#Eh that's all for now I'm sleeby

[izzy-b-hands]

Rizzy with past Blackhands mentioned and the lead into resumed Blackhands (ongoing with Blackbonnet and Rizzy of course.)

Mostly a convo between Ed and Izzy, with a sleeby Roach napping for part of it lol.

---

"Hm. No."

Ed balks. "No?"

Izzy shrugs. "No. I mean, you really expect me to get up right now?"

On his lap lays Roach's head, snuggled into his stomach.

"He can breathe, right?" Ed peers closer to Izzy.

"He can. I've been checking."

"He's not sick?"

Izzy stares. "He spent all night making the pastries Bonnet wanted. I think he could make choux in his sleep now, if he felt the urge."

Ed frowns. He'd asked Stede to at least reduce the numbers requested. Yes, it was for the beginning of a fuckery planned for later in the day, but that didn't mean Roach needed to kill himself over it.

"He could have asked for h-"

"He did," Izzy interrupts. "And I helped."

"Is that where you were? We really could have used y-"

Ed pauses. It isn't a glare exactly from Izzy, but it's definitely a bittersweet look.

"Sorry. It was fine, anyway. Olu was available to help get Stede out of the passageway-"

"What."

Ed winces. "Yeah, there was a rat in the wall of the passage so we went in to free it, right?"

One of Izzy's hands takes a hold of Roach's, when those long fingers twitch and he lets out what sounds like a whimper.

He shouldn't be jealous. They had what they had. Roach and Izzy are happy together.

But he knows how it feels to have those fingers threaded with his, and there's an ache in his hands reminding them they're empty even though Izzy is right here.

He and Stede have talked about it. Stede has said, if Izzy wanted to resume anything from their past, as long as he's told he doesn't mind. He'd smiled and hugged Ed and reminded him that things were different now. Better, for all of them. Even Izzy. No reason to avoid asking about it, unless of course Ed didn't want it.

He wants it. So badly.

"How did that lead to Bonnet getting stuck there though?" Izzy asks.

"Well," Ed continues, ignoring the heat of Izzy's thigh against his as he sits beside him on his free side of the table's bench seating. "We thought it was a matter of chasing it out at first. Didn't know the thing was caught in the actual wall in between. So naturally-"

He snorts. It wasn't funny at the moment, but it is now. "Stede asked for help hacking into the wall to free it. And we have an axe-"

Izzy is shaking, laughing as silently as he can.

"I know, but it looked like it would work! And we thought it was just the one rat, but actually-"

"Did the rats trap him in?"

Ed nods. "They aren't mean at all, but he didn't want to accidentally step on them. We had Olu help me crush a bunch of old hardtack with a hammer, because we needed a lot to trail it all the way out to the deck so they'd leave and let him go."

Izzy nods, lip twitching.

"I know. It's okay. Even Stede laughed once he was free!"

"I just...he got held hostage by rats," Izzy whispers as he breaks into giggles. "What did you do with the rats once they got to the deck?"

Ed blinks. "Ah. I realize now we didn't."

"Didn't what?"

"Do anything with them. I don't actually know where they went. Olu and I went back into the passageway to make sure he wasn't actually stuck on anything else in the wall there..."

"I'm sorry I wasn't there to help."

Ed smiles. "Eh. We managed. Maybe I need to try and get used to doing that now and again. In case you get busy with Roach in here again."

Izzy raises a brow.

"Oh! Oh, I meant-" Ed can feel himself blush. "Like. Cooking, not like...I mean no shame if you do, in here, so long as you clean up after."

He gives Izzy a minute. It's been oddly hard, letting themselves fall back into the rhythms and beats of years past, even if those were more comfortable than what they were coming back from.

"I missed this."

That's more than he expects.

"I-" Ed hesitates. "I did too."

Gently, as if it might break them both, he rests his head on Izzy's shoulder.

"And I'm going to be held hostage here by you two, aren't I?"

He can't hold back a yawn. "Yeah. Sorry, Iz. Maybe we should move first like...those bags of flour and beans on the floor might be comfortable."

"They are," Izzy says. "Roach and I have found that out. As have Lucius and Pete. And Frenchie and Wee John."

His heart beats out of his chest. "So. I'll help move Roach, and we could nap until the fuckery is set to start?"

"I think it'll be good for us. Better for my back than this, if I'm honest."

"Thank you for saying something," Roach murmurs. "He'd never admit his back is hurting otherwise."

"Hey," Izzy smiles. "How long have you been awake and listening?"

"Half awake. Dunno. My side hurts."

"That's because we're still on the bench. Beans instead, maybe?"

Roach yawns and nods against Izzy.

"You going to get up for that?"

"Sleeping," Roach mumbles.

"Really? Sounds like you're awake," Izzy chuckles.

He's practically fucking glowing. He's never looked at anyone like that aside from Ed.

It hits Ed that he never realised how special that was. How that was saved for only him, for the longest time.

He'd gotten so used to it, he'd forgotten that completely, and he's infuriated with himself for it.

Roach's eyes flutter open. "Mhm. You're right. But I'm only awake long enough to move over there, and then I'm sleeping until I have to get in costume."

The sacks of beans and flour aren't actually terrible on the back, and there's enough of them tossed in the corner of the galley to let both of them snuggle up with Izzy in the middle.

"You gonna kiss him or what?" Roach yawns as he cuddles into Izzy's right side.

Ed sits up enough to make eye contact with Izzy.

It's like a punch to the gut. There it is, again. That glowing look, for him this time.

"I can share," Roach smiles, eyes closed as he kisses Izzy's cheek. "He shares me with Frenchie now and again too."

He tries to be gentle, but he wants so badly to kiss Izzy as hard as possible, as if the force might somehow make up for the last few years.

"Sorry," Ed gasps as he breaks the kiss. "I should have waited-"

"Get yourself back down here so I can kiss you back."

He hasn't seen Izzy blush so red in years. It's really, really fucking cute.

"We're gonna be tired later," Roach murmurs as they settle in together, covering an utterly embarrassed, but by his giggles clearly happy, Izzy in kisses.

"I can handle a fuckery tired," Ed says. "Besides, I'm not the one who baked all through the night."

"Hm. They're so worth the effort. Wait till you try them," Roach sighs happily. "From the non-poisoned pan though. We woke Lucius up and made him label them."

"You can write though," Ed says. "I've watched you."

"Yeah, but it was funnier to make him do it. He said the mashed potatoes last week weren't mashed enough, so he deserved it."

"They were really good!" Ed scoffs. "I'm surprised at him for that."

"Shhhh," Izzy's hands gently drape over their eyes. "Nap time."

"Old man is tired," Roach teases.

"I know, he's laying on my other side."

Ed nudges Izzy's neck with his nose. "Fuck you."

"Later. I just said it was nap time."

He shares a moment of eye contact with Roach, both of them giggling.

There's really no arguing with that.

#text post #long post