship. ‘Was that a mistake?’

‘No.’ And with that one final word, you both leaned in for a kiss. Your hand was still on his cheek, his holding you tightly, but you still felt that urge to pull yourself closer to him. As you felt the press of his chest fully against yours, he actually pulled his lips away from yours. He hesitated but finally spoke against the corner of your mouth. ‘But… call me Eddie. Please.’

You couldn’t help but smile into your next kiss. Just like that, all that weight of the world fell off both your shoulders, down into the depths of the ocean, never to be seen again. You didn’t hold back with this newfound freedom when you pushed him up against the desk. The furniture shuffled with a creak over the floor, and you could hear some things topple over at the impact. Still, neither of you cared, too occupied with one another. He could just about manage to extend his hand and begin to push all the loose items off the desk to make space for himself. The papers flew around you, and all the measurement equipment clattered onto the crowd.

As the kiss intensified, Eddie shrugged and smoothly sat up on the desk, pulling you in with him. As he slowly let himself fall back, you followed, attached by the lips, hands, and hearts, until you practically lay on top, arms keeping you up from falling entirely onto him. Well, one hand, as the other found him and laced your fingers together once more. He had tried to make more space around you, pushing objects aside, when he cursed loudly.

You startled away and saw the clench in his jaw as he took a deep breath. He must have read your panic-stricken face as he showed you his hand. ‘It’s alright,’ his voice was calm, humour peaking through it. ‘I might have just put my hand right into the flame.’ And indeed, the side of his hand was glowing red.

Hearing this did not put your mind at rest as you tried to grab his hand and inspect the damage more deeply, but he pulled it away from you, instead taking your fingers in his and kissing your knuckles.

‘Don’t worry, my darling,’ he smiled while kissing your hand, ‘Can barely feel it.’

He had just made direct contact with fire; you doubted it would be alright, but then again, you had seen all the scars on his body. This would just be another small blister among the list of many. But you blinked the thought away. Tried your best to not think about the pain he had endured. You doubted he wanted you to feel pity for him and what had once happened to him.

The look in his eyes was adamant. He needed you to let it go, so all you could do was sigh.

‘You’ve gone mad.’

Eddie chuckled at your comment as he let his lips travel over your wrist, over the length of your arm. ‘As mad as any other sane man.’ His kisses moved over the material of your shirt. The lack of contact that was so clearly there shot sparks of anticipation through you, but he took his time taking you all in until his lips reached your collar. He had practically strained his neck to reach you from his position. Some of you wanted to back away to see how far he would follow you, but your weaker portion gave into his touch and melted over it.

He had just kissed your neck, sparking a fire through you on the spot, when a noise boomed over the silent ship, bursting you out of the solitary moment of bliss. In an instant, Eddie held you by the hips as he gently pushed you off him and got himself back on the ground. There was an alarm in his features, and so, when he looked at you and told you to “Stay here”, for once, you listened.

He closed the door behind him as he left to see what the noise was, and when minutes later, he had not returned, but there had also not been any more ruckus or signs of danger; you calmed down. Unsure of what to do now, you lay down on the bed. In the past few days, the bed had gotten more comfortable as you got used to it, but it still felt strange. You lay down on your side, facing the wall. The patterns in the wooden planks almost seemed to move in the shadowy light and, unfortunately for you, brought you into a trance of clarity and thoughts.

What were you doing? How could you have let all this happen? Kissing the man that had caused the death of so many people that you had deemed friends. How could you betray their souls by… by falling for him? You had lost control of all your feelings and emotions.

It was a trick of the sea. You had simply been captured on this ship for so long that you did not know what was wrong or right. How else could you explain the yearning feeling that still circulated through you? Why else did you wish he was still here with you, touching you?

With all these thoughts occupying your mind, you must have missed Eddie walking back into the room, mumbling something about how it had been a few of his crew that stumbled back up to the ship. Too busy with your own mind, you did not hear him calling your name softly, assuming you had fallen asleep and telling you good night. You did not hear how deflated the last words came from his mouth. You only caught the sound of the door closing behind him.

And soon you managed to turn all these thoughts off and fall asleep. Except then, they came back even stronger and in the form of dreams. You found yourself back on the Red Tail. The hawk flapped its wings on the flag in the wind and every man’s uniform. The sun shone brightly in its last few minutes before hiding behind the horizon. It was a strange illusion as you stared down at the ship and the two figures that stood out looking at the sparkling sea. You watched yourself talking to Admiral Carver.

‘I would have imagined you to have grown tired of the water by now,’ he laughed.

‘I won’t say I will be happy to return home, but I can’t ever see myself becoming tired of this view. It is beautiful.’ You leaned forward onto the balustrade and breathed in the salty air. ‘Besides, you have done this for much longer than I have, and you’re here too, so it can’t be that bad.’ It seemed it was only your first expedition while he had crossed the world several times. If anyone was to grow tired of it, you thought it would be him.

‘Perhaps you’re right,’ he had his arms behind his back, ‘but everything is more bearable when there is something back home to look forward to.’

‘I suppose so.’ You would not exactly know what he meant. Of course, you could not wait to see your father again, and your friends, but nothing at home gave you the sense that it genuinely anchored you there or drew your heart in for your return. ‘I am sure you miss your family very much.’

‘Yes, of course,’ He took a step closer to you, ‘but I will miss these moments.’

‘Oh,’ you were startled by his proximity, unsure how to respond. Politely, you smiled and tried to keep the conversation going, ‘I’ve enjoyed them too, uhmm-’, but you were suddenly thrown off-guard when you felt his hands on you. Before he had the chance to do anything, you were quick to push him off. ‘What are you doing?’

‘Taking our last chance before it’s too late.’ He leaned in again, and you stepped back.

‘What about your–’

‘She does not need to know.’ The sea was a free playing field for most men, so what happened out there was not up to the women at home to know. You had seen adultery but never thought the admiral would participate in such activities. He had been drinking; maybe he wasn’t thinking straight. Before he would make any more mistakes, you attempted to walk away, but he caught you by the arm, putting all his strength into the hold.

‘Admiral, you’re hurting me.’ You tried to pull your arm back, and this is where things began to change. Where the dream made itself apparent. Carver’s handsome features turned into vicious angles as he spoke.

‘So you’ll kiss Munson, but not me?’

‘What- what are you–’ you tried to get away, but it was as if he grew in size. And there were flashes. These flashes of light. Like lightning, there was no thunder, rain, or light. It blinded you, and you tried to regain your sight by blinking, but each time you did so, he seemed to change right in front of you.

There was him like you knew him, but the next second he turned into this nightmarish version of himself, but there were moments when he wasn’t himself at all. You’d blink, and suddenly you saw Captain Munson. Still in that uniform, however, you would try to make sense of it all. Still, before you could, he would disappear again, and you would be looking into Carver’s blank eyes, and you’d see the blood dripping from his mouth as he spat out his words.

‘Don’t trust him.’

‘What?’ You had tears in your eyes, and your wrist burned from his touch. There was another flash of light. Eddie stood before you again, just as you knew him.

‘Do not trust him.’

Don’t trust who? Who were you meant to trust, then? The questions rang through you as you woke up, head throbbing with pain, limbs sore and dehydrated. If you did not know any better, you would have blamed the rum you consumed the night before on everything, making you imagine all that had happened. Still, the sensation that Eddie had left on your whole body felt too real to be just a drunken dream or nightmare.

He was not in the cabin when you awoke, but you could hear him outside, yelling commands out. When you looked outside the window, you could tell by how the waves moved that you had departed the Saint Claire harbour and were on your way again.

You sat up in bed but remained still afterwards, uncertain what to do next. Some part of you wanted to go outside and see Eddie, talk to him about whatever it was that had happened that night. Still, a bigger side of you doubted you could ever look him in the eye again. Seeing your reflection from the glass doors of a cabinet in the room, of yourself in his bed, made you feel bad enough. So, staying in the room for the rest of the day was not an option either. You were already at the door, hand on the handle, when it opened, nearly crashing into you.

‘Sorry,’ his apology was muffled.

‘I was just on my way out,’ you muttered in the same awkward tone and walked past him.

‘Wait,’ Eddie reached for you, and the memory of your dream of Carver made you retract away from him, regretting it as soon as you did. Eddie wasn’t him, but you treated him the same because of something your exhausted mind had decided to conjure up. Eddie kept his distance. ‘Can we talk?’

‘Later,’ you pleaded. This was not the right time. You could tell that it would not end well if you stayed there.

But when would it be right? When would the stars align correctly for you to speak? It certainly wasn’t the next two days, as you kept walking in circles around eachother. You avoided him like the plague, and it was unlikely that he had not noticed yet.

You kept yourself occupied with anyone else but him, really. Talking to Robin, Steve, and anyone else who seemed to require company as much as you. Almost as much, at least. It shocked you as well as them how smoothly the conversations went. While only a little was exchanged, neither side being too keen on sharing too much of their past, somehow, you still managed to fill hours with polite pleasantries. Some even showed you how to work around the ship, probably more than happy to give you some of their workload now. You didn’t mind. It was alright if it stopped you from overthinking everything that had happened in the past weeks. But it was still hard to do when you felt Eddie’s eyes on you. He’d watch you work the sails or anything else from afar, but when you’d try and catch him, he’d be suddenly occupied with something and walk away.

The biggest surprise, however, came one evening when everyone had gathered for their final meal of the day. You had gotten your portion and were ready to return to the cabin when Robin pointed to the seat between her and Steve. You wanted to politely decline, feeling like you did not strictly belong in this dynamic—the crew’s meals felt more sacred, a moment for them to spend together, but they all saw your argument coming and shut it down.

‘Never thought I’d say this,’ Wheeler, one of the lankier crewmates, said at some point, ‘but I might actually miss you.’ There was a cloud of agreeable laughter to which you belonged. It was funny, but what scared you was that you would miss them too when that eventual day of your return home would come.

And it was coming.

Something about the air around you began to feel more familiar each day. And when you talked to Robin, you could sense that she knew how much time there was left. But each time you asked, she avoided answering straightforwardly.

‘Not sure. But you know how seatravels are, you can never be sure… I mean, we should have been there days ago and yet,’ she laughed nervously, tying knots in a piece of old rope that someone had cut off once.

‘I suppose you’re right.’ You had your own piece of rope and were toying with the frayed ends, pulling them apart mindlessly. You could hear Eddie talking to someone somewhere around, and you did your best not to look up. It had been days, but your tension still felt raw and strange. You wanted to simultaneously run into his arms and run away from him as far as possible, and you could not figure out which urge was the right one to follow.

‘It probably won’t take much longer, don’t worry.’ Robin said, her shoulder slumping as she untied another knot to remake it.

‘I’m not worried,’ you admitted.

‘No, and you don’t need to be,’ Robin panicked, not wanting to give you the wrong impression of what she had intended to say, ‘but I’m sure you’ll be glad to be home.’ To this, you had no response because, very much like in your last days on your old ship, you had been eagerly awaiting your return home but did not feel like you were actually happy to go back. On top of that, you actually had the sense that you would miss this crew. By leaving, you would be leaving something behind, and you had never felt that before.

But it still did not feel right. Like a kink in your neck that you were trying to stretch out until it disappeared.

‘Can I ask you something?’ you said cautiously.

Robin glanced up from her rope. ‘You always scare me when you say that.’

‘I hadn’t noticed I did it often.’

‘You’re quite inquisitive. It’s commendable, but dangerous.’

‘Should I be scared?’ You blinked.

‘Not here, but in other parts of the world they’re not too keen on it, so just beware.’ She had tied a knot she couldn’t loosen anymore. ‘But what was your question?’

You took a deep breath. ‘Why did you target the Red Tail? And I know it was targeted, since the captain was aware what ship you were attacking.’ There was that other puzzle piece that was missing in your brain. How would he know if you were supposed to be on that ship or not?

Robin froze and dropped her rope. You watched it fall to the ground and her reaching to pick it up clumsily. Once she did, she fumbled around even more with it. ‘I’m probably not the best person to ask this; I joined the crew late, I don’t know everything that’s going on around—’ she was getting distracted, losing the point of your question, or so you thought, ‘I had only heard things, but you have to know that people around here, we trust each other and that trust is earned. We might cheat once in a while in a game of cards or dice, but some things you just can’t lie about.

‘So, I didn’t need much convincing from the captain when he said that those— that those were bad men.’

‘He told you that my crew were bad men?’

‘They needed to be punished.’ Robin shrugged, but not in the way that made you think she thought indifferent. More so that, there was nothing she could do about it. It was a brief apology to you, not for what they had done, but as if she was sorry for being the bearer of the news.

‘Punished for what?’ you asked, but Robin shook her head. Right, she wouldn’t be able to know, and you didn’t blame her. Was there anyone around willing to share more of the specifics of this situation? You felt like you had the right to explain what had brought you to their ship, but it would go past some lines of comfort for the men. Could you dare ask Eddie?

But to ignore him for days just to come up with these questions could not be appreciated; then again, he owed you at least this after being the sole reason for your presence on this ship in the first place. He had caused all this mess. He could at least help you clean it up.

You finished your conversation with Robin slowly, without any urgency to actually put it to an end. It must have been confusing to Robin, who saw how you tried to tie your sentences up to walk away, just to disentangle them just as she had been doing with her rope and keep pulling it back. Ultimately, she stopped it all and excused herself from the argument she needed back on her lookout post. She walked away, giving you this look that made it clear to you that she knew what you were planning to do and how apprehensive you were to do it. And whatever for? You had fought, punched, slapped and kissed Eddie in the past days without hesitation; why could you not just talk to him now?

Because that would actually mean something to you. It would unblur all the lines that connected you into a clear pattern, and you would have to live with those results, and you just were not ready for that yet.

You took deep breaths as you walked up to the captain’s quarters. The door creaked as it slid open but was met with a resistant force as you collided with Eddie. He grunted lightly at the impact, and you began to apologise.

‘Sorry,’ you mumbled, not expecting him to be so close suddenly. You had hoped to catch him at his desk, where the furniture could keep some kind of barrier between you. Still, now he stood mere inches away, towering over you and the heat of his body radiating onto yours.

‘I was just on my way out.’ He scratched his beard casually, but his eyes said enough about how similarly he felt about your sudden appearance.

‘I hoped we could talk,’ you blurted out, and Eddie blinked.

‘Talk? Now?’ To this, you only nodded shyly. It had been too long. You had made him wait for days, which was simply too long. Why would he want to listen to what you had to say now? Eddie was ready to brush past you, but you were quicker, catching his arm and pulling eachother closer until your lips met in a chaste kiss. The suddenness stunned him, but for a blink of an eye before his muscles melted into position around you. It only confirmed your worst thoughts, how perfectly the two of you fit together, how your bodies simply locked into place with one another. The heat that grew between you could not only be felt by you. It was too strong for that. As much as you did not want to admit it, there was something there that you did not want to lose.

‘I’m sorry, ‘you said breathlessly, ‘for everything I’ve done in the past few days.’

‘You have done nothing to apologise for.’ He sighed.

‘Exactly,’ you jumped back at how loud you sounded. Still, his pull on your waist kept you close, ‘I have done nothing, while I should have stayed here with you, and we should have talked of, of whatever it is that stands between us, but—but I was scared. I thought I hadn’t been, but I was, and that, in turn, scared me even more, so I thought I needed time to think—’

‘And did you?’ He looked down at you inquisitively like he was observing a strange, yet highly fascinating, phenomenon in front of him. Something that he should not be enjoying as much as he was. The unwanted smirk appeared on his lips no matter how hard he tried to hide it. It made you aware of just how much you had tried to say in what short of an amount of time.

‘Yes,’ you said with a slow breath to help you calm down. At this, Eddie simply reacted with a gesture telling you to go on, to tell him what kind of discovery you had made. Would it be anything that could help your conundrum? Clear things up in your heads and maybe even hearts? You could not be sure, but it was a start if you just let those parts of you speak freely.

You took one more deep breath. ‘That night you asked me if I was scared, and I said “no”, but…’ you pushed past the shake of your voice. ‘But I realise now that that wasn’t the truth.’ As you announced this, the hand on your waist tightened its grip before leaving your body entirely. The immediate lack of contact made you regret your choice of words. Maybe you should have prepared what to say, but letting it come out unrehearsed and unplanned felt like the right thing to do. It would not cut out any of the emotions you felt. What you wanted him to know that you thought, so you stammered out your following words.

‘There is so much that I am scared of. It scares me how and how much I have changed in the past few days, and I am scared that I do not mind it. It scares me how much I enjoy being here and how much I want to be… with you.’ Your last words faded as you had not expected to hear yourself say them out loud. Eddie, who you had watched as he walked around the room in slow paces as he listened, must not have expected them, too, for he stopped to stare at you, dumbfounded.

‘Why?’ was the only thing he said in response.

‘Because…’ you let out an exasperated sigh, walking up to him. You had somehow managed to find yourselves at his throne, ‘because this is not who I am supposed to be. I shouldn’t be. You are you; I am me, and nothing here is right.’ Yet the puzzle had never fit tighter together than it did now. But at the same time… ‘As much as I want to spend my days with you, I cannot stop thinking about all the chaos you have caused in my life. Whether on purpose or not…There is blood on your hands, Eddie.’ there were tears in your eyes. Eddie looked down at his hands as if you had meant it literally. They were pale and had a shake to them, but he quickly put them down to his sides.

‘And yet you’re still here.’ He said it with a distance, more to himself than anyone else, narrating the events as if putting it all into words could make it make more sense somehow, and maybe to him, it did. However, you were still utterly clueless and running in the dark.

‘I am.’ You nodded your head lightly. ‘And I wish I could explain why. To you and to myself, but I simply do not know.’

‘Let me pose you these two questions then,’ he spoke sternly, and you got the unexpected feeling that this would be a test you had to ace. ‘Are you still scared of me? Do you regret anything that happened between us?

‘Answer yes to either of my questions,’ he held two fingers up, ‘and I will make all of this very easy for you and disappear. You will never have to see me again but be honest.’ Looking into his eyes the way you were, it was difficult to lie, or it would have been if you had any intention of doing so. The word came easier to you than anything else had in your life, but you still needed to know some things before sealing your fate.

‘Before I answer, I need to know your business with the admiral.’

Eddie scoffed, looking out the window, ‘I could not care less about the admiral.’ Something in him tensed up despite his attempt to make his reply come out casually. Everything besides his eyes, which flickered with so many emotions simultaneously, you could not distinguish between them soon enough.

‘But the attack on my ship was deliberate, was it not?’ You did not need this to become another one of your rows and spoke as carefully as you could manage. If one of you began to raise your voice or fill your words with anger, it would take over the other, exploding fatally in the middle, and that is not what you wanted.

‘What do you remember from that day?’ He looked at you, head cocked to the side as he studied your face. He saw you blink slowly, trying to understand what he was implying.

‘I remember everything.’ How could you not? It was one of the most terrifying days of your life. ‘I remember being on the deck and seeing your dark sails and how I hid under that desk as the canons went off–’

‘Whose canons?’ He stared at you blankly, and you mirrored him perfectly.

‘What?’

‘What canons did you hear go off? Who shot first?’ He did not say anything else, just stood still as you tried to reply with confidence that you lost as soon as you gave your answer some thought.

Everything had happened so quickly, and it was so loud. All you had tried was to block it out. But you heard the bangs. They came from all sides, but the first one... the first one was the closest.

Eddie must have seen the recognition on your face. ‘I know that those people were your friends. And I am sorry that that is how things-’

‘But you said I was not meant to be on board. You knew what ship it was.’ You cut him off at the memory. ‘You would have attacked either way, wouldn’t you?’

‘It is not that simple.’ He shook his head.

‘Isn’t it?’

‘No, and I wish I could explain, but I fear that whatever I tell you will only make you see the worst in me and them.’

‘You could at least try.’ You reached for his hand, and a bit of you leapt in relief when you saw he did not pull away. ‘I want to understand, Eddie. You do not know how horrible it is to live in this realm of uncertainty and oblivion.’

‘Would you rather live with the horrors of the truth?’ He asked genuinely, with the pain that exactly this truth had caused him in his eyes.

‘Is that not a choice I deserve to make by myself?’ You once again found yourself up against him. Funny how it always came back to this and how you would not have wanted it any other way.

‘You’ve said it yourself; I’ve hurt you enough times. I can not risk doing it again. I will not let myself do that.’ He brushed a strand of hair from your face, brushing his fingers over your cheek. ‘Now, will you please answer my questions?’

‘No,’ and with that, you answered both. Whatever tugged at you from the inside to feel such anxiety had nothing to do with Eddie.

On the contrary, you felt a sense of calm whenever you saw him. And you had wanted, really wanted, to regret those kisses, but you still dreamt of them at night, and it was all with a magical wonder that you wished to experience once more. Despite everything in your life that had led to this that would have told you to turn around and run away, you stayed firmly in your place in front of him with no intention of ever running away again.

Eddie leaned in, and you anticipated a kiss that never came as he spoke against the corner of your mouth, sending shivers down your spine. ‘I need you to say it, darling.’

‘I’m not scared of you, Eddie.’ The tremble in your voice had nothing to do with fear but all with the way he held you. His hand had moved down your cheek onto your neck, fingers wrapped around your throat, thumb caressing your jaw. His eyes pierced through you. ‘And I do not regret anything.’

You knew Eddie had seen all the far corners of the world. You must have come across the grandest of riches. Yet standing in front of him, you could not help but think how seeing Captain Eddie Munson beam his most genuine smile was the rarest and most beautiful treasure of them all. It was infectious; you could not help but smile at it.

He let himself come close again, but just as your lips were about to touch, he spoke instead. Right against you, the hot air of his breath pricked at your skin with his light laugh. ‘Before all of this, had you ever imagined yourself here with me?’

As much as you had wished it was not true, ‘I did, actually.’ Your mind flashed to your dreams, the ones you had once thought were conjured up to plague you, but now you realised it was just your heart screaming out your deepest desires.

Like a reward, Eddie kissed your cheek for your reply. ‘Really? The princess had thought of me, a filthy pirate?’

‘I’m not a princess.’ You rolled your eyes playfully.

‘Out of all the things to dispute, you argue my words of affection?’ He chuckled, and you could feel the vibrations deep within his chest.

‘There was nothing else to correct.’ You wanted to laugh but instead froze at the sensation of Eddie lightly putting pressure on your throat as he was still kissing pieces of your face. Just like that, everything in the past minutes disappeared from your mind. When he pulled away, you saw the mischievous glint in his eyes that once used to bring out fear of the worst in you.

‘Glad to know you haven’t changed too much, darling.’ With his hand around you, he gave you little choice but to look up at him. There was a moment in which both of you took everything of the other in. You tried to soak in all his features from this small distance, for some reason feeling the need to remember them all. Meanwhile, he read your face for any signs of reluctance, which he found none of. ‘You enjoyed that, didn’t you, princess?’

A question which brought a lot of enjoyment out of him.

Still taken aback by his actions, you stood there with your lips slightly parted, bewildered, so all you did was nod. And again, your response was rewarded with another kiss, finally letting you meet his lips while tightening his hold on you. The weak sound that came out of your mouth at the feeling was an instinct. You had never heard yourself make such a sound, and he must have known it somehow as his grin grew wider against you.

The kiss grew in strength by the fleeting second as you both lost control over your bodies, just letting them speak for themselves. It was messy and heated. The pent-up tension that had been sitting between you was finally finding its release. Eddie’s hands roamed over your body, almost in a hunger-like manner, devouring you with his touch alone. Maybe this hunger felt too real when Eddie’s teeth grazed over your neck, sending an unknown spark through your body at the sensation.

You held onto him tightly, one hand on his shoulder as the other rooted itself in his dark locks—which made you soon realise that the tiniest of motions of you caused a reaction in him as well, in the form of a low hiss as you pulled the hairs on the back of his neck. It had been an accident, as you tried to keep yourself up when the pleasure he brought you made you feel light as a feather.

Eddie hummed at your response as his hands continued their wandering path across your body. The pressure of his palms, combined with the slow and tantalising pace at which he moved, drove you to press your body eagerly against him, which, in turn, only spurred him on to continue down this track of your curves. His movements got rougher as he kept going.

With your urge to keep your bodies close, you quickly caught on Eddie walking backwards. You followed him mindlessly until he found his throne seat and pulled you along with him, right on top of his lap. At this proximity, you could feel all of him underneath you.

‘Tell me,’ he kissed you briefly between words, ‘have you ever been with a man before?’

‘Yes,’ you dared to reply with the truth. Anywhere else, it would have been considered a great shame, a sin of the highest degree, but with Eddie, somehow, you felt like he had wanted that to be your answer. You tried to focus on his face, that smile he shot up at you and the short answer you gave him, instead of how his hands roamed over your thighs. Even with the fabric of your trousers in between, his effect on you was immense. He must have felt how you tensed up when he reached your core.

‘Did anyone ever touch you like this?’

‘Uhm, no, not in this way.’ You struggled with the words as he let his fingers press over your most sensitive parts, everywhere all at once. You could barely keep track of it. Another moan escaped you as his hand moved over your breast. Even with the fabric keeping your modesty intact, he had still found a way for his fingers to move smoothly across your nipples. The feeling lulled you into comfort, brewing the heat inside your chest. And so, you gasped as, with one aggressive pull, Eddie ripped the material of your shirt in two, revealing you to him entirely. Your eyes were wide in shock as his darkened with want.

‘Not scared of me yet, are you, princess?’ His hand was on your ribs, waiting for permission to touch your bare skin.

‘No,’ your voice sounded like a hushed, airy whisper. Eddie smiled but still hesitated with his subsequent actions. As the shirt sleeve fell off your shoulder, he kissed you again. Except this time, his lips met your breast. The arch in your back, the tug of your hips towards him, was an almost mechanised reaction to it. And with it came the friction of his thigh against you.

‘Eddie.’ His name sounded shaky coming from you as you could barely inhale a steady breath, too occupied with him.

‘That’s right, princess.’ He groaned as his lips remained on your skin, kissing the valley of your chest. With each kiss, your want for him grew, but your movements over his thigh barely covered the needed friction. You dug your nails into his shoulders, making him groan out in pained pleasure. He cursed before taking you by the hips. ‘Stand up.’

You did as he asked, something that did not go unnoticed by either of you. Eddie chuckled as he looked up at you, chin on your stomach, lips nearly pressing against it, so close you could feel the vibrations of his voice.

‘So you can be good for me.’

A snide remark was already forming on the tip of your tongue, but Eddie was quicker. Smoothly, he pulled down your trousers and let them pool at your ankles. You stood in front of him in only your torn-up shirt. His large eyes were on you up until the moment his face made contact with your core, and at that moment, everything went black. You could just about make out that you held him close to you, pulling at his hair; as for the rest, the world was turning upside down and around at a speed that made everything seem like a sea full of stars. Your moans filled the room as his tongue licked through your slit.

You assumed that with how he held you with one hand, his fingers would leave marks for days, but the other was much lower. You could hear the sound of a belt unbuckling. He was clearly struggling to work around his clothes with only one hand, especially with most of him already preoccupied with you and your pleasure. Never before had you seen such kind of ferocity in a man. Not when he pulled himself closer to you and practically fell to his knees from the throne. You surely would have fallen back if it had not been for him and the desk that hit your legs and now acted as an extra grip. It was especially needed when Eddie pulled your leg over his shoulder, gaining even more access to you.

The desk kept sliding back with the force at which he held you in your place, grazing the floor, but it was all blocked out by your moans. They were filled with curses and the repetition of his name as your vision blurred with ecstasy and your body tightened with need. There was no possible way that the rest could not hear you through the thin walls of the cabin, but you could not care less about them. At this moment, they simply did not exist.

‘You taste absolutely divine.’ Eddie spoke while kissing your inner thigh, making your legs even weaker. You noticed his lips glistening, never looking more kissable than ever before.

He had run your mind through a mill; words were hard to come by. All you could muster out was a weak hum as you let your hand brush through his hair. At that, he nuzzled himself between your legs again, this time much gentler, and took his time kissing every inch of skin he had access to, giving you the time to catch your breath while still keeping you on that high edge.

‘I—I never…’ you still struggled to form a sentence.

‘Hmm,’ he kissed your stomach, ‘I know.’ And he slowly rose to his feet, catching your face in one more passionate kiss. You had gotten so used to how he tasted—rum, tobacco, sea air— that your flavour threw you off for a moment, but soon enough, you were sinking into him just as before. And again, you could hear the struggling twinkle of a locked belt buckle.

‘Would you be a doll,’ he said with his amusement running down your cheek, ‘and help a poor man out.’

You reached for his trousers, undoing the belt and unbuttoning them so they could drop down his thighs. You had felt it before, how aroused he had grown, but seeing it made you take a step back.

‘Nothing to be afraid of, darling.’ He grinned, placing a hand on your cheek. The other made itself comfortable between your legs, toying with your wetness.

‘I know.’ You looked into his eyes. The warmth of them had burned up into a dark and hungry desire. Putting a light pressure onto his shoulders, you pushed him back down into the chair. Eddie practically bounced in the seat, taking you all in as much as you took the moment to look at him. Your flicker of confidence in the moment when you thought you knew what you were doing fizzled, but he must have read that off of you, as the next second he was the one pulling you down.

‘Was this how you expected it to be,’ he murmured against your ear, ‘when you thought about us.’

‘No,’ you admitted. It was nothing like you had imagined. All your dreams had been of what you had thought he was; careless, dangerous, feeding off your fear. There had been none of this passion that you felt now. None of the heat, the tenderness or the feeling.

‘Anything you’d still like to change,’ he kissed the soft spot of skin behind your ear that made you shiver.

‘No,’ you gasped. You could feel him against you, just waiting for the moment to enter you. The two of you were dancing around it, letting other make that next move, the plunge off the cliff, with no return. You shuffled over his thighs. One more kiss would seal the final deal when you moved your hips up and he adjusted himself infront of you.

The moan you let out at the feeling of him inside you, of him stretching your walls and filling you whole, was impossible to miss. Ships from miles away could probably tell what was going on, but again, they were not a part of your universe in this moment. Just you. You concentrated at the pace he was making you keep up with. The roll of your hips against the grind of his. Each thrust went deeper and harder making Eddie more aggressive in the most blissful of ways. There was nothing else to think about, because why would you when this felt so good? Reality went lost on you, until you felt his fingers dig into your side, a pain rushing through you.

Both of you froze.

‘What’s wrong?’ Eddie immediately looked to where he had held you, pulling the remaining pieces of your shirt up to reveal the scar. The rough skin was a stark contrast to the rest of you. He met your eyes again. ‘Does it still hurt?’

‘It’s just sensitive.’ You wanted to push his hand away, cover the mark up again so neither of you had to be reminded of it. It had been a stupid mistake, that much you knew, and it was not as if you could change the past, so why let it pester you? But Eddie was not the kind to give up easily. He pushed the shirt material back up, keeping your hand away from him, to inspect the damage he had caused.

‘I’ve done a lot in my life that I will forever regret,’ he kissed your shoulder as his thumb traced over the scarred line, ‘but this will probably haunt me the longest.’ His words and touch, combined with how you sat in his lap, still full of him, got you lost for words. Because, of course, you had hoped that this was his sentiment, you understood and appreciated his words, but what else was there to say? The only thing you could think of replying, which felt silly to do seeing your current position, was ask for some clarification.

‘What happened? I would have thought you had more control over your sword than that.’ You aired the conversation with a bit of laughter, but it only spurred him on to thrust deeper into you.

‘I had thought so too,’ he kept moving his hips forcefully, ‘I had hoped so,’ he kissed you sloppily, ‘but I lost it all when I saw you with him.’

‘Who?’ you asked. Maybe under different circumstances, you could have thought more clearly to realise what he was speaking of, but that did not seem possible.

‘Harrington,’ the name came out of him with a bitter taste. Apparently, the feelings from that day had not disappeared as far as he had thought, but now he could let these frustrations out in a less hazardous manner. It still took a toll on you, but there was no pain to speak of. Just pure pleasure.

Still, the mention of the crew member had surprised you. ‘Why– why would you—’

‘The way he held you, smiled at you, don’t you think I had wanted to do that? From the moment I saw you—but all I did was drive you away. It was just another reminder of my failure and before I knew it I—’ he stopped himself, still unable to properly speak of what happened. You kissed the bridge of his nose.

‘For what it’s worth,’ you tugged at the words to come out cohesively, ‘I never thought of him as—’

‘It does not even matter what you think of him,’ he laughed, more so at himself, ‘You could fall for and by happy with any man on this earth and I could make my peace with it. I just don’t want to be the reason for your suffering.’

‘I think—’ a moan burst through your thought with another deep thrust, ‘I think you have managed to pay back any of your wrongdoings.’

‘Oh, darling, I haven’t even started to repay my debts.’ And so, Eddie kissed your neck, over and over, and with those kisses moved down to your brest. Your head rolled back with a soft whine at the attention he gave you, if not with his mouth, than the hand that kneaded your flesh and played with your nipples.

As he kept going, and as your hips met his and the pleasure burst through you, you could feel everything coming to a close. The tightness in your body swelled while your control over it strayed. There was no possible way you could hold on for much longer and from the looks of it, Eddie had no plans on making you wait. He bucked his hips into you harder and harder, almost impossibly for you to keep it all in. You could explode with this pleasure and that is exactly what he wanted.

‘Mmm c’mon, princess. Feel so good around me,’ he hummed, ‘could anyone make you feel this good?’

‘Just you,’ you moaned out, holding tightly on to him as you felt the tension build up in you.

‘That’s right,’ he had a smug smile across his face that you wished you could wipe off, and you would if you did not need him to keep doing whatever it was he did. Were his fingers back between your legs? Rubbing tight circles, sparking up your sensitivity. ‘Just me.’

‘Just you, Eddie,’ his named squeaked out from between your teeth when he reached the deepest part of you.

‘I’ll never get enough of you saying my name.’

‘Eddie,’ you repeated it in in a haze with his final thrusts that finally brought you over the edge. Stars fell over you in pleasure as Eddie slowed down his movements, letting you come down from the high. He held you tightly in his arms as you let your head fall on his shoulder until you fell into a comfortable silence. There was only the rush of the waves and your tired breaths that filled your ears.

Once your heart settled back to a steady pace, you knew it wasn’t safe. As good as this moment felt, it wouldn’t last. Whatever this was, there was no possibility in which it would outlive this voyage. Then, once it was over, it would hurt. That much you knew. Possibly more than anything had hurt before, and you would just have to be on the lookout for that end until then to let yourself become at peace with it. There wasn’t another choice, as this idea always stayed with you in the back of your head from that moment on. When you fell asleep in Eddie’s arms that night, you thought how many more days you got to wake to in such bliss as you did the next morning.

You could not tell if Eddie had these troubles, you could not tell, for he went through his following days much like before. The only difference was that his free minutes were now occupied with you.

It had not been your intention to make it so obvious to the crew, but there was also so little you could hide from them. Nothing could escape the dozens of interested eyes, so why hide your affection towards their captain? He certainly was not making any attempts. Any chance he got, he found himself at your side, holding you, kissing you, then behind closed doors, do all the other unspeakable things to you that made the others turn green of envy.

Your mornings and afternoons were much the same as they had been before the night of the storm and the Hellfire’s arrival at Saint Claire, as you still spent it in each other's company. The difference was now that instead of being separated by the large oak desk, Eddie would often pull you into his lap to sit in the throne, if not making himself comfortable with you on the bed. The nights began with kisses and limbs tangled with eachother and merged into a joined slumber. Unfortunately, as happy as your days felt, it would not stop the nightmares from coming, but each time you would awake in a cold sweat or with shaking hands, he would be right there to coax you back to peace. What surprised you, however, was that you would do the same to him.

Somehow, the thought of the notorious captain waking up screaming in the middle of the night, chest heaving, eyes wide with fear, had never occurred to you. You had never imagined him reaching for your thigh to ground himself as his reality spiralled in the dark.

‘Shh,’ you held him tightly, ‘it’s okay.’

Neither of you asked what the dreams were about, knowing you could do nothing about them. You could just help the other through it. And then, each time, the dreams that followed were much sweeter.

Then you’d wake up in each other’s arms long before the rest of the world seemed to. Those few blissful moments where nothing could disturb you and the time you could spend in that bed was endless.

Except it very much was not. And you realised it exactly through what you thought would be your escape.

It was a sunny morning. The golden sunrays illuminated the cabin as you reached for Eddie, just to find the side of the bed to be empty. Only his impression in the covers, the faint temperature his body had radiated onto them, was still there. It could not have been long since he had gotten up, and indeed, you caught him standing at the window—leaning against it, more like. His trousers were loose on his hips, and his shirt was still on the ground around you.

Grabbing that shirt and throwing it over your naked body, you walked over to him, and he looked in your direction as soon as he heard your footsteps. The smile in his eyes was genuine but weak. As soon as you were close enough, he pulled you into an embrace, twirling you around so your back would hit his chest and you could look out at the sea. With how the sunrays sparkled across the waves, it all felt like a dream, too good to be true, but you did not know yet that the dream was at the end of its tether.

‘I really am sorry,’ he mumbled, having his face already nuzzled in the crook of your neck, kissing the spot where it met your shoulder.

‘What for?’ Apologies had become a frequent appearance in his vocabulary, showing up in almost every conversation, if not sentence.

‘You know.’ Yes, you did know. For everything. He held a moment of silence, enjoying your presence in his arms for a little longer, before speaking again. ‘I just keep thinking about how everything between us happened, and if it had not been for me, we could have had more.’

‘I’m just as guilty.’ You had been stubborn, aggressive, and just as blind to your feelings.

‘Highly doubtful statement.’ He laughed, and his breath tickled the hairs on your neck.

‘I don’t think so.’ You shrugged in his hold.

‘Still just as stubborn, aren’t you, princess.’ He squeezed you tighter.

‘Is that not one of my most desirable attributes?’ You spun yourself around in his hold and quickly wrapped your arms around him. Doing so, hearing his tone and joy in his voice, you had expected to see him smiling, but he looked just as sombre as when you had walked up to him. ‘What’s wrong?’ Your hand mindlessly began to trace over the scars on his chest, knowing it brought comfort to both you and him by now.

Eddie shook his head, holding back a laugh. ‘You know…’ he kissed your forehead, ‘when I woke up, I saw you lying there, with the sun shining on your face, and you looked so peaceful, I had honesty considered just locking you away and keeping you forever, but I am a man of my word, am I not?’

‘I…don’t understand.’ You tried to see the meaning behind his words in his eyes, but there was nothing, and it only got harder to figure out when he held his forehead against yours, keeping you close. You still tried to make sense of what he said when you saw it. There, in the far back corner of your eye. So far, it could have been a play of light, and yet it was more real than anything. So undeniably real it crushed everything around you without question.

From the angle the ship stood at, that was as much as you could envision through the windows, and thus you ran out of the room. As much as you did not want to leave Eddie behind, knowing it could be one of the last moments the two of you had, you ran out onto the deck to meet the silhouette of mountains against the rising sun. The longer you looked at it, the clearer the details became. The ridges of the mountains, the forests, the watch towers and houses. The uniformed ships that stood in the harbour.

You knew this day was coming, you had been waiting for it, and yet, now that it was right there in front of you, you wished to be as far from it as possible. In what must have been shock, you took a couple of steps back just to collide with something—someone. You turned around to see Eddie and his soft but sad smile.

‘Welcome home,’ he announced.

Home, sweet home.

Your head turned between him and the land in the too-near distance, waiting for one of them to disappear, maybe even both. Why was this so difficult for your mind to comprehend? Why were the first words to come from your mouth, ‘Can we turn back?’

‘As much as I would want to,’ he sighed, ‘I’m sure they’ve noticed us by now.’ They must have. The watchers in those towers had the eyes of hawks, one of the reasons why your town was named after the bird.

‘So, what do we do?’ This is not how someone who is to be returning to their family after months spent with criminals was meant to respond. Everything about this was so wrong.

‘Go put your dress on.’ Eddie cocked his head back to the cabin. ‘I doubt they will appreciate you wearing this, as much as I adore it on you.’ That is when you realised you stood out on the main deck wearing only his shirt. ‘I’ll meet you in a few minutes.’ And with that, he gave you that look he had given you all those times before when you had been too headstrong in your own actions. Please, listen to me. It will be alright.

You walked back, feeling like you were floating, but not anywhere near the same way that you had the previous few days. It did not feel like you were weightless, on a cloud, free of worry or from the world. You were drifting. Far out into the abyss with nothing to hold on to. In this same state, you walked over to the wardrobe, where you had hung your dress, removed the item of clothing you had on and put on the old and tethered garment. It had once fit you like a glove, but you were far from the person it was measured for.

Just as you finished putting it on, the door opened, and Eddie walked in.

You didn’t want to look at him. Not because of anger, you had, after all, no reason to be angry at him at that moment, but because you were sure that if you looked into those brown irises again, you would break down. He must have had the same idea as you as he walked past you, only grabbing the nearest shirt off the rack, and making a headway to the desk.

‘What are you going to do now?’ After all, that had been what pulled you two together, the money your father would offer for your return. That is what kept you on this ship safe for as long as it did… although, in retrospect, you doubted that Eddie would have ever done anything to you. Maybe he had always intended to bring you home before even speaking to you. Perhaps the money made no difference. But funnily enough, you wanted him to get it. Something in you, a deep instinct, told you that it was what he deserved.

‘Write a random note,’ he said, and you could see he was doing his best not to laugh. ‘Then we’ll send the note out, hope it reaches your dearest, and we’ll make the exchange.’ His words were quick and emotionless, but you noted the hint of novice apprehension in his plan.

‘You’ve never done this before, have you?’ you asked as you made your way up to the chair across from him.

‘Try not to sound too disappointed over my lack of experience in selling beautiful maidens back to their prosperous fathers.’

‘Not at all,’ you shook your head, grabbing the piece of parchment and quill from him. ‘But let me. It will be proof of life, and besides, your handwriting is unrecognisable. He won’t be able to read any of it.’

Eddie stared at you blankly as you began writing.

Dear father,

But what were you to write? The ink dripped off the quill as you pondered on the words. For a message that was quite clear, it was hard to actually phrase it and write it out. By the time you had signed your name at the bottom of the page, the Hellfire had almost reached the coast. You read it through once more:

Dear Father,

I know it has been a long time since you last heard from me. The Red Tail is no more; I was the only survivor, to my knowledge, saved by a crew of rogue sailors. They have kept me locked away but are willing to free me for the price of 5.000 pounds. Please meet me at noon at the Star Port for the exchange.

Love,

Your daughter,

—

You had decided against the mention of piracy or anything specific about the ship’s sinking, knowing that it would only drive your father away from pain the ransom. Eddie had been unable to keep still while you wrote your drafts but now stood behind you, hands on the backrest of your chair, reading the note along with you, over your shoulder.

‘Who would have thought, my darling extorting her own father.’

‘I am doing no such thing!’ You looked up at him, ‘I am simply… aiding you in extorting my father.’ when it came to this, you had little sympathy for your father. He had plenty of money to spare and often spent it on ridiculous causes. A faux rescue of his only daughter could surely fit in between those other purchases.

There was a knock on the door, which Eddie welcomed, and Harrington walked in.

‘Got any mail for me to deliver, cap?’ it had been unanimously agreed that Harrington was the most inconspicuous of the whole crew and would be able to walk through the city unbothered to deliver the message.

You had just been in the middle of folding the parchment. The last thing left was to let the wax melt to keep the corners together. With the seal done, you handed Steve the letter. He smiled at you with thanks, but his face hid an expression of loss, almost. A farewell. But before he left, you clutched him in an embrace, almost knocking Steve over.

When the door closed behind him, it was only a matter of waiting. After your fifth round of pacing through the room, Eddie walked up in front of you, blocking your already quite well-outlined route. He had met you right in the middle.

‘I would prefer if you did not spend our last moments together walking holes into my carpet.’

‘You do not have a carpet,’ you quipped.

‘Must you be so difficult now?’ He laughed that laugh you cherished so much before he placed his hands on your cheeks and kissed you the way you adored even more. The sun was almost at its peak, and so was your heart, and you had no idea what to do when it would finally fall. Either way, you would find out in a few minutes.

‘Do you think—’

‘Highly doubtful,’ Eddie said somberly before you could even finish your thought. ‘You had said it yourself, darling; you are you, I am me. This is not meant to work.’ But what if it could, you wanted to shout, shocking yourself for the millionth time on board this ship.

‘Well, then it had been an honour being your captive, captain.’ You said with a deep breath to keep your composure up.

‘Oh, don’t look so sad just yet, princess, the real fun is only about to begin.’ At this statement, you blinked slowly. ‘Or did you think you were done aiding me?’

‘What else do you need me to do?’

‘Since you mentioned it, I think we need to make you look the part of my sweet captive. Make your father believe we really had kept you all good and locked up, hmm?’ He grinned. ‘I really did not do a good job at this, did I? Got you all spoiled up here.’

‘It was much appreciated.’ You giggled, incapable of keeping a straight face when Eddie got like this. Looking back, you could barely imagine the cold and dark exterior that he had once posed in front of you since he had been an entirely different person underneath that. Then again, so were you. ‘So, what did you have in mind?’

‘A lot,’ he licked his lips, ‘but I don’t think we have the time for that. We’ll probably have to do with tying you up like a pretty gift—just your hands, of course,’ he quickly added as he saw your eyes widen. ‘And I’ll be sure to not make it too tight.

‘Alright,’ you nodded. After all, you trusted him. You watched him look through the room for something to wrap around your hands. In the end, he found a piece of rope hanging among the many items on his wall. It was a bit too long for even the intricate, but relatively weak, knot he tied over your wrists—enough to give the impression of captivity, but in reality, barely grazed your wrists. He made sure to check.

And then it was time. You walked out of the cabin for the final time. The room in which you had spent so many tumultuous days and nights. A silly part of you wanted to actually run down the ladder into the lower deck to see the holding cell one last time. For what reason, you could not fathom.

Eddie guided you with a hand on your back, down the gangplank, which wobbled with every step you took. You tried to keep your breathing under control, but then again, if this had been a real threat to your life, you would probably feel similarly. The walk down the harbour was the longest of your life. There just came no end to it, and you could not, frustratingly enough, make your mind up if you wanted that or not. After all, each step closer to the port was one step further away from him… and when had you become so dependent on him? Weeks ago, you had thought up visions of killing him in his sleep; now, you could not think of life without him.

Your thoughts were still fighting for some kind of cohesion when you saw him walk down the street. Accompanied by his usual entourage of guards. Two of them carried a large trunk between them, which must have been filled with gold or other treasures to meet the demand.

‘Papa!’ You screamed out; an incautious urge to run towards him propelled you forward, just to be pulled back by Eddie. You glanced his way, and your breath hitched at what you saw. In the short amount of time that might have felt like an eternity that it took you to walk down the harbour, he had turned into what you could only describe as his old self. The same version of him that you had seen when you were “welcomed’ aboard the Hellfire. The Eddie that terrorised your nightmares. His eyes were pointed like daggers at your father.

He, in turn, stood aback at the sight of who had been holding you. Most of the men around him did, in fact. It caused a bit of a stir, the murmur of his name travelled in disbelief, but Eddie was the first to speak up in full volume.

‘Governor. I see we meet again.’

‘Munson.’ Your father always had the skill to look unimpressed at the sight of any man, always seeming to be above them, and even now, he did a good job hiding any other emotion, but you could see the crack of fear breaking him on the edges. It was, however, quickly replaced as he spoke in his usual tone of business.

‘Munson. What are you doing here?’

‘Why, returning your precious jewel, of course.’ He grinned, pulling you closer to him. Some of the guards leapt forward but were stopped by your father and Eddie, who reached for the knife at his side. All eyes were on you and him as he let the blade slowly track over your arm. ‘Don’t wanna do that, gents. It will only cost us more trouble.’

‘You got the gold, Munson, now let her go!’ There were still several feet between the two sides of the deal. Eddie looked around theatrically.

‘Do I?’ He cocked his head in his own direction. The two men in charge of the trunk hauled it over to you. You had no idea how Eddie was meant to carry it back to the ship. As they brought the gold over, your father spoke again.

‘Is she well? Unharmed?’

You nodded, but Eddie nudged you with the hilt of his knife, his lips against your ear, ‘C’mon, darling, the man’s asked you a question.’

‘I am fine, father.’ You spoke. By that point, the men reached you and, with a final kiss to your temple, Eddie let you go. You were immediately pulled out of his reach by the guards. They must have thought they were holding you up as your legs objected to moving. You were unable to look away from him. All up until you felt your face pressed against your father’s jacket.

‘There, there, it is alright,’ he hushed, and it took you a moment to realise why. You were crying. And if only he, or anyone else, understood that it was for all the opposite reasons. No fear or relief was escaping you through those tears. It was a loss as you saw Eddie standing there, bowing down at the end of his performance, blowing you a kiss goodbye.

It was the panic when you saw the rest of the people in the harbour. All of their eyes on you. On him. None of them were simple bystanders or civilians.

Your dream had been crumbling into ruin all these days, but this was the final blow. All of it came down, all at once, and it started with your father’s call.

‘Guards!’, and suddenly the tenfold of guards appeared out of all possible directions. They had him surrounded, weapons at the ready. Eddie had nowhere to run. Your father spoke clearly, cutting the silence with the blade of his words. ‘Munson, I arrest you on charges of murder and high treason!’

Chapter 10

thank you so much for reading!! if you want more of where this came from, check out my masterlist.

and please support your (not so) local creators by liking AND reblogging. I would love to know what you thought of the story, so please consider leaving a comment, or maybe an ask or even an anonymous review ;P

you are also more than welcome to join the Eddie Munson taglist. right here.

@nope-thanks @seventhlevelofhell @strangerfreaks @hangmanscoming @blueberrylemontea-fanfic @vintagehellfire @raven-rust @eddiesguitarskills @taccobelle @imjusteddietrashatthispoint @lunar-corgimon

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kcokaine · 3 months ago

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You're one of the very few prominent sukuna x gojo shippers, can you please give more insight on why you love this ship so much? Like what made you think "damn they would be so good together" cuz outside of their parellels in the manga + fight, there isn't enough content about them to ship 😶 like what made it click dat it'll be a good ship

What do you think of satosugo (aka the most popular ship) and their shippers? There are also ships like sukuna x megumi and gojo x yuji which are pretty famous 😭 eek I'm talkin a lot i just wanna know your opinions on said ships

Its because Sukuna's whole theme is about love and lonliness, while Gojo's is mainly lonliness and trust issues. They are both so isolated, their personalities clash well, they both enjoy fighting, they are both total freaks. Sukuna was so mesmerized by Gojo he said he will think about him as long as he lives and its showing (he cant stfu about him in the manga still) They find solace in their mutual isolation. Sukuna finds someone who is his equal, could be his equal, not like any other. Someone who was ostricized and mistreated for their power. They can relate well. Gojo is also so not scared of sukuna, he has indominable spirit and strongwilled mind, Sukuna likes a challenge he likes that Gojo doesn't submit to him, fear him or let himself be thrown around by him. I also think Gojo doesn't fear death and after all, looking at Sukuna is like looking at the eyes of death.

Their whole dynamic is also so Ying and Yang. Its the tiger and dragon, two masses, one is sky one is earth, they cant exist without each other. Unmovable object and unstoppable force. Satosugu is good! Its cute, it has significance its important for both gojo and geto as characters. I also interpret satosugu in all my ships, geto had big impact on Gojo and that shaped him. But to me stsg is pretty plain, its mainstream ship which is fine, i just prefer more toxic dynamics. Also i see no real passion in stsg, its very one sided after geto loses his mind. Same cant be said about Sukugo, sukugo has very toxic burning passion and i really fw that type of stuff, love on astronomical levels. Stsg is surface level love, a cute teenage romance ending up tragic but there is no deeper connection in my eyes. Geto cannot get to Gojo's strength level, he cant understand his lonliness, he cant get to care about him even through his trauma, same as Gojo cant help geto with that said trauma because he himself is traumatized, they are broken people that ended tragically and i think thats beautiful. But what i prefer is lovers that end in death and colide in every universe. Sukuna's love is so interesting to me, the romance of wanting to become one with your lover, open their ribcage and eat their heart but savor them because you dont want to be without them. Its sooooo... Also i dont like proshits, keep minors away from adults thanks

#iba asks

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hannahbarberra162 · 5 months ago

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Can't Fix Fix A Broken Heart - Chapter 3

Now on Ao3

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 4 All chapters

TW: crying, mentions of abuse, brief mentions of death, anxiety

Notes: I HC Thatch as being Mexican. We're getting a little yandere-y...

Also I don't think I mentioned but this is AU where Thatch, Ace, and Whitebeard don't die because I love them.

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You weren’t really sure what you were doing. Your body was moving but you didn’t feel like you were controlling any of it. You couldn’t think, couldn’t focus on anything, could barely breathe. You realized you were still clutching the poster in your hand, so you forced yourself to relax your grip and put it in the pocket of your apron. You crouched down on your heels by the end of the alley with your head in your hands. You started rubbing your fingers on your scalp as a way to try to ground yourself in the moment. All the stupid bullshit methods of self regulation you had been reading about weren’t working. Your thoughts were swirling like a maelstrom, threatening to drown you in their chaos. You were angry so very angry and sad and scared so very scared and worried and back to angry.

You didn’t know how much time had passed but at some point you picked up your head and saw Thatch seated next to you leaning against the side of the alley. Even though you saw him already, it still spooked you to see him so close. You jerked a little bit but didn’t move your position.

“Rough news, huh?” he said with a gentle tone.

“Yeah.”

“Well, it’s nice to meet another Fourth Division Commander!” his light hearted joke didn’t land as you didn’t respond. You could barely process your own thoughts, let alone navigate social interactions.

“I’m not a pirate” you said and sat all the way down next to him. You bent your knees to your chest and placed your head on top of them.

“No offense mamacita, but I didn’t think you were. So what’s with the bounty then? Are you a Marine on the run? We have a few Marine contacts if you ne–”

“I am NOT a Marine” you said emphatically as you shot him a look of malice. Immediately you deflated - he didn’t deserve your ire. “I’m sorry, that wasn’t called for. I just…I’m just angry. Not at you, though.” You absently started to fix some of the cracked cobblestones near you. It was a good outlet for your energy at least.

“I thought all the Twisted Pirates were killed a long time ago. I haven't heard about them in years” Thatch said, scratching his goatee.

“Yeah, they were.”

“And the Marines are saying you’re the Twisted’s Commander? So if you’re not a Marine and you’re not a pirate, what’s going on? That’s a huge bounty for a civilian.”

You looked into his eyes and grimaced. You were already in so much trouble, you didn’t think telling anyone at this point would make a difference. Besides, he looked like he might actually listen. You weren’t sure you could make it through the story without crying, but taking in a shaky breath you started.

“Um, well… about 7 years ago my island was attacked by the Twisted pirates. The pirates destroyed everything on the island and took me with them. I was with them for a while until they were defeated by Marines. The Marines took me from the pirates and kept me on their ship for about 5 years. A few months ago, the ship I was on was wrecked and I ended up on this island. I guess they want me back.”

Thatch was listening and watching you intently. Your eyes had started to water so you turned your head to face the other way.

“What do you mean they kept you on their ship? Like they forced you to join their ranks?”

You turned your face back towards him and shook your head. “No. At first when they brought me on their ship I was so grateful. I thought they would take me back to my island or somewhere closeby. But they saw my devil fruit power and just kept me on the ship as an unprocessed pirate captive. They never took me to a base, never charged me with anything, just…kept me on their boat. Since I was never processed on any Marine base, there was no record of my so-called rescue or how I came to them. I had no status, no rights. I was just there to do with as they wanted. ”

You were crying now, tears running down your cheeks as you talked. “All the other Twisted pirates were killed in battle, so there was no one to corroborate my side of the story. They said I was a pirate since I have a jolly roger on me and it was my word against Marine officers.”

Thatch reached into his coat pocket and handed you a handkerchief. For a moment he hesitated, seeming to want to dry them himself. But you were glad he let you do it himself.

“So I stayed there, a prisoner on the ship. They never let me leave the boat or be seen by other officers or commanders or anything. I fixed their ship all the time, I worked a lot….stuff like that. They weren’t…nice to me. Then the ship sank, so…” you trailed off, feeling deflated. You didn’t feel like talking anymore about what had happened. Your initial adrenaline had worn off and you were feeling exhausted.

Thatch tilted his head with a concerned look on his face, and extended his arm to pat your back with his hand. He didn’t touch you immediately, but waited until you nodded slightly at him. His large hand started rubbing soothing circles on your back while your tears dried. It felt…nice. Warm. You laid your head back down on your knees and closed your eyes. No one had rubbed your back in…you couldn’t remember. You hoped he wouldn’t stop.

Thatch POV

Even though he was gently rubbing your back, Thatch was smoldering with rage inside. If you weren’t there he would have punched a hole through the brick wall. He hoped he was keeping a neutral enough expression on his face. The last thing you needed was to see more aggression.

Kept as a slave for years on a Marine ship? No wonder you were so upset when he asked if you were a Marine. He couldn’t imagine your time on the pirate boat had been any better either. He was sure there was even more to the story underneath the surface of what you had said. He wanted to ask you questions but now wasn’t the time.

It was obvious that the Marines wanted you back to continue using you for your Devil Fruit and who knows what else. All the women he had ever met who were captives held deep and lasting trauma. With your fruit he couldn’t imagine how much money you’d saved the Marines over the course of 5 years, completing repairs for free. He was sure someone high up got a fat bonus for saving money on the bottom line, too. Based on your wanted poster picture, they were running you ragged. He wondered how they kept you a secret from all the other crews and officials.

For a measly 25,000 Beri they’d be able to have their free service back without having to look for you. You would fall prey to the first bounty hunter to look for you since you weren’t a fighter and didn’t have connections. It was a good plan from the Marines, but not one he was going to let happen.

Thatch noticed you started crying again, completely silent. You seemed to be used to crying and either no one caring - or worse - being hurt for making noise. Your jumpiness and nervousness made more sense with the new information.

“Pobrecita…no te preocupes…estoy aquí” Thatch started cooing to you in Spanish, saying whatever came to his mind. Even though he was enraged at the situation and feeling sorry for you, he did notice how sweet you looked crying like this. You were like a little doll, a little broken thing he could have and fix. Thatch knew himself well enough to recognize his protective - and possessive - streak. You were so sad, so worried, so fragile. He knew what he wanted - he just needed the others inside to agree. And how could they not? After all, you were so helpless in such a big, bad world...

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munchmemes · 7 months ago

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taylor swift lyrics, the tortured poets department edition, part one

fortnight

▸ i was supposed to be sent away but they forgot to come and get me. ▸ i was a functioning alcoholic till nobody noticed my new aesthetic. ▸ no one here's to blame but what about your quiet treason? ▸ for a fortnight there, we were forever. ▸ i took the miracle move-on drug, the effects were temporary. ▸ i love you, it's ruining my life. ▸ thought of calling you but you won't pick up.

the tortured poets department

▸ who uses typewriters anyway? ▸ you're in self-sabotage mode. ▸ we're modern idiots. ▸ you smoked then ate seven bars of chocolate. ▸ i chose this cyclone with you. ▸ sometimes i wonder if you're gonna screw this up with me. ▸ so tell me, who else is gonna know me? ▸ that's the closest i've come to my heart exploding.

my boy only breaks his favorite toys

▸ you should've seen them when they first got me. ▸ i only break my favourite toys. ▸ i should've known it was a matter of time. ▸ we could've played for keeps this time. ▸ i know i'm just repeating myself. put me back on my shelf. ▸ i'll tell you that [you/they] run because [you/they] love me. ▸ i knew too much. ▸ you saw forever so you smashed it up. ▸ once i fix me, you're gonna miss me. ▸ you took me out of my box, stole my tortured heart, left all these broken parts and told me i'm better off but i'm not.

down bad

▸ for a moment, i knew cosmic love. ▸ now i'm down bad, crying at the gym. ▸ everything comes out of teenage petulance. ▸ fuck it if i can't have [you/them]. ▸ i might just die, it would make no difference. ▸ i might just not get up, i might just stay down bad. ▸ fuck it, i was in love.

so long, london

▸ my spine split from carrying us up the hill. ▸ i stopped trying to make you laugh. ▸ how much sad did you think i had in me? ▸ i didn't opt in to be your odd man out. ▸ i'm pissed off you let me give you all that youth for free. ▸ you say i abandoned the ship but i was going down with it. ▸ my friends said it isn't right to be scared every day of a love affair. ▸ just how low did you think i'd go before i'd self-implode? ▸ you swore that you loved me but where were the clues? ▸ i'm just mad as hell 'cause i loved this place.

but daddy i love him

▸ i just learned these people only raise you to cage you. ▸ i just learned these people try and save you 'cause they hate you. ▸ they slammed the door on my whole world. the one thing i wanted. ▸ you should see your face. ▸ no i'm not coming to my senses. ▸ i know [you/they]'re crazy but [you/they]'re the one i want. ▸ all my plans were laid. ▸ growing up precocious sometimes means not growing up at all. ▸ i'll tell you something right now, i'd rather burn my whole life down than listen to one more second of all this bitching and moaning. ▸ i'll tell you something about my good name, it's mine alone to disgrace. ▸ i don't cater to all these vipers dressed in empath's clothing. ▸ god save the most judgmental creeps who say they want what's best for me. ▸ you ain't gotta pray for me if all you want is gray for me. then it's just white noise and it's just my choice. ▸ scandal does funny things to pride but brings lovers closer. ▸ fuck 'em, it's over. ▸ time, doesn't it give some perspective?

fresh out the slammer

▸ fresh out the slammer, i know who my first call will be to. ▸ handcuffed to the spell i was under, for just one hour of sunshine. ▸ years of labor, locks and ceilings, in the shade of how [they were] feeling. ▸ it's gonna be alright, i did my time. ▸ as i said in my letters, now that i know better, i will never lose my baby again. ▸ my friends tried but i wouldn't hear it, watched me daily disappearing. ▸ ain't no way i'm gonna screw up, now that i know what's at stake here.

florida!!!

▸ you can beat the heat if you beat the charges too. ▸ they said i was a cheat, i guess it must be true. ▸ this city reeks of driving myself crazy. ▸ little did you know, your home's really only a town you're just a guest in. ▸ i'm barricaded in the bathroom with a bottle of wine. ▸ well, me and my ghosts, we had a hell of a time. ▸ yes, i'm haunted but i'm feeling just fine. ▸ all my girls got their lace and their crimes. ▸ i did my best to lay to rest all of the bodies that have ever been on my body. ▸ i've got some regrets, i'll bury them in florida. ▸ tell me i'm despicable, say it's unforgivable. ▸ love left me like this and i don't want to exist.

#rp meme #rp starters #sentence starters #lyrics rp starters #lyrics starters #lyrics rp meme #roleplay meme #lyrics meme #taylor swift lyrics rp meme

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anchorandrope · 5 months ago

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happy pride to my hands your hands tied up like two ships i don't care what people say when we're together oh i will carry over fire and water for your love the script was written and i could not change a thing i said hey it's alright if it makes you feel alive and every jaw drops when she's in those jeans there will always be the kind that criticize but i know yes i know we'll be alright so i built you a house from a broken home i'm all yours i've got no control no control it's been so long it's been so long maybe we're fireproof used to sing about being free but now he's changed his mind if you like to do the things you know that we shouldn't do then baby i'm perfect the priest thinks it's the devil my mum thinks it's the flu but girl it's only you for your eyes only i'll show you my heart the summertime and butterflies all belong to your creation so many nights i thought it over told myself i kinda like her but there was something missing in her eyes same lips red same eyes blue same white shirt couple more tattoos wherever i go you bring me home in a black dress she's such an actress yeah so you can cut me up and kiss me harder you can be the pill to ease the pain im just like you if you only knew now i'm asking my friends how to say i'm sorry they say lad give it time there's no need to worry i know that you're scared because i'm so open breathe me in breathe me out i don't know if i could ever go without i get so lost inside your eyes would you believe it? so bright sometimes shine i'm not ever going back don't blame me for falling i was just a little boy i couldn't want you anymore kiss in the kitchen like it's a dance floor staring at the ceiling two weeks and i'll be home we were only kids just tryna work it out wonder what they'd think if they could see us now i've been looking back a lot lately me and you is all i ever know and it's been ages different stages come so far from princess park waiting to wrap your legs around me and i know you hate to smoke without me cause you're the only one when it's said and done and i'm too tired to be tough just wanna be loved by you it's a church of brunt romances and i'm too far gone to pray in a strange way we're all in this together been this way forever you're not the only one but i'd follow you to any place if it's hollywood or bishopsgate i'm coming too if i was a bluebird i would fly to you stay green a little while you bring blue lights to dreams do you think i'm cool too? or am i too into you? maple syrup coffee pancakes for two you lay with him as you stay in the daydream you feel a fool you're back at it again i take you with me every time i go away in a hotel usin' someone else's name when we're finished saying nothing can we please get back to lovin'? i don't wanna face the music but i still wanna dance with you but the friends we make the love it takes is worth is worth is worth it all the time my heart might be broken but i won't be broken down you and me until the end wakin' up to start again fabricated fairytales bring a new world to life there were problems in this empty bottle at the bottom but we drained all that you should be startin' at the sky the birds just passin' by love spent my whole life thinking i had to change

[inspo]

#just opened my drafts and saw this from june 1st - let's pretend its an appropriate moment to post it lmao #anyway happy pride always and forever to louis and harry !! <3 love you boys #(btw i only added songs that are written and released by them - i didn't include leaks or songs written for other artists; in that case #i should've added quite a few more lol - im talking about you especially all along)#songs #fifi.txt

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ramblingautisticman · 12 days ago

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Why Is This Song In My Poolverine Playlist, A Series.

(I am extremely insane and make playlists for every ship/character/show I like, and yes, there is a reason each one is in there. I think of lil scenarios, situations, or straight up story ideas because of a song- so enjoy this series where I write them all down!)

(Part 1, Part 2)

Monster from Adventure Time

So, I honestly hadn't thought about this song in relation to Wade and Logan until @ohitsthemindstuffagain said about it, and now it's all I can picture when I hear it.

This is such a Wade and Logan coded song and it's insane.

"I know we'll never grow old together, cause you'll never grow old to me."

Wade knows Logan is slowly ageing, something he doesn't do, and one day, he will be alone again. One day, he will watch Logan get grey hair, his face gaining wrinkles, his muscles getting softer. He's okay with that. He's made his peace, but it still hurts. Still makes his heart ache to know that one day Logan will die of old age and he will still be here. Wade will still have the same young body he does now. His body will always be 40 years old- and Logan's will always be ageing.

"You're the pink in my cheeks, and I'm scared cause that means I'm a little bit soft."

Logan has softened since knowing Wade. He's become less gruff and angry over time. Wade jokes that he managed to domesticated The Wolverine, and what's funny about that is the fact it's true. Where Logan used to be rough and jaded, he was soft and caring. It scared him. Alot. He was so used to the anger and violence coursing through his body that now- with this love and affection slowly replacing it- he wasn't sure what to do. Wasn't sure how to function.

"We were messed up kids who taught ourselves how to live, and I'm still scared that I'm not good enough."

Wade had always survived- never just lived. Ever since he was a kid. His dad had been an abusive asshole- his mother a cold-hearted bitch- and so he had grown up teaching himself how to survive. How to hide bruises from school, how to make food without getting noticed, how to avoid getting screamed at if he didn't do well on a test. It was ingrained into him as a kid- that he wasn't good. He would never be good. He was a broken fuck up that would never amount to anything. It was something he had taken with him through the rest of his life- and it was something he couldn't help but reflect back on when him and Logan had begun dating. Logan was a hero- he had saved the world more times that Wade could count- and here he was, dating Wade. Dating the one guy he shouldn't. Logan deserved better. Alot better. Deserved literally anyone that wasn't Wade. Logan was so genuine with him though- sounded like he meant every word he said- that slowly, he was helping to break that childhood trauma. He was showing Wade that he was worth something, no matter what some asshole father had said. It was ironic, because Logan had gone through a similar experience as a child, but here he was- helping Wade like it was nothing. He supposed that after 200 years, you resolve some of your issues.

"I've always felt like a monster, long before I was big, but only seen as a monster, let's just say I'm used to it."

Logan had always been told he was a freak, an animal, a killer. Ever since he was young. It hurt- until he had heard it enough times that it was second nature. He started to believe what they said about him. Think about the fact he really was a killer and an animal, the way he slashed through people like it was nothing or the way he growled when he was angry, it was true- wasn't it? And then he met Wade, and Wade showed him praise for all of those things. He never once seemed scared of Logan- infact he seemed to like all of the things he hated about himself. Wade would gush over the claws, joke about him being a cat, shout him on as he took out the bad guys on a mission. It felt strange, being show affection for the things people showed him hatred for for so long, but here it was. The praise he had always wanted.

"Yeah, I'm used to that, but I could get used to this."

His time with Vanessa had been amazing. Wade really had loved her with all of his heart- and he really did think they would be together until the end of time- but life got in the way as it often did. He had accepted she moved on, and while it hurt, he was happy she was happy. That she was finally with someone who could treat her right and keep her safe. It had felt strange to feel that similar fluttery feeling towards someone else- but Logan had managed to slip into that gap in his life with such ease that Wade never even noticed until he found himself not thinking of Vanessa anymore- instead he thought of Logan. It took him awhile to get used to that- to realise he could feel these things for someone else- and he liked it. Love it infact. The way Logan made him feel was so much more different than Vanessa, and he liked that. Logan complelty understood him. Never judged him for his looks or about the way he acted- loved every part of him like it was the easiest thing ever- and Wade couldn't help but find that so much better than what he had with Vanessa.

And the rest of the song? I could make up SEVERAL scenarios or ideas about each lyric for both of them. It fits so well it hurts.

#deadpool and wolverine #poolverine #deadclaws #wade wilson #deadpool 3 #deadpool #logan howlett #wade x logan #logan #wade winston wilson #ramblingautisticman

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raayllum · 9 months ago

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this isn't how i'm writing it in fanon s6 bc i can pace things however i want with zero time constraints but this is something i could see s6 doing + i like being self indulgent so

They'd been stupid to trust the Celestial Elves.

It was the only thought running through Callum's brain as he stared in horror, the corona sealed back glass, the Nova Blade a weapon no mortal could wield, and Rayla—

On her knees, the leader holding an ordinary but no less terrifying blade to her throat, his face still a bit scraped up from his and Rayla's earlier scuffle. She'd been the one to catch the elf reaching for Callum's bag when they slept that night; she'd be the one to draw her sword first and engage him, quickly overwhelmed by the time Callum and her parents had arrived.

They were all talented warriors, but rusty after two years in a coin—Runaan unable to draw his bow with only one arm, and something long range was needed here. Some way to kill the leader and give Rayla time, even if he held her in a vice grip, pressing down hard enough on her throat there was thin, scarlet line growing.

"You have something we need, boy," the leader hissed, breathing heavily through a broken nose. "You know what it is."

Runaan's voice broke through, sharp and demanding—"What is he talking about?"—but Callum couldn't tear his eyes away from Rayla. She was struggling to breathe, let alone speak, but gave her head the barest shake. No.

"What are you going to do with it?" Callum says as neutrally as he can, stalling (there has to be a spell or a way out of this) even if he already knows the answer.

What else could they hope to do with something called the Key of Aaravos?

"I'll tell you what we're going to do your elf girl unless you give it so us," the Celestial elf snarls. "On the count of three, I'll slit her throat. One—"

"Stop!"

Two hadn't even left his lips, Callum having an excuse to look away from Rayla's glaring, tearshot eyes now as he digs the cube out of his bag. It feels like it weighs a thousand pounds as he holds it up.

On Finnegrin's ship, at least he'd been able to hide what he was doing—what he was willing to do—in the shadowy depths of the ship. Here, in the light, there's nowhere to hide.

Callum holds it out, taking a few steps closer. "Lower the sword first," he says.

"And have her wriggle free? I don't think so."

"Callum," she wheezes. "Don't—"

"Fine then," Callum snaps. "At the same time—an exchange. On my count of three. One—" He looses his grip on the cube, the ring of celestial elves watching eagerly. "Two—" It's not ideal, him and Rayla in front of where any of her parents could join the fray; there will have to be distance before anyone can fight either way. But then, he's not doing this out of the certainty he'll get the Key back, that it won't end in disaster.

Just for her safety. Just for himself, because he can't live without her.

This was his destiny, what Aaravos was banking on. And he was right.

"Three!"

The Celestial elf takes his blade away and shoves her forward at the same time Callum tosses the cube over. It's caught in one shiny blue hand, the elf towering over him as Callum slides to his knees, catching Rayla as she careens forward before she can hit the floor. She coughs weakly in his arms, bleeding at the throat, but it seems shallow.

The celestial elves make it maybe five five away with their prize before her parents leap into action, swords clashing, but Callum grabs his staff and constructs a funnel of wind around him and Rayla, a thick enough wall of air to keep anyone else out momentarily, as he helps her sit up.

"Callum." She's crying, but alive.

"Let me look at you," he murmurs, lifting up her chin. He uses his scarf to wipe away the blood, relieved when more doesn't follow. A shallow cut just to scare him, but it'd worked. He pulls her into his arms next, just needing a moment to feel her heart beating against his.

She takes a second to hold him back and then does so, tightly, and his heart settles as they sit there shaking. She hasn't forgiven him for it yet, maybe—but she will.

#rayllum #s6 speculation #cube hostage exchange theory #celestial elf variant #my fic #fic #predictions #not really?? but close enough #first actual CHET scenario fic in... god 4 years??#jesus #last time i wrote one of these callum didn't even know who aaravos was #oh how far we've come :')#tdp #the dragon prince #if anything here gets repurposed for fanon s6 and u notice it no u didn't

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criticallyacclaimedstranger · 1 year ago

Text

Not A Day Too Soon [a Frankie x reader fic]

Read on Ao3

My Frankie Morales masterlist

Fandom: Triple Frontier

Ship: Francisco “Catfish” Morales x you (cishet f!reader)

Warnings: friends to lovers, listening to neighbors having sex, fumbling and awkward cuteness, safe sex, cunnilingus, dick riding, no instant orgasms but frankie blows in secret

Summary: You and Frankie have been friends since you were kids. One night when you're watching a movie, your neighbor has loud, obnoxious sex, and one thing leads to another.

Words: 5,043

Halfway through the movie, the first moan reaches through the wall. You can hear it despite the explosions on the TV screen. At first, you try to ignore it, a little embarrassed before Frankie, who’s next to you on the couch. His warm proximity makes you feel flushed, especially when the moans become shriller.

Eventually, Frankie turns his face from the screen to you.

"Every weekend?"

"Sometimes twice in one night," you sigh. "And I think that's only because he blows super fast."

"Must be good pussy," Frankie jokes, but you catch a tinge of red on his cheekbones. A rhythmical knocking begins, a theatrical "Oh my God!" making you roll your eyes.

"She's faking it."

"How do you know?" Frankie elbows you, and you just shoot him a grimace before turning your attention back to the action movie that you've lost the plot of. Usually, you and Frankie like to watch these disasters, comment and laugh at them, but something's different tonight. It's been different for a while, ever since that time you were out with the guys, and you two were the only ones left at your table in that bar, and then an old rock ballad started to play, and Frankie asked you to dance. It had been fun at first, kind of ironically romantic dancing, but then something happened, and Frankie's hands on you felt different. You choked on your laughter and your heart started to hack its way through your ribcage. Frankie's body smelled so good, looked so good, felt so good against yours, he was familiar and safe because he was Frankie Morales whom you had known all your life, yet he was Frankie Morales, someone completely new, exciting, terrifying. He hummed low as he rocked you slowly around in a circle on the small dancefloor, his hands splayed out on your lower back.

You had loved him since you were kids, but that was when you realized that you were in love with him.

Things had been a little awkward since then, and you hadn't met, just the two of you, in the two or three weeks that had passed. Finally, you wrote in the group chat you had with the guys, asking them to come over for a movie night. Everyone except Frankie had plans, and you were screwed.

And now you're sitting here, referencing to him without words about that one ex of yours who couldn't satisfy you but whose feelings you were so scared of hurting that you faked your orgasm every time. Frankie (and the guys) only knew about it after a drunken night when you had just broken up and was lamenting the fact that you had wasted a year on a guy who couldn't make you cum. Benny, Will, and Santi immediately started to advocate for a rebound fuck, but Frankie had been unusually quiet. You didn't end up in bed with anyone but yourself, and only after hurling your guts out in the bathroom, with Frankie holding your hair.

He has always been there for you.

Another wail from the other side of the wall drowns out the action that you're desperately trying to focus on, and Frankie shakes his head. He turns around on the couch and starts to bang at the wall.

"It's no use," you tell him, ”They only get off on it."

"Pervs."

"I know. Just try to ignore it, they'll be done soon."

Frankie looks at you, a boyish smirk on his face.

"You know what we should do?"

"Yes, daddy, fuck me harder!" your neighbor is spurring her partner, and you groan.

"I shudder to think."

"Get back at them."

"How?" you ask suspiciously. Frankie's face scrunches up in the perfect mockery of an orgasm grimace.

"Oh, baby, oh yeah baby, that's it, take it, take it, good girl...!" His voice is exceptionally deep, and it sounds so ridiculous that you start to laugh.

"Frankie, stop it, that's so off-putting!"

"That's the point," he winks before continuing: "Such a good girl, taking my cock like that, oh, yes, yes...!"

He gestures at you to join in, but you're shaking your head vigorously, holding back your laughter.

"No!"

"Come on, you already know how to fake it!"

"Oh yeeees, fuck, YES!!!"

"Asshole!" You shove him roughly, yet with laughter bubbling out of you. Frankie is laughing too, just as the couple on the other side of the wall knock their symphony of creaking and screaming up a notch.

"You're right," Frankie tuts disapprovingly, "she's totally faking it."

"Told you."

You turn back towards the TV with no idea what's going on in the movie. Something about 12 hours to stop a nuclear apocalypse. Or racing cars for money? You don't know anymore. Jason Statham is in it, at least, you recognize him. And that woman... that's... um...

Frankie's hand is on your thigh, and it's making it very hard for you to concentrate.

"Abejita?" That's his nickname for you since you were teenagers. Little bee. Because you were always shorter than him, loved a pair of yellow-and-black-striped pants for years, and wasn't afraid to throw fists when provoked.

You hum to show him you're listening, but keep your eyes fixed on the TV.

"You think we can do better?"

You swallow as you blush, your skin tingling. The woman next door wails.

"What do you mean?" you murmur throatily, your tongue suddenly too thick for your mouth. Frankie clears his throat, suddenly just as bashful as you are.

"I mean... um... fuck, that was a bad way to put it..."

"What?"

"That I love you."

For some reason, you can't look at him, so you keep staring at Jason Statham shooting people left and right. The sex on the other side of the wall goes on, and hearing that in this situation is, frankly, absurd.

Frankie's hand is still burning on your thigh.

"Did I ruin it now?" he asks in a whisper that you can barely hear. You finally tear yourself away from the screen, and meet his hesitating, warm brown eyes. God, his eyes are so amazing. How have you never seen them before?

You wet your lips.

"I... I don't know, I... Frankie..."

"Should I go?" His hand finally comes away from your thigh, and you feel bereft of something vital to your existence.

"No..."

"We've been friends forever, but I..." he stumbles over his words, pauses, tries to make a point. "I've always loved you, you know that, but I... think of you all the time, I miss you when I'm shipped out, I keep comparing other women to you but none of them are you... and when we danced that time..."

Your brain starts to scream at you to kiss him, to tell him that you love him too, but suddenly you're thinking of all the things that could go wrong, so you stay in a terrible limbo where you can only listen to him rambling.

"And I know this isn't how I should've told you, I should've asked you out, or at least asked if I could finally kiss you, I've wanted to kiss you for so long, but instead I made it sound like all I wanted was sex, and..."

"You want to kiss me?" you blurt out, and Frankie finally shuts up. He stares at you, mouth open, still for a moment before nodding slowly. Your stomach twists, and a warmth spreads in you while you also shiver.

"I want to kiss you," he confirms hoarsely but surely. You swallow.

"Okay."

"Okay?"

"Okay."

"What... what does that mean? Can I... or do you want to... Okay?"

You bark a nervous laugh. "Kiss me."

He immediately scoots closer, his warmth and scent overpowering you as he gently places his hand on your cheek. He may take that step, but you're the one to press you lips to his for the kiss that you yourself have thought about for longer than you care to admit.

You've kissed him countless times, always on the cheek, sometimes your lips barely touching, sometimes it's been a loud smack. He's done the same to you, but you've never kissed him like this: slow, tentative, sweet, and arousing in its gentle exploration. Your hand lands softly on his broad shoulder as you lean in, your chest brushes against his and Frankie slides his hand to the back of your neck where he cups you carefully, not forcing you into him but keeping you where you are, like if he's afraid that you'll run away. He tastes good, a little buttery from the popcorn both of you ate, a hint of beer from the glass he hasn't touched much. His lips are surprisingly soft, the lower one plump and lovely as it puckers against your lips, the little patch of facial hair just underneath it scratchy in a titillating way.

The couple next door come to an impressive finish, after which it turns eerily quiet despite Jason Statham running away from another explosion on screen. And you think that this is ridiculous. What the hell are you doing here kissing Frankie?

You sit back, biting into your lower lip, eyes cast down as you try to slow down your wildly beating heart, and make sense of your thoughts.

"You okay?" Frankie asks. You hear the worry in his voice, and you clear your throat.

"I think... it would be best if you left, Frankie."

You force yourself to sound practical and unperturbed, but you're really not so sure about this as you seem. Frankie looks confused but gentleman as he is, he rises from the couch.

"Okay?"

"I'm sorry," you say, putting on a brave smile. "I just don't think it's a good idea."

He nods but doesn't hide his devastation.

"I'm sorry, too," he offers before quickly setting off for the front door and leaving without another word.

You are left sitting alone on your couch, the stupid movie still playing before you. Annoyed, you grab the remote and turn the TV off. The silence is almost deafening, but then you hear Frankie's truck start outside, and drive away.

Even when upset, Frankie drives evenly, economically. He always impresses you with his level-headedness.

You get up, take the popcorn bowl and your half empty beers to the kitchen, and dispose of them. You then start to wash the dishes, but that feels like a stupid thing to do after having broken someone's heart.

Why would you let someone like Frankie go? What the hell are you afraid of?

You walk up to the living-room window and look out, as if expecting to see Frankie's truck still outside on the parking lot, which it of course isn't. Before you know it, you're holding your phone, having tapped open Frankie's number.

He picks up after one signal.

"Frankie," you immediately say, "please come back."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I'm sorry, I'm a dumb bitch, you have to come back."

"Making a U-turn as we speak."

"And Frankie..."

"Yeah?"

You blush a little, thinking of the contents - or lack - of your bedside table drawer.

"Could you... pick up condoms?"

You're pretty sure you can hear him gulp.

"7-11 coming up. I'll be back in ten."

You hang up, and nine minutes later, you hear Frankie's truck again. This time he's in a hurry: moments later, when you open the door and find him waiting outside, he's panting. You step back and let him in, and he cups your face, searching your eyes.

"Are you sure this time?" he asks breathlessly. Your smile is slightly trembling, not from uncertainty, but from hurry and nerves.

"I am."

He kisses you with dry, tender lips, tasting and testing, like you never kissed less than half an hour ago. As you start to melt into him, you can't help but smile. Eventually, Frankie pulls back and looks at you, a smile playing on his own lips.

"What?"

"I'm just... happy," you tell him, your smile growing wide as your stomach fills with butterflies. "It's silly, I know, but..."

"It's not silly," he shakes his head. "I'm really happy too. I've wanted this for a long time, sweetheart."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

You kiss him again before taking his hand and leading him to the bedroom. His smile dies down a little when he looks from you to the bed, but you see that he's only revering the situation.

"You sure?" he asks in a low voice. You blush a little.

"Did you bring rubbers?"

"I did." He pats his pocket. You kiss him again and start to unbutton his denim shirt.

"I'm sure."

You help each other get undressed, stumbling over pants legs and giggling breathlessly between kisses as you catch each other from falling. Frankie was always a safe space for you but now his warm, broad embrace feels even more like home, but in a new, exciting way. For each kiss and garment that gets discarded on the floor, you grow more secure and less nervous, and by the time you're in your underwear, you're straddling him on the bed, more confident than ever. Frankie wets his lips, his eyes fixed on your chest as you reach behind your back to unhook your bra. He's already hard underneath you but when he sees your tits released from the bra cups, it's like he swells up another size.

"Abejita..."

"Isn't it a little weird for you to use that name in bed?" you tease him. "You've called me that since we were fourteen."

"And what makes you think I haven't hoped for this since then?" he replies, reaching up to cup your tits. You let out a little moan when his thumbs brush over your hardening nipples.

"Have you?"

Frankie searches your face, hesitating a little. You close your fingers loosely around his wrists, suddenly wary.

"You haven't waited for this for years, have you?" you whisper. "While we both were dating other people? You didn't wait for me while you were planning to spend the rest of your life with Gloria? Because that's just sad."

He shakes his head. "No, not then... but for a couple of years, maybe. I don't know, sweetheart, but you've always been there for me when those relationships crashed, especially after Gloria, and maybe I just hoped, for a second..."

"Yeah," you nod, "I know."

You move your hands over his, guiding his fingers to sink into the flesh of your breasts, and Frankie exhales in a sigh at your softness. The next sound to come out of him is a hissed moan when you rub yourself against his hard length.

"Baby," you pleads, thumbs brushing over your nipples. "Christ, you're beautiful. I want you so much."

"I can tell," you grin, leaning into his hands as yours come down to his chest to support you in slowly dragging your still clad but drenched apex along the hard outline of his cock in his boxers. You've caught glimpses of that bulge through the years, but never really thought about it in that way before. It was Frankie, your best friend, and he was a man, so he had a dick, there was nothing weird about that. Now you wonder how you managed to stay so cool about it: the mere size of it is enough to make you clench in anticipation.

"I want you too," you tell him before getting up on your knees, and pulling down his boxers. His cock springs free, thick and veiny, the head glistening with precum as it strains upwards towards his stomach.

"Oh," you hear yourself say, in a weird tone. Frankie laughs nervously.

"Not big enough?"

"Oh shut up..." You slap him gently on the thigh, enjoying how his whole body trembles at the impact, and then help him kick off the boxers before you settle over his thighs again. Frankie bites into his lower lip as you regard his cock like you're unsure how to attack it.

"I'm not sure I'll be able to take this," you eventually confess with a wry smile that makes Frankie relax.

"I'll help you, I promise. And if you can't... well, that's fine too."

"I want to."

"Me too, but let's take on thing at a ti- mmmohmygod..."

The sounds you conjure out of the man underneath just by taking a hold of his cock and pumping it a couple of times are intoxicating. He stares at you, mesmerized, as you use both hands to stroke him.

"Sweetheart... abejita... Christ, don't embarrass me by making me blow too soon..."

"I have faith that you'll last longer than the guy next door," you tease him, and Frankie groans, covering his face with his hands.

"Thanks for reminding me, that's so off-putting."

You chuckle huskily but you're really quite nervous about how to fit this monster inside you. You don't know how, but Frankie seems to pick up on it. Sitting up, he brings you against his chest, making you let go of him.

"We'll do fine," he tells you in a low voice. "I'll make sure you're wet enough."

Your cunt bottoms out at how low his voice drops, and you lick your lips.

"I'm pretty wet already."

"I'll get you wetter."

There's a quiet confidence in his voice that you recognize as something so quintessentially, faithfully, wonderfully Frankie. Gently, he lays you down and kisses you, moaning low into your mouth when you comb your fingers through his hair. Jesus, how have you never heard him moan before? What took you so goddamn long?

"Can I go down on you?" he whispers, and you clench again. "I really wanna go down on you, baby, I wanna make you feel good."

"Yes, please, Frankie!" You pull him to you for a desperate kiss before you push him down your body, catching his grin as he trails little kisses over your tits and stomach.

"Let me know how I'm doing, okay, sweetheart?"

"So far, so good..."

You had gathered from the banter between the guys, and from some of Frankie's more outspoken exes, that he knew his way around giving oral, but you're still nervous. Or maybe you're nervous because you know he's supposed to be good, or maybe you're just nervous.

Frankie must sense the tension in your thigh, because he looks up at you.

"Is this okay?"

You nod quickly, but he props himself up on his elbows.

"If you're not into this..."

"I am," you blurt out, "it's just... a little weird, okay? An hour ago you were my best friend, and now you're about to lick my pussy?"

He laughs at that, and you catch a twinge of nerves from him as well. That makes you feel more at ease.

"The two are not mutually exclusive," he points out, and you smile sheepishly.

"I really want it, Frankie."

"And you'll have it."

You knew, you had your suspicions, but holy fucking shit, you were not prepared for the onslaught of his tongue and lips. It doesn't take you long to reach the same volumes your neighbor was performing at earlier, but you're definitely not faking it, Frankie's making sure of that.

And maybe that's the problem: that you sound just like your neighbor's date, and that Frankie is trying so hard to conjure the most depraved sounds from you. No matter how good it feels, how devoted he is between your legs, how long he keeps at it, you don't feel any closer to orgasm than you did when he first started. After an embarrassingly long time, you draw a deep breath.

"Frankie...?" Your voice is trembling from pleasure, and Frankie replies with only a hum against your wet folds. You stroke your hand over his hair and give him a little nudge.

"Frankie... please, you need to stop."

His head pops up immediately, chin glistening obscenely.

"You okay?" he wants to know, crawling up to gently cup your cheek. You immediately put your hand over his to take it away before he has a chance to notice how hot your cheek is.

"Yeah, I just... I don't think I can climax," you mumble. His brows knit in concern.

"Was I doing something wrong? Was I too rough?"

"Jesus Christ, Frankie, no!" you hurry to reassure him, terrified to make him feel bad. He so easily puts all the world's worries on his own shoulders.

"You did perfectly, I just, it's a weird situation, I mean, I want this, but it's just..." You try desperately to find the right word. "It's sudden. It happened so quickly."

"Too quickly?" he asks quietly. Now it's your turn to cup his cheek.

"No," you tell him with conviction, your thumb caressing his scratchy cheek. "It wasn't quick enough, we waited for way too long."

The dimple in his cheek appears when he smiles. "I'd want for you to cum."

"It's okay, you can make it up to me later."

"I like that..." He dips down to kiss you, and you wrap your arms around his neck to pull him closer. His hard cock is wedged between the two of you and there is nothing you want more than for him to fuck you, orgasm or not.

"I want you, you tell him breathlessly between the kisses. "Stop asking if it's okay, it's more than okay."

He chuckles, and props himself up to look around for his pants, finding them on the floor. He smacks a kiss onto your lips before crawling to the edge of the bed for them.

"Don't move."

You giggle and slap his ass, grinning cheekily when he turns to glare at you.

"I always thought you have a cute ass," you defend yourself, and Frankie shakes his head as he looks for the condoms in his pants pocket.

"My pancake ass."

He returns to you with the pack of rubbers, a slight tinge on his cheekbones.

"I'll put in implants if you want me to," he jokes, but you shake your head vigorously.

"Are you crazy? I love your pancake butt. Don't you dare do anything to that perfection."

"Much obliged."

You sit up and help him roll on the condom, using that as an excuse to get to touch his thick dick again. Frankie sits back and exhales in a low moan.

"God, baby... your hands feel so good on me... can't wait to be inside you."

"If I can take it." You're only half joking. He kisses you sweetly.

"I know you can."

It's a tight fit, that's for sure. He inches into you so very slowly, but it's still almost too much.

"It's too big," you whimper, delirious from the stretch. Frankie groans.

"Sweetheart, that's just the head."

"Fuck."

"Just relax, you can take it, I know you can."

Frankie's right, of course. When he's finally sheathed in you, both of you are breathing in shallow gulps, and Frankie's forehead is covered by a thin sheet of sweat.

"You okay?" he asks hoarsely. You run your hands up his sides.

"Yeah, I'm good, but Jesus that's big."

He preens a little, but you can tell he's concerned for you.

"It's okay, Frankie," you assure him, wrapping your legs around his thighs. "It's okay, I'm good, you're good."

He swears in another moan and it's the sexiest sound you've ever heard. Your hands come to his buttocks and push down.

"Fuck me," you ask him, and he starts to move almost immediately. You moan loudly as his veiny cock drags through your slick walls. Frankie kisses your breath away while he himself struggles for air, staying up on his elbows as he ruts into you, meticulously and steadily, like he does everything else. God, you could just melt underneath him, but instead you hold onto him, surrender your kisses to him, and listen to him rambling on about how good you feel and how crazy you make him. It takes you a little while to realize that he's speaking Spanish. You kiss his sweaty forehead and whimper when he slips out.

"Frankie...!"

"I know, abejita, I know, but I'm just trying to make it last," he pants, scattering little kisses all over your face. "I want it to last forever."

Your heart swells, and you swallow hard. "We got time, Frankie."

"I know, I just want it to be special."

"It is special."

He covers your mouth with his but the kiss is brief: he's too out of breath. You reach down between the two of you to find him and nock him at your entrance again before rubbing your clit with two fingers. As Frankie resumes his sweet pace, you clench hard and throw your head back.

"Goddddd, Frankie...!"

"Fuck, you're tight like this..."

"I need you to go harder!"

He complies immediately with a growl, and it sets off a pull in you as you rub your clit furiously. He buries his face in the crook of your neck, his breath is hot on your skin as he does his best to keep thrusting, but when you whimper More, harder, faster he grabs hold of you and rolls around, settling you on top. You sink down on him, gasping as his impressive inches invade you, but then Frankie pulls you down over him, making you hover just an inch or two above him, and starts to thrust up into you desperately. You shout in pleasure and surprise at the desperate bucking, the way his cock assaults you, so demanding in its hardness and size, yet not enough, you need more, you need him inside you for the rest of the night.

He’s huffing out your name with every breath, blending it with curses and blessings alike in moaned cries as he holds onto you like he’s never going to let go. His chest is slippery with sweat but you still press your tits against it, desperate to keep all of you connected to all of him, and when you cover his mouth with yours for a sloppy kiss, he doesn’t stop rambling but lets you swallow every word of praise along with the kiss.

For a moment it’s so fantastic that you feel like you’re in a movie, like this isn’t happening for real, it can’t, this can’t be you friend Frankie underneath you fucking you like it’s his only mission in life, this isn’t you riding his big dick until you’re howling. Your pussy tightens and heats up in the first sweet signs of an orgasm, and you sit up, slamming Frankie’s pelvis to the mattress as you ride him frantically, hands slipping on his chest until you sit up straight and try to manage without support. Frankie immediately grabs your hands, fingers interlocking with yours, and provides the brace you need to ride yourself home.

When the orgasm finally comes to steal you away, Frankie’s there to keep you anchored to him. It’s not the best one you’ve had in your life; it’s rather short and explosive, but it feels complete in a very satisfying way. Your chest meets Frankie’s, two frenzied hearts beating in unison, as you try to catch your breath, sweat plastering your hair over your face. When you’ve come down enough to move, your hips are sore and your pussy even sorer, and you inelegantly slide down from Frankie onto your side and try to comb the hair away from your face. Frankie helps you, a dreamy smile curving his lips up.

“That was wild,” he mumbles, and you giggle a little awkwardly.

“I don’t know what came over me.”

“Whatever it was, it certainly came.”

“Oh, haw-haw…”

He presses his dry lips to yours, effectively silencing any further protests, before sitting up with a groan and taking off the condom. You don’t know why it is so embarrassing, but you blush a little when you look at the now sad-looking rubber with white goo at the tip.

“When did you cum?” you blurt out, and Frankie chuckles as he ties the condom and gets up to dispose of it.

“Almost the minute you got on top, sweetheart.”

You give up a small laugh, the tension eases a little, and you ogle his ass when he walks out of the bedroom. When he returns, you’ve kicked the covers to side and have made room for him next to you.

“No regrets?” he asks you as he pulls you to his sweaty body. You kiss the tip of his sharp nose.

“None at all. I love you, Frankie. I’m in love with you.”

The lamp light reflects in his eyes as his swallows. “I love you, too, abejita. I can’t believe this really happened.”

“We can make it happen again,” you tease, pinching his nipple to make him groan. “Just need to recover a little.”

“Sounds like a plan,” he murmurs, threading his fingers through your hair and finding your lips for a long, sweet kiss.

A creak travels from the other side of the wall to your bedroom, and after that, a rhythmic thumping. Then, a loud moan. Frankie lifts his head from the pillow and stares at the wall, a frown knitting his brows together. He then looks quizzically at you.

"I told you," you giggle, "Sometimes twice in one night."

"Can't have that,” he shakes his head. “We need to top that. Get ready for two more times, gorgeous.”

“I don’t think I can take that cock three times in one night,” you grin, but you’re already feeling a surge between your legs.

“We’ll train hard,” Frankie promises with a leer that makes you want to start already.

“Other neighbors are gonna start to complain. We’re all gonna get evicted.”

“You can move to my place,” he volunteers readily. “You can move in tomorrow if you want to, baby, I love you and I want to be with you all the time.”

The woman next door wails, and you blush a little because you know you must have sounded like her only a while ago.

"If my neighbor doesn't dump her soon, I just might come and live with you.”

“The sooner the better,” Frankie tells you, and pulls the covers over both of you to make a cocoon for only the two of you.

#frankie morales #frankie morales x you #frankie morales x reader #francisco catfish morales #francisco frankie morales #triple frontier fanfic #my fic

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deadname-exehasbeendeleted · 4 months ago

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OKAY so every time I listen to never love an anchor by the crane wives i cannot stop thinking about double life desert duo and i just need to make a breakdown because it is LITERALLY PERFECT every line matches up to at least my interpretation of them and i just need to share my rambles with the void (also I’m talking about the characters not ccs I’m sure I don’t need this but just in case ya know)

basically I’m gonna add all the lyrics (without all the woah-oh-ohs) with each section that applies to either grian or scar and maybe a note as to why i think so so here I go-

Scar: On some level, I think I always understood

That these hands of mine were clumsy, not clever

And I tried to do the best that I could

Grian: But try as I might, I couldn't bring myself to hold you

okay okay already off to a strong start scar tried to do the best he could but g saw him more as a danger which is why the clumsy hands line is red because that’s how g sees him, no matter how much scar tries to prove otherwise, and g keeps him at arms length because he cares but he’s scared look at the last time they were a team and how it ended

Grian: It's a secret I keep tucked inside my chest

With this heart of mine that's guilty, not remorseful

Scar: There is love that doesn't have a place to rest

But it would have buried you if it had settled on your shoulders

i mean g kept a lot of secrets, from not telling scar they were soulmates to the literal secret soulmate thing, but he doesn’t feel much remorse as he doesn’t see this as anything more than a temporary bond (plus he’s trying to not care because he knows it could go badly if he lets himself care but we’ll get to that later) while ON THE OTHER HAND scar cares so much but he has nowhere to put it bc he knows(thinks) g doesn’t feel the same (ship or no ship i don’t care i’m thinking less romantic but do what you want lmao)

Scar: On some level, I think I always understood

That a ship could never really love an anchor

So, I did the only thing that I could

And severed the rope to set you sailing from my harbor

OKAY HEAR ME OUT going along with scars last bit he knows g doesn’t feel the same and doesn’t wanna hold him back from doing what he wants so even if he knows g is “cheating” on him he doesn’t retaliate as much because he wants hime to be happy (listen ik this is fanfic-y but i’m talking about minecraft youtubers lemme have fun)

Scar: There are times when I still wonder about you

You are someone I have loved, but never known

Grian: And you'll never see the reasons I had

For keeping my claws away when they were close enough to hurt you

AND HERE WE HAVE THE MOMENT because scar has already known this he cares about g but g keeps him at arms length to avoid getting attached to stop himself from getting hurt because HE DOES CARE but he knows how these games work and he’s not letting himself care

Grian: I am selfish, I am broken, I am cruel

I am all the things they might have said to you

scar is seen outwardly as the more villainous of the two (at least by the other players, i mean deserved he is the Arson Boy but still) but g thinks of himself instead because he is treating scar worse to stop himself like he will talk badly of scar to make himself feel better because he doesn’t want to care but-

Grian: Do you ever think of me and my two hands?

And wonder why they never soothed your fevers?

And wonder why they never tied your shoes?

And wonder why they never held you gently?

And wonder why they never had the chance to lose you?

- BUT HE DOES CARE and he’s trying to stop it from growing because he knows how this will go he knows especially in this situation one of them will kill the other and he doesn’t want it to hurt if(when) he’s the one to do it (may i say AGAIN we all remember 3rd life) and just AAKSGJSHDJDBGSKSHJSNSHSJSV

okay this ended up more story/fanfic like than i originally planned but once I started typing i couldn’t stop i just have So Many Thoughts about them and half of them probably make no sense at all

also in the process of finding the lyrics for this i read the lyrics for the moon will sing and figured out that that one actually also applied really well to dl desert duo so i may make another post like this for that if i find motivation

hey if you read this whole thing you are amazing i have no clue if any of it makes sense but i’m tossing it into the void anyways

#this took me like. an hour what #the encanto hyperfixation pauses only for desert duo #life series #double life #desert duo #grian #goodtimeswithscar #the crane wives #never love an anchor #my ramblings

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alicedash2 · 11 months ago

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Hi alicedash thank you for tryning your best to do my request I really love it.But i would like to request somthing more but with a bit more detil I hope you don't mind with the same y/n know sounds cringe but just hear me out lets say that the red hair pirates just recruited a cute female crew member thats pretty short(like 169cm) and weak. She goes shopping alone in town ,the town the red hair pirates staying at .But than she gets attack by some thiefs that try takeing her money but when she refuse to give them they beat her and leave her with huge red bruises on the arms/legs and on the forehead that start to bleed pretty bad ...she gets still in pain and robbed....walks to the local clinic.Stay in a room to heal. Meanwhile back at ship where the guys are starting to worry about their little pumkpin desides to go searching for her .They go around asking everyone at different food stalls if they seen her keep mind that shanks and his crew are wereing their causal outfit and weapons on and super tall guys so people get scread. They finally get a to a man that saw her.he gives the directions to the clinic. Shanks and his crew get to the reception and ask for their little pumpkin is bit the receptionist tells that she can't tell where their pumpkin is at because if she has not clarifies that visitors are allowed than she can't tell them.Also because she thinks they look suspicious because there pirates and also because they have weapons

How do you think the guys will react to this fact?

Have a lovely day!

Here we go!

Shanks x Reader

(Not reviewed, may contain several errors)

What a horrible day it was! YN had just joined the Redheads, she was a bit small and fragile, but that didn't stop her from joining the crew.

However, trouble struck when she decided to wander alone in the city on the recently arrived island. Everything seemed perfect until YN made the mistake of going alone. While shopping, a group of thieves spotted her and decided to attack. YN fought back, but she was beaten by the thieves who only fled when civilians intervened. Fortunately, YN didn't lose all her belongings, but she did suffer some broken bones. She headed to the nearest hospital, got prompt treatment, and hours later, Shanks realized her prolonged absence.

The search began as Shanks and his crew questioned frightened civilians. Despite Shanks being famous and intimidating, they managed to gather details from a man who witnessed the assault. However, when Shanks tried to visit YN in the hospital, he faced resistance from the receptionist, suspecting him as the infamous red-haired pirate.

- Sorry, sir, at the moment we do not accept visitors, it is past time, I ask you to leave - said the receptionist

- please let me see her! - Shanks implied

-Get out, by the way, you look suspicious! Aren't you the red-haired pirate?! You have weapons!- the receptionist said

-I-I just need to see her and I'll go away!- Shanks said

w-we can't hand over a civilian to a pirate!- The receptionist said, scared

Frustrated and anxious, Shanks decided to invade the hospital. Despite causing chaos, he finally found YN, lying in bed.

- "Are you okay?!"

Shanks asked as he approached her. She looked at him and nodded, showing her casted arm. Shanks picked her up, threw her over his shoulder, and jumped through the window.

- "We'll take care of you, you nearly gave me a heart attack!" Shanks said, laughing.

- "Looks like we'll have to train you. Damn, I shouldn't have let you wander alone!"

Shanks added, placing YN on the ground. Shortly after, the crew found Shanks and YN. Some members scolded YN, not too harshly, just to caution her. YN also learned that the same thieves who attacked her were brutally dealt with by Shanks and his crew, who returned some of her belongings.

#one piece #one piece x reader #akagami no shanks #shanks x reader #shanks #shanks x y/n

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infiniteetcetera · 4 months ago

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ACOTAR COUPLES X TAYLOR SWIFT SONGS

Bc I feel like there is much overlap in these fan bases and bc I can🤧 I tried to include most ships to be inclusive but I fear the ones I don’t like suffered (Nessians beware) ANYWAY:

Feyre X Rhysand

✨High Infidelity

[🎶Do I really have to chart the constellations in his eyes? Do I really have to tell you how he brought me back to life🎶]

✨You Are In Love

[🎶One night he wakes, strange look on his face. Pauses then says, “you’re my best friend,” and you knew what it was, he is in love.”🎶]

✨Invisible String (no one is surprised)

[🎶Time curious time cutting me open then healing me fine. Were there clues I didn’t see? And isn’t it just so pretty to think all along there was some invisible string tying you to me🎶]

✨The Tortured Poets Department (a song about such a pretentious man can’t not be dedicated to Rhys)

[🎶Sometimes I wonder if you’re gonna screw this up with me, but you told Lucy you’d kill yourself if I ever leave, and I had said that to Jack about you so I felt seen. Everyone who knows us knows why it’s meant to be, because we’re crazy🎶]

Feyre X Tamlin

✨Loml (goes both ways tbh)

[🎶Talking rings and talking cradles, I wish I could unrecall how we almost had it all. Dancing phantoms on the terrace are they second hand embarrassed that I can’t get out of bed cause something counterfeits dead🎶]

✨You’re Losing Me

[🎶And I wouldn’t marry me either, a pathological people pleaser who only wanted you to see her, and i’m fading thinking “Do something baby, say something”🎶]

✨Getaway Car

[🎶We were flying but we’d never get far. Don’t pretend it’s such a mystery think about the place where you first met me🎶]

✨Exile

[🎶We always walked a very thin line. You didn’t even hear me out. You never gave a warning sign (I gave so many signs)🎶]

Nesta X Cassian

✨So it goes…

[🎶Cut me to pieces, gold cage hostage to my feelings. Back against the wall, tripping when you’re gone. Cause we break down a little but when you get me alone it’s so simple. 🎶]

✨Mr. Perfectly Fine

[🎶Mr. Every single day until the end I will be by your side, but that was when I got to know Mr. change of heart. Mr. leaves me all alone, I fall apart. It takes everything in me just to get up each day but it’s wonderful to see that you’re okay🎶]

✨Say Don’t Go

[🎶Whyd you have to make me want you? Why’d you have to give me nothing back? Why’d you have to make me love you? I said “I love you” you say nothing back 👀👀👀 🎶]

✨So Long, London

[🎶 you say I abandoned the ship, but I was going down with it, my white knuckled dying grip holding tight to your quiet resentment. and my friends said it isn’t right to be scared every day of a love affair. Every breath feels like the rarest air when you’re not sure if he wants to be there🎶]

Elain X Lucien

✨Cowboy Like Me

[🎶Hustling for the good life, never thought I’d meet you here, and it could be love. We could be the way forward and I know I’ll pay for it🎶]

✨The Lakes

[🎶Take me to the lakes where all the poets went to die, I don’t belong and my beloved neither do you. Those Windermere peaks look like the perfect place to cry. I’m setting off but not without my muse, not without you🎶]

✨Afterglow

[🎶I lived like an island, punished you with silence. Went off like sirens just crying. Why’d I have to break what I loved so much? It’s on your face, don’t walk away🎶]

✨ The Very First Night

[🎶I never go alone, and I don’t seem broken hearted, and my friends all say they know everything i’m going through. I drive down different roads, but they all lead back to you🎶]

Elain X Azriel

✨Guilty as Sin? (obviously, you’re not slick Sarah)

[🎶Crashing into him tonight, he’s a paradox. I’m seeing visions, am I bad? or mad? or wise? What if he’s written “mine” on my upper thigh only in my mind. One slip and falling back into the hedge maze. Oh what a way to die🎶]

✨Ivy

[🎶My pain fits in the palm of your freezing hand, taking mine but it’s been promised to another. Oh, I can’t stop you putting roots in my dream land. My house of stone, your ivy grows, now i’m covered in you🎶]

✨Cardigan

[🎶You drew stars around my scars but now i’m bleeding. Cause I knew you, stepping on the last train marked me like a bloodstain. I knew you, tried to change the ending Peter losing Wendy🎶]

✨Wildest Dreams

[🎶I said “no one has to know what we do” his hands are in my hair, his clothes are in my room. And his voice is a familiar sound. Nothing lasts forever, but this is getting good now. He’s so tall and handsome as hell. He’s so bad but he does it so well . and when we’ve had our very last kiss, my last request it is…🎶]

Gwyn X Azriel

✨So High School (i FEEL this one)

[🎶 Cheeks pink in the twinkling light, tell me about the first time you saw me. I’ll drink what you think and i’m high from smoking your jokes all damn night. The brink of a wrinkle in time, bittersweet sixteen suddenly🎶]

✨ Delicate

[🎶Sometimes when I look into your eyes, I pretend you’re mine all the damn time. Is it cool that I said all that? Is it chill that you’re in my head? Cause I know that it’s delicate🎶]

✨Sweet Nothing

[🎶They say the end is coming. Everyone is up to something. I found myself running home to your sweet nothing. Outside they’re push and shoving, you’re in the kitchen humming. All that you’ve ever wanted from me was nothing🎶]

✨All of the Girls you’ve Loved Before

[🎶Your mother brought you up loyal and kind. Teenage love taught you there’s good in goodbye. Every woman that you knew brought you here, I want to teach you how forever feels🎶]

Nesta X Eris

✨The 1 (like, please😔)

[🎶If my wishes came true, it would have been you. In my defense I have none for never leaving well enough alone. But it would have been fun if you would have been the one🎶]

✨Peace

[🎶I never had the courage of my convictions as long as danger is near. And it’s just around the corner darling, cause it lives in me. No, I could never give you peace. But i’m a fire, and i’ll keep your brittle heart warm, if your cascade ocean wave blues come🎶]

✨Dancing with Our Hands Tied

[🎶You said there was nothing in the world that could stop us, I had a bad feeling. I knew there was no one in the world who could take it, I had a bad feeling. But we were dancing, dancing with our hands tied. Dancing like it was the first time🎶]

✨Enchanted

[🎶Your eyes whispered have we met. Across the room your silhouette starts to make its way to me. The playful conversation starts, counter all your quick remarks like passing notes in secrecy, and it was enchanting to meet you🎶]

Nesta X Azriel (let me have this🙄)

✨Slut!

[🎶Everyone wants him that was my crime, the wrong place at the right time, and I break down and he’s pulling me in. In a world of boys he’s a gentleman🎶]

✨Gorgeous

[🎶You should think about the consequence of your magnetic field being a little too strong. And I got a boyfriend, he’s older than us. He’s in the club doing I don’t know what. You’re so cool, it makes me hate you so much🎶]

✨Seven

[🎶Ive been meaning to tell you, I think your house is haunted. Your dad is always mad and that must be why. I think you should come live with me and we can be pirates, then you won’t have to cry🎶]

✨Begin Again

[🎶You pull my chair out and help me in. You don’t know how nice that is, but I do. And you throw your head back laughing like a little kid. I think it’s strange you think i’m funny cause he never did🎶]

Kallias and Viviane (i love them🤧)

✨Mary’s Song

[🎶I was seven and you were nine. I looked at you like the stars that shines in the sky, the pretty lights. And our daddies used to joke about the two of us, growing up and falling in love. and our mamas smiled and rolled their eyes🎶]

✨Timeless

[🎶And somehow I know that you and I would have found each other, in another life you still would have turned my head. Even if we’d met on a crowded street in 1944 and you were headed off to fight in the war, you still would have been mine we would have been timeless🎶]

✨The Alchemy

[🎶Cheers chanting cause they said there was no chance trying to be the greatest in the league. where’s the trophy? He just comes running over to me🎶]

✨Lover

[🎶Theres a dazzling haze a mysterious way about you dear. Have I know you twenty seconds or twenty years? Can I go where you go? Can we always be this close? Forever and ever🎶]

#a court of thorns and roses #acotar #taylor swift #feysand #elucien #elriel #gwynriel #anti nessian #have to be real with that one #kallias x viviane #nezriel #neris #acotar ships #this is just for fun y’all #but we do know SJM is a swiftie soooo

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uglypastels · 1 year ago

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Not Wholly Evil |IX| pirate!Eddie au [SFW]

this is the "censored" version of Chapter 9. If you wish to read the explicit version (18+ ONLY. Minors DO NOT interact) please check out:

Chapter 9 (not safe for work version)

Series Masterlist

word count: 11.4k

Chapter 9: Paragon

― Sabrina Jeffries, Dance of Seduction

‘I wanted to,’ you admitted. You still wanted to. Your thoughts had screamed through the night for an escape. Yet, something tied you down to this ship and made you return.

The candle's light fell upon him at angles that brought something new out in him or maybe revealed what had always been there. The signs of the wear and tear of a life at sea. He wasn’t hiding it any more, letting all that pain be visible, and he looked beautiful. You held back from reaching out and tracing the thin scar against his brow or the flawed line of his nose that must have been broken once. The longer you looked at him, the more you realised that you could look at him in this way forever.

And that scared you.

The ship creaked as the tide softly bounced off it. For the rest, it was uncharacteristically quiet on board.

‘Why did you? Leave the tavern, I mean.’ With your heart pounding in your throat, tightening your breath, you stepped toward him.

‘I noticed you were gone. Then I heard you had gone to the harbour with some man and I thought…. I grew worried.’

‘Why?’ You could not imagine him caring for you to go out, away from his crew and his festivities, to look for you.

‘Realised what?’ Considering your proximity and seclusion, you hadn’t meant to whisper, but it felt right.

‘That I was scared’ His breath was shaky as his eyes took all of you in. ‘Of loosing you.’

‘Are you still?’ He matched your hushed tone with his response. ‘Scared, I mean?’ The question was simple on its surface, but only the facade for an obliterating iceberg was the truth.

You pulled away, but your lips still shared the same breath. When you opened your eyes, you were met with his and how they were shaking with uncertainty as he took all of you in.

‘Is there something you’re still afraid of?’ you asked.

He had let his eyes fall to the ground. You reclaimed the one step he had made you take, closing the gap between you once more and letting your hand guide him to look up at you.

‘Answer me, captain.’ You kept your voice as steady as possible, regaining the confidence you had built up since you got onto the ship. ‘Was that a mistake?’

Hearing this did not put your mind at rest as you tried to grab his hand and inspect the damage more deeply, but he just pulled it away from you, instead taking your fingers in his and kissing your knuckles.

‘Don’t worry, my darling,’ he smiled while kissing your hand, ‘Can barely feel it.’

He had just made direct contact with fire; you doubted it would be alright, but then again, you had seen all the scars on his body. This would just be another small blister among the list of many. But you blinked the thought away. Tried your best not to think about the pain he had endured. You doubted he wanted you to feel pity for him and what had once happened to him.

The look in his eyes was adamant. He needed you to let it go, so all you could do was sigh.

‘You’ve gone mad.’

And soon, you managed to turn all these thoughts off and fall asleep. Except then, they came back even stronger and in the form of dreams. You found yourself back on the Red Tail. The hawk flapped its wings on the flag in the wind and every man’s uniform. The sun shone brightly in its last few minutes before hiding behind the horizon. It was a strange illusion as you stared down at the ship and the two figures that stood out looking at the sparkling sea. You watched yourself talking to Admiral Carver.

‘I would have imagined you to have grown tired of the water by now,’ he laughed.

‘Perhaps you’re right,’ he had his arms behind his back, ‘but everything is more bearable when there is something back home to look forward to.’

‘Yes, of course,’ He took a step closer to you, ‘but I will miss these moments.’

‘Taking our last chance before it’s too late.’ He leaned in again, and you stepped back.

‘What about your–’

‘So you’ll kiss Munson, but not me?’

‘Don’t trust him.’

‘What?’ You had tears in your eyes, and your wrist burned from his touch. There was another flash of light. Eddie stood before you again, just as you knew him.

‘Do not trust him.’

‘Sorry,’ his apology was muffled.

‘I was just on my way out,’ you muttered in the same awkward tone and walked past him.

‘Later,’ you pleaded. This was not the right time. You could tell that it would not end well if you stayed there.

And it was coming.

‘It probably won’t take much longer, don’t worry.’ Robin said, her shoulder slumping as she untied another knot to remake it.

‘I’m not worried,’ you admitted.

But it still did not feel right. Like a kink in your neck that you were trying to stretch out until it disappeared.

‘Can I ask you something?’ you said cautiously.

Robin glanced up from her rope. ‘You always scare me when you say that.’

‘I hadn’t noticed I did it often.’

‘You’re quite inquisitive. It’s commendable, but dangerous.’

‘Should I be scared?’ You blinked.

‘Not here, but in other parts of the world they’re not too keen on it, so just beware.’ She had tied a knot she couldn’t loosen anymore. ‘But what was your question?’

‘So, I didn’t need much convincing from the captain when he said that those— that those were bad men.’

‘He told you that my crew were bad men?’

You finished your conversation with Robin slowly, without any urgency to actually put it to an end. It must have been confusing to Robin, who saw how you tried to tie your sentences up to walk away, just to disentangle them just as she had been doing with her rope and keep pulling it back. Ultimately, she stopped it all and excused herself from the argument she needed back on her lookout post. She walked away, giving you this look that made it clear that she knew what you were planning to do and how apprehensive you were to do it. And whatever for? You had fought, punched, slapped and kissed Eddie in the past days without hesitation; why could you not just talk to him now?

‘I was just on my way out.’ He scratched his beard casually, but his eyes said enough about how similarly he felt about your sudden appearance.

‘I hoped we could talk,’ you blurted out, and Eddie blinked.

‘I’m sorry, ‘ you said breathlessly, ‘for everything I’ve done in the past few days.’

‘You have done nothing to apologise for.’ He sighed.

‘Why?’ was the only thing he said in response.

‘I am.’ You nodded your head lightly. ‘And I wish I could explain why. To you and to myself, but I simply do not know.’

‘Before I answer, I need to know your business with the admiral.’

‘What do you remember from that day?’ He looked at you, head cocked to the side as he studied your face. He saw you blink slowly, trying to understand what he was implying.

‘Whose canons?’ He stared at you blankly, and you mirrored him perfectly.

‘What?’

‘What canons did you hear go off? Who shot first?’ He did not say anything else, just stood still as you tried to reply with confidence that you lost as soon as you gave your answer some thought.

Everything had happened so quickly, and it was so loud. All you had tried was to block it out. But you heard the bangs. They came from all sides, but the first one... the first one was the closest.

Eddie must have seen the recognition on your face. 'I know that those people were your friends. And I am sorry that that is how things-'

'But you said I was not meant to be on board. You knew what ship it was.' You cut him off at the memory. 'You would have attacked either way, wouldn't you?'

‘It is not that simple.’ He shook his head.

‘Isn’t it?’

‘No, and I wish I could explain, but I fear that whatever I tell you will only make you see the worst in me and them.'

'You could at least try.' You reached for his hand, and a bit of you leapt in relief when you saw he did not pull away. 'I want to understand, Eddie. You do not know how horrible it is to live in this realm of uncertainty and oblivion.’

‘Would you rather live with the horrors of the truth?’ He asked genuinely, with the pain that exactly this truth had caused him in his eyes.

‘Is that not a choice I deserve to make by myself?’ You once again found yourself up against him. Funny how it always came back to this and how you would not have wanted it any other way.

‘No,’ and with that, you answered both. Whatever tugged at you from the inside to feel such anxiety had nothing to do with Eddie.

Eddie leaned in, and you anticipated a kiss that never came as he spoke against the corner of your mouth, sending shivers down your spine. ‘I need you to say it, darling.’

Like a reward, Eddie kissed your cheek for your reply. ‘Really? The princess had thought of me, a filthy pirate?’

‘I’m not a princess.’ You rolled your eyes playfully.

‘Out of all the things to dispute, you argue my words of affection?’ He chuckled, and you could feel the vibrations coming from deep within his chest.

‘There was nothing else to correct.’ You wanted to laugh but instead gasped at the sensation of a little pinch on your side. While still occupied with leaving kisses on your face, Eddie pinched your thigh. You could feel the smile forming on his lips as he kissed your jaw. When he pulled away, you saw the mischievous glint in his eyes that once used to bring out fear of the worst in you.

‘Glad to know you haven’t changed too much, darling.’ There was a moment in which both of you took everything of the other in. You tried to soak in all his features from this small distance, for some reason feeling the need to remember them all. Meanwhile, he read your face for any signs of reluctance, which he found none of, giving him the sign to finally let your lips meet his again.

The kiss grew in strength by the fleeting second. It was messy and heated. The pent-up tension that had been sitting between you was finally finding its release. You held onto him tightly, one hand on his shoulder as the other rooted itself in his dark locks—which made you soon realise that the tiniest of motions of you caused a reaction in him as well, in the form of a low hiss as you pulled the hairs on the back of his neck. It had been an accident, as you tried to keep yourself up when the pleasure he brought you made you feel light as a feather.

With your urge to keep your bodies close, you quickly caught on Eddie walking backwards. You followed him mindlessly until he found his throne seat and pulled you along with him, right on top of his lap, making you lightly yelp from the suddenness of the drop.

‘Not scared of me yet, are you, princess?’ He smiled, brushing some hair out of your face.

‘No,’ your voice sounded like a hushed, airy whisper. You looked into his eyes. The warmth of them had burned up into a dark and hungry desire. Eddie smiled before kissing you again.

‘Was this how you expected it to be,’ he murmured against your ear, ‘when you thought about us.’

‘Anything you’d still like to change,’ he kissed the soft spot of skin behind your ear that made you shiver.

‘No,’ you gasped as you repeated yourself. He had run your mind through a mill; words were hard to come by. All you could muster out was the one weak word and hum as you let your hand brush through his hair, but it didn’t make that one word any less true. Maybe on another day, you would have wished to change everything that had happened; before this moment, you would have changed every single interaction you had with the captain, but knowing it led to this moment, you would not want it any other way.

You let him take over all your senses, closing your eyes and breathing him—the rum, tobacco and sea air—in, the taste and touch of his lips and his rough hands. There was nothing, not anything or anyone, else to think about because why would you when this felt so good? Reality went lost on you until you felt his fingers dig into your side, a pain rushing through you.

Both of you froze.

‘What’s wrong?’ Eddie immediately looked to where he had held you, pulling your shirt up to reveal the scar. The rough skin was a stark contrast to the rest of you. He met your eyes again. ‘Does it still hurt?’

‘I’ve done a lot in my life that I will forever regret,’ he kissed your shoulder as his thumb traced over the scarred line, ‘but this will probably haunt me the longest.’ His words and touch, combined with how you sat in his lap, got you lost for words. Because, of course, you had hoped that this was his sentiment; you understood and appreciated his words, but what else was there to say? The only thing you could think of replying, which felt silly to do, seeing your current position, was ask for some clarification.

‘What happened? I would have thought you had more control over your sword than that.’ You aired the conversation with a bit of laughter, but it only spurred him on.

‘I had thought so too,’ he kissed you sloppily, ‘I had hoped so,’ hungrily, ‘but I lost it all when I saw you with him.’

‘Who?’ you asked. Maybe under different circumstances, you could have thought more clearly to realise what he was speaking of, but that did not seem possible.

Still, the mention of the crew member had surprised you. ‘Why– why would you—’

‘For what it’s worth,’ you tugged at the words to come out cohesively, ‘I never thought of him as—’

‘I think—’ you smiled, considering everything that just happened, ‘I think you have managed to pay back any of your wrongdoings.’

‘Oh, darling, I haven’t even started to repay my debts to you.’ And so, Eddie kissed your neck, peppering you with the small kisses and nips, making you giggle and pull him closer into your arms. He kept going until the two of you simply fell into a comfortable silence. He held you tightly in his arms as you let your head fall on his shoulder. Only the sound of the rushing waves and your sweet breaths filled the room.

You could not tell if Eddie had these troubles, you could not tell, for he went through his following days much like before. The only difference was that his free minutes were now occupied with you.

‘Shh,’ you held him tightly, ‘it’s okay.’

Neither of you asked about the dreams, knowing you could do nothing about them. You could just help the other through it. And then, each time, the dreams that followed were much sweeter.

Except it very much was not. And you realised it exactly through what you thought would be your escape.

You walked over to him, and he looked in your direction as soon as he heard your footsteps. The smile in his eyes was genuine but weak. As soon as you were close enough, he pulled you into an embrace, twirling you around so your back would hit his chest and you could look out at the sea. With how the sunrays sparkled across the waves, it all felt like a dream, too good to be true, but you did not know yet that the dream was at the end of its tether.

‘I really am sorry,’ he mumbled, having his face already nuzzled in the crook of your neck, kissing the spot where it met your shoulder.

‘What for?’ Apologies had become a frequent appearance in his vocabulary, showing up in almost every conversation, if not sentence.

‘I’m just as guilty.’ You had been stubborn, aggressive, and just as blind to your feelings.

‘A highly doubtful statement.’ He laughed, and his breath tickled the hairs on your neck.

‘I don’t think so.’ You shrugged in his hold.

‘Still just as stubborn, aren’t you, princess.’ He squeezed you tighter.

‘I…don’t understand.’ You tried to see the meaning behind his words in his eyes, but there was nothing, and it only got harder to figure out when he held his forehead against yours, keeping you close. You still tried to make sense of what he said when you saw it. There, in the far back corner of your eye. So far, it could have been a play of light, yet it was more real than anything. So undeniably real it crushed everything around you without question.

You knew this day was coming, you had been waiting for it, and yet, now that it was right in front of you, you wished to be as far from it as possible.

In what must have been shock, you took a couple of steps back just to collide with something—someone. You turned around to see Eddie and his soft but sad smile.

‘Welcome home,’ he announced.

Home, sweet home.

‘So, what do we do?’ This is not how someone who is to be returning to their family after months spent with criminals was meant to respond. Everything about this was so wrong.

Just as you finished putting it on, the door opened, and Eddie walked in.

‘You’ve never done this before, have you?’ you asked as you made your way up to the chair across from him.

‘Try not to sound too disappointed over my lack of experience in selling beautiful maidens back to their prosperous fathers.’

Eddie stared at you blankly as you began writing.

Dear father,

Dear Father,

I know it has been a long time since you last heard from me. The Red Tail is no more; I was the only survivor, to my knowledge, saved by a crew of rogue sailors. They have kept me locked away but are willing to free me for the price of 10.000 pounds. Please meet me at noon at the Star Port for the exchange.

Love,

Your daughter,

—

‘Who would have thought, my darling extorting her own father.’

There was a knock on the door, which Eddie welcomed, and Harrington walked in.

‘I would prefer if you did not spend our last moments together walking holes into my carpet.’

‘You do not have a carpet,’ you quipped.

‘Do you think—’

‘Well, then it had been an honour being your captive, captain.’ You said with a deep breath to keep your composure up.

‘Oh, don’t look so sad just yet, princess, the real fun is only about to begin.’ At this statement, you blinked slowly. ‘Or did you think you were done aiding me?’

‘What else do you need me to do?’

‘Governor. I see we meet again.’

‘Munson. What are you doing here?’

‘You got the gold, Munson, now let her go!’ There were still several feet between the two sides of the deal. Eddie looked around theatrically.

‘Is she well? Unharmed?’

You nodded, but Eddie nudged you with the hilt of his knife, his lips against your ear, ‘C’mon, darling, the man’s asked you a question.’

It was the panic when you saw the rest of the people in the harbour. All of their eyes on you. On him. None of them were simple bystanders or civilians.

Your dream had been crumbling into ruin all these days, but this was the final blow. All of it came down, all at once, and it started with your father’s call.

Chapter 10

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