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dragon-kazansky · 7 months

Text

Spirit of the sea

Izzy Hands x reader (GN)

You were a member of Blackbeard's crew long ago. Then you became a ghost story. Izzy Hands only sees you in his dreams these days, until he sees you for real when investigating Stede Bonnet. This sets him on a rollercoaster of emotions between you and what his captain is doing.

{Masterlist}

{Previous Chapter} - {Next Chapter}

Warnings: Slight angst. Izzy's feelings are hurt, but he won't admit it unless you back him into a corner. He's mellowing out with you though.

Chapter Four - Just like before

♡♡♡

A lighthouse. With the use of items on the ship, and the participation of the crew, Stede Bonnet and Edward Teach turned the ship into a lighthouse. The Spanish turned around, believing they got lost in the fog.

The Revenge managed to escape.

You had to admit that was insanely clever of your captain.

Later that night, while the crew slept, you sat on the steps and looked up at the dark sky. Everyone was pretty much asleep, except for the captains you could hear chatting up in the nest.

The only person you couldn't see was Izzy.

You didn't want to disturb the sleeping crew by getting up to search for your old friend. You just hoped he was okay. Izzy wasn't one for showing how he felt about things, unless that feeling was anger or annoyance.

Come morning you are woken up strange sounds. You open your eyes and look around to find Izzy loading up a dingy with stuff. You sit up in confusion. He hasn't noticed you, too busy doing what he's doing.

"Izzy?" You call his name softly.

He doesn't stop.

You stand up and walk over to him, frowning. "Izzy..."

"I said some things I regret last night."

"Oh?" You come to stand beside him.

"Some shit to Blackbeard... I didn't mean any of it."

You glance up at the captains. Ed is looking down at you with a nod. You take a deep breath and turn back to Izzy.

"He knows you didn't mean them."

Izzy grabs at the rail of the ship.

"I bet he has a plan, you know. He always has a plan."

"Yeah..."

You sigh softly. "Izzy, can we talk?"

He inhales softly. "Guess so."

"I'm sorry you thought I was dead. I'll keep apologising if I have to. Whatever it takes to make it up to you. I never meant for that to happen. I got trapped onboard the ship that day. No one would have known because my dumbass decided to wander below deck on my own to see what I could find. It was stupid of me. Anyway, I jumped off deck the moment I could and I had every intention of coming back to you. I was too late."

Izzy clenched his fists.

"Izzy... It was never meant to be that way. I'm sorry, okay?"

"Whatever. Doesn't matter," he says. "You're here now."

You don't know if that's his way of saying he forgives you or what, but you'll take it. Izzy is complicated.

"Don't leave. Please."

You can hear his slight breathing as he thinks about it. His head then turns in your direction and you can see his eyes more clearly.

"He's still got it."

You smile. "Don't think it ever left. Our Blackbeard, eh?"

Izzy exhales a chuckle.

"Don't go, Izzy. I can't make it up to you if you leave..."

Izzy says nothing and you take that as your sign to leave him with his thoughts. Man needs time to think.

An hour later you realise the dingy is back on the boat and Izzy is still onboard.

You smile at the sight of him.

♡♡♡

Turns out there is a plan. Ed apparently had a talk with Izzy shortly after your talk with him. A ploy to kill off Blackbeard. Except, not really.

Stede is already wearing Blackbeard's clothes. Kill the man, say the great Blackbeard is dead, Ed gets to be Edward. Izzy would then proceed to be captain of his own crew.

It was definitely a plan.

In the meantime, Edward has told Stede he would show him what it meant to be a pirate. The first step was a raid. You laughed at the idea of taking Stede Bonnet onto a ship to loot.

Izzy had relaxed a little around you. Not enough for the crew of the Revenge to notice, bit enough for you to see. You look at him as Edward explains to Stede's crew the plan for the raid.

Izzy is looking at you. You fight back a smile. At least he's looking at you.

"Crew of Revenge, you are not to engage. You are simply here to observe how real pirates function in the real world." Izzy addresses the crew.

You hide your smile.

"Quick question, how violent do we expect this to get?" Stede asks.

Pretty violent was his answer.

It felt good to use your sword again. This was the life you were used to. This is how it always should be. You were to busy fighting to take an notice on if Izzy was watching you. After all, it was Izzy who taught you how to use a sword.

While the crew looted, you made your way over to Izzy's side.

"That was fun."

He sniffs, looking at the bodies on the deck. "Yeah, was a bit. Where's that pathetic excuse of a pirate gone?"

"Believe he's below deck looting. Ed went to find him."

Izzy nods his head and then looks at you. "You still got it."

You smile, not even pretending hearing that didn't make you happy. "Yeah. Can't ever forget everything you've taught me, Izzy."

He almost smiles.

"Hurry up and grab what you can."

"Aye, Mr Hands," you tease, leaving his side to go loot for yourself. Izzy follows you with his eyes, biting back another smile.

♡♡♡

"A party?" You ask, looking at Ed and Stede.

"Some posh gathering for rich folk. Frenchie found the invitation," Stede explains.

"And you want to go to it?" You look at your captain. Blackbeard shrugs. "He's gonna need a new outfit."

"Ah, leave that to me." Stede goes into his secret closet. You turn back to Ed.

"Is this part of the plan?" You ask.

"Yeah. Kinda. Just let me handle this, okay?"

"Yeah, course."

"So, you spoke to Izzy?" Ed asks, looking at you gently.

"Yeah. We spoke. He at least doesn't hate me any more."

"Ah, he never hated you."

"He did a little bit. Be honest, Ed." You say to him.

"He never hated you. Not really. It's just hard for him to be open."

You nod your head quietly. Stede returns with a purple suit in hand. You notice the ribbons on top of the pile. You took this as your sign to leave them to it.

♡♡♡

Up on deck you find Izzy lowering Lucius down the side of the ship. You raise an eyebrow in his direction.

"The fuck?"

Izzy glances up at you. "Got a little job for Spriggs. Caught him slacking."

"Barnacle duty? Oof." You peer down at where Lucius sits. "Shit job."

"Aye. Will teach him a bloody lesson." Izzy walks off. You send Lucius a sorry smile before following the brooding first mate.

"Anything you want me to do?"

"Whatever the fuck you like. I'm trying to get this crew onto shape," Izzy sighs.

"Will you at least look at me again?"

Izzy stops what he's doing and turns, looking at you. You smile at him. "That's better. Is our friendship healing?"

"Shut up."

You chuckle as he walks away.

♡♡♡

A little time passes when Izzy storms past you looking a little miffed. You watch him for a moment before following after him.

"Some thing happen?"

"That useless twat is gone," he huffs.

"Lucius?"

"Yes." Izzy hisses the word.

You follow him into the captain's cabin where you find Wee John watching Lucius sketch a naked Fang.

"What the fuck?"

"Not bad," you hum.

Izzy turns his head to look at you with narrowed eyes. You smile at him with a shrug.

"What?"

"Don't fucking look."

"I'm looking respectfully. Fang has nice form," you grin.

Fang smiles. "Aw, you're just saying that."

You turn back to him. "I mean every word, Fang."

Izzy sighs and rolls his eyes.

"Back to work, the lot of ya!"

♡♡♡

You follow Izzy once again up to the deck. He leans against the railing, his shoulders tense. He looks out to sea.

"Useless fucking bastards."

You come to stand beside him. "Cut them some slack. None of them have been a real pirate. They're used to their cosy little ship."

"Fuck the lot of them. How on the hell does this ship function when this lot can't even do their duties?"

You shrug lightly. "I don't know. Up until recently I was locked up in their brig."

Izzy lifts his head to look at you. "You were their prisoner."

"Yeah, it was dumb. All those years sailing with Blackbeard and I get caught by some pirate wannabe," you sigh.

"What happened to you? What have you been doing these past 6 years?" Izzy asks, facing you fully.

"Been on the move, moving from place to place. Stowed away a few times. Was hoping to come across you lot again, but I never found you. Looks like you found me though..."

Izzy is watching your face.

"I won't leave again. Not like that. I'm home again."

"Yeah..."

You exhale softly and look around the ship. "You been well?"

"Surviving."

"Good." You look back at him. "I missed that face of yours."

"This ugly mug?"

"Shut up. Not ugly."

He scoffs and turns back to the sea. "Let's hope Blackbeard kills Bonnet soon so we can go back to business."

"Just give him time."

A few moment of silence pass before Izzy looks back up at you. You look back at him softly, expecting him to say something, but he doesn't. He walks away.

♡♡♡

Night draws in. Izzy stands in front of Lucius giving him a list of chores to do to make up for slacking, twice. You sit on the steps listening, whittling away.

"You're gonna swab the deck. Twice. Then patch the main sail, oil and renwick cannons, then stack the munitions. And by the time you've done all that I'll have several more chores for you."

"And what if I don't?" Lucius asks. You eyes him carefully. "You're not my captain."

"I could spill your beans." Izzy threatens. "You've been a proper little seductress, haven't you? Black Pete, Fang. Who else is there?"

Lucius grins. "Hey, Pete?"

"Yeah, love?"

"I drew Fang naked."

"Haha! Nice. He's drawn most of us," Pete tells Izzy.

"See? We don't own each other. Dizzy Izzy." Lucius looks him in the eye. "Or is it... Izzy the Spewer?"

You look at Izzy, knowing about that nickname. You were the day Ed left Izzy in charge and the storm happened. Izzy had a rough time.

"Go now," Izzy whispers.

"Have you ever been sketched?" Lucius asks.

"Fuck off." Izzy storms off. You watch him go.

Lucius looks up at you with a smile. "You fond of Dizzy Izzy?" He asks you.

"It's just Izzy."

Black Pete and Lucius share a look. "That a yes then?"

"Don't you two have things to do?"

"Only each other," Lucius winks at Pete.

You get up from the stairs, but Lucius speaks before you her very far. "I think if he got laid he'd loosen up a little."

You glare at Lucius. "Excuse me?"

"Just saying, Izzy hasn't yelled at you or given you jobs to do. I think he may have even been a little jealous earlier when you walked in on me sketching Fang."

"What are you implying?"

"I think you know."

You glare at him again. "Shut up." You walk away. Lucius and Pete laugh together.

♡♡♡

You sit below deck on the hard floor whittling away in silence. The rest of the crew were above deck, most of them slept under the stars. Izzy, you were pretty sure, was in his cabin.

You move the knife swiftly along the wood.

"It's late."

You look up at the sound of the familiar voice. Izzy's voice is very distinct. You like hearing him talk.

"I know."

"The crew is sleeping. Ed is back too."

"Oh yeah, the party."

Izzy stands there with a hand on top of his sword, resting at his hip. He keeps his eyes on you as you whittle.

"What are you making?"

"Just... a thing."

"Right... a thing."

Silence settles between you both again. You can feel his eyes on you. His breathing is soft, but you can hear the wood creak under his feet as he shifts.

"I... uh... I'm glad you're back."

You stop whittling.

"I mis- I missed you."

You look up at Izzy slowly. Your heart thumping quickly in your chest. You know better than anyone what that took for him to say that.

"Missed you too, Izzy."

He inhales sharply and nods.

"Right. Yeah. Night then."

"Goodnight." You watch him as he turns sharply and walks away. He always walks away.

You focus back on your project. The sound of the knife scraping along the wood filling your ears once more.

♡♡♡

Izzy wakes up with the sun. He groans as he stares up at the ceiling. Another day on this stupid ship with Stede Bonnet. Izzy can only hope Blackbeard kills the fucker soon.

He runs his fingers through his hair, keeping his hand there as his mind fills with thoughts. You spent a good portion of yesterday following him around the ship.

Izzy breathes through his nose and lowers his hand. He turns his head to the side only to find a strange object sitting on the table. He furrows his brow knowing that it wasn't there when he went to sleep last night.

The first mate sits up and reaches over to pick up the wooden bird. He holds it in his hand, turning it this way and that way.

"The fuck?"

It looked like it resembled a sparrow. He runs his thumb across the carved out wing. It was a decent job.

"Hm." The corner of his lip twitches. You. Silly little you with your silly little whittling last night.

He goes to put the bird down only to find a note resting where the bird had been. He gently places the sparrow down and picks up the note, turning it over to read it.

'A gift as part of my ongoing apology for leaving you 6 years ago. Nice to be back, just like old times.'

Izzy smiles slightly at the note and then puts it down, glancing at the bird again.

"Yeah. Glad to have you back."

♡♡♡

@grippleback-galaxy - @askmarinaandothers - @godlikegallagher - @for-fuck-sake-im-alive - @whiskeyswriting - @lxsm2 - @bloody-bunni666 -

#spirit of the sea #izzy hands x reader #ofmd #our flag means death #dragon writes

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tallowfallow · 2 years

Text

Steddyhands Prompt:

A little bird with a cute kerchief has let Edward and Stede in on a little (incredibly well known) secret: Izzy is in love with Edward. After a little soul-searching and a lot of reassuring kisses, the captains begin a new mission. Mission: Make Izzy Our Boyfriend. (Edward calls it 'Operation Miob' which is pronounced 'me-ob'. Stede does not approve and believes they should spell out the initials each time)

Which at first goes great, even if Izzy is a little confused on why his distant captain and bastard other captain are spending so much time with him. He even starts... well, he doesn't want to say enjoy because really, who can enjoy hours of tea parties and reminiscing on the old times and play-fighting? Izzy can.

No, he... tolerates it. That's a better word. He tolerates them now.

And one night, Stede comes up to Edward and says Opertion Miob is nearing success. He's so excited that he says the acronym like a word, rather than spelling it out and he doesn't even notice. They decide it's best for Edward to go and seduce Izzy back to the cabin. From there, Stede will confess his willingness and they'll all fall into bed together and cuddle until the sunrises, the end :)

Except when Edward finds Izzy in the storeroom, he gets so riled up that he forgets all the fancy words he and Stede had scripted and just goes straight for the kill. He grabs Izzy and starts kissing him, holding onto him like he might die if he lets go and at first, Izzy is reciprocating.

At first.

But then Izzy shoves him off, wipes his mouth and tells Edward to go fuck himself for doing this to not only him but to Stede. You see, that time of Izzy 'tolerating' Stede's attention, he's grown a bit... fond of the man. He's starting to see why Edward was obsessed with the man, even if he refuses to admit it aloud. And while at literally any other fucking time before, this dalliance would have been welcomed with open arms, all Izzy can think about is how devastated Stede would be if he found out.

So he tells Edward off, cursing him out for betraying Stede's trust and trying to hurt one of the best men Izzy knows (and yes, Izzy says this out loud) and I'd he doesn't shape up and realize what a good man Stede is, he's going to lose him. So he's going to march back to the fucking Captains' quarters, tell Stede what's he's done, beg for forgiveness and promise to never do it again.

Edward is speechless and Izzy takes this as refusal. So you know what? Fuck it. Izzy may be Edward's right hand man but he's not a coward. He's going to Stede himself and he'll accept whatever punishment that Edward gives him for it but he is not going to let this stand. The only way relationships work is if all parties are truthful with each other.

So Izzy grabs Edward's arm and all-but drags him to the Captains' Quarters (surprisingly there is little resistance). And once he finds Stede, he immediately tells him what's just occured.

He's about to launch into a small tirade about trust and truthfulness when Stede brightens considerably, thinking that Edward's seduction has gone without a hitch. He stands up and walks over to Izzy, silencing him with a simple kiss.

Izzy's brain stops working.

Behind him, Edward is tearing up and trying to (unsuccessfully) hide it. He says 'Stede, babe, he says you're one of the best men he knows.'

And Stede rewards Izzy's compliment with another kiss. Edward huffs and says that Stede's hogging Izzy and grab him back for his own kiss. Stede scrunches up his face and says, oh well, I didn't get to kiss him for that long! No fair!

After a few rounds of this, when they finally let go of Izzy, he just looks between them before he says, "...okay." and lets them pull him towards the bed.

#ofmd #our flag means death #izzy hands #stede bonnet #edward teach #steddy hands #steddyhands #fic prompt #fic idea

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demuredimensions · 2 years

Text

This is something I just kept thinking of over and over so I had to get it written down. I’ve never written fan fiction before. I don’t know how. This may not be of interest to anyone else. I’m glad I wrote it though. Today they announced season 2 and it’ll be funny to see how wrong I am about this. Anyway, here’s what I wrote:

Izzy brings Ed a piece of paper confirming the death of Stede Bonnet. “Looks like we don’t have to worry about him anymore, Captain.” Ed stares at the bit of paper with an illustration of a well dressed man crushed under a piano. He looks past the paper and into Izzy’s eyes. Ed’s eyes begin to tear slightly. Izzy’s eyebrows raise. Ed’s eyes widen and he says “I never want to hear the name Stede Bonnet again.” and he leaves the room. Izzy crumples the paper and throws it into the open fire that happens to be on their wooden vessel. Ed cries himself to sleep that night.

Stede collects the crew in his dinghy and they head out in the direction the crew saw their ship sailing off to. Stede is happy and hopeful. He notices Black Pete is wearing makeup and asks why. The crew explains that they were going to have a talent show and instead were abandoned on the island. They think Izzy is the cause. Stede is ready to take back his ship, make amends with Ed, and exile Izzy once and for all.

After days, just when it seems they’ll never catch up to the ship, they see oranges in the water. The Swede is ecstatic. Buttons claims they’re poisoned by sirens and he ought not eat them. Then they see a bottle of brandy followed by Stede’s beloved books. Stede and the crew are still convinced this is all Izzy’s doing and Ed is unaware. They follow the debris until they find the ship. They make a plan to sneak onto the ship without Izzy knowing.

They get the dinghy close to the edge of the ship and the rope ladder has been left down by someone, maybe one of their crew still on the ship.

They sneak up the ladder. Stede climbs it with ease for the first time in his pirate career. Each crew member sneaks to a crevice of the ship hoping to avoid Izzy. Stede knows where every hidden passage is. He comes to a panel in the back of his auxiliary wardrobe and gets in. Luckily all his summer linens are still in tact.

Stede sneaks out of the wardrobe only to find everything else in his bedroom/parlor/office area gone. As he looks around the room noticing everything missing he worries; what has become of Ed? Then he feels a sharp sting in his lower back.

“Fucking Stede Bonnet.” Izzy greets him with the tip of a sword.

Stede attempts to talk his way into seeing Ed. “Oh, hello, Mr. Hands. I was just hoping to get a few things from my ship. Is uh…Ed nearby?”

Izzy is annoyed. “Captain Blackbeard is on deck and he’s dying to see you, Stede Bonnet.”

Stede is confused. “He is? Oh well then, yes. I am d-dying to uh…see him as well.”

Izzy takes Stede up to the deck at sword point. Stede sees the back of Ed’s head. Ed slowly turns around to reveal that he is Blackbeard once again. Stede is hesitant. “H-hello, Ed.” Blackbeard is unflinching. “The Gentleman Pirate, I presume.” This hurts Stede worse than Izzy’s blade in his back. They are back to being strangers as though their intimate kiss never happened.

Stede quietly asks “Ed, could we maybe have a discussion in private…possibly?” Blackbeard squints and grins. “Anything you have to say to me can surely be said in front of…my crew.” Jim and Frenchie are brought on deck with their hands shackled and kicked to the deck floor. Frenchie is terrified. Jim is furious. Stede realizes he’s not the only one at risk and makes up a quick fuckery on the spot.

“Ah…but uh…Where is the rest of my crew?” Stede asks. Blackbeard looks up. “I left most of them on an desert island. Can’t really say what became of them. I do know the fate of one though.” Stede realizes Lucius is no where to be seen. Stede looks at Ed in shock and dismay. Blackbeard looks down. “The boy went overboard. Like a real pirate.”

Black Pete comes up to the deck from his hidden passage running towards Ed but is stopped by Izzy. The two of them begin sword fighting. The remaining crew members run onto the deck. Jim is breaking loose. Frenchie is backing into a corner. In all the chaos, Ed and Stede lock eyes. This is happening.

Jim tosses Stede a sword. All they need is their dagger. Blackbeard takes out a sword. Stede is scared but angry. “Ed, you didn’t have to do all this! You didn’t have to remove every sign of me!” Blackbeard scowls. “I removed nothing that hadn’t already left!” He swings his sword narrowly missing Stede. Stede screams and blocks. “Can’t we just talk about this like civilized people, Ed?!” Blackbeard ties his hair back. “Pirates are not civilized. And my name isn’t Ed. I am the kraken.” Stede realizes Ed is broken and he is the cause. He looks around and sees his crew members, his family, fighting for their lives. He knows he must do something to save them. He’s ran Ed through once before. He’s not sure he can do it again. He’s already hurt him so much. Can he really bring himself to hurt someone he lov—Ope! Ed’s stabbed him. Stede looks down and sees Ed’s sword in his left side. He grabs Ed’s hand and pulls him closer. They look into each other’s eyes. Ed’s expression goes from fury to fear. Stede whispers to Ed “You’ve run me through. Did I do it right? Made you miss all the important bits?” Ed looks softly at Stede. “You did. You’re a lunatic.”

The crew stops fighting to spectate. Ed stumbles away from Stede. Stede’s crew rushes to his aid. Stede faints.

Stede wakes up in his bathtub, wrapped in bandages. Ed sits by his side. Stede is confused. “I thought you were going to kill me, Ed.” Ed has been crying. His charcoal is running. “I was. Every time I think I’m going to kill you, I can’t do it.” Stede is slightly smug. “Well…I did turn to the left.” Ed is unamused. “Do you really think I don’t know how to counter my own move? I missed because I wanted to.” There’s a silence. “You wanted to?” Stede asks. Ed looks at the ground, embarrassed. “I meant what I said that day. And when you didn’t come to the dock I was prepared to erase you. Either by forgetting you or killing you.” Stede looks remorseful. “Ed…I…panicked. I thought I’d ruined the great Blackbeard. I’ve been a fool. I’m so terribly sorry.” Ed remembers the paper Izzy brought to him. “Sooo…the bloke under the piano; that was a fuck-“ “A fuckery, yes.” Stede answers. Ed smiles. “That’s not bad, Stede Bonnet. Not bad at all.” Stede smiles back. Ed puts his hands around Stede’s face. Stede leans into Ed’s hands. He feels safe. He feels home. Ed gives Stede a gentle kiss. Stede goes in for another. Ed puts his hand on Stede’s chest. “Best to rest up for now. You’ve got a hole in your liver.” Stede’s a little embarrassed. “Oh…heh heh, yes. Probably right.”

Just as Stede starts to nod off, he hears a noise in the auxiliary wardrobe. He climbs out of the tub to investigate. He opens the wardrobe and Lucius falls out into the floor. “Oh thank you! I’ve gotten to that door a dozen times and couldn’t figure how to open it!” Stede is shocked. “Lucius! How long have you been hiding? How did you eat?” Lucius smiles and whispers. “This lot isn’t exactly observant. They leave food out every night. I just sneaked out and back in.” Stede is curious if Lucius remembers what happened to him. “Ed said you went overboard. What happened?” Lucius’ smile turns to an annoyed frown. “Well I suppose he was a little angry that I told him to get over you and he PUSHED me overboard but I caught my little barnacle cleaners’ swing and managed to hang on until I could get back into the boat. Just typical.” Stede turns to Lucius. “What’s typical? That you, YOU managed to save yourself by a rope and board?” Lucius huffs “No. Typical that a pirate when faced with feelings would naturally throw their proverbial emotions overboard.” Stede raises his eyebrows. “Ah yes. That…uh…that does seem quite typical.”

Ed enters the room. “Hello, Lucius. You look…well.” Lucius is in slight disbelief. “Well? I nearly died.” Ed grins. “But you didn’t, my boy. Congratulations. You’re a real pirate now.” Lucius rolls his eyes. “A real pirate. Sure. Great.” Ed leaves the room. Stede and Lucius look at each other and shrug. At least he’s Ed again.

#our flag means death #OFMD #taika waititi #rhys darby #pirates #fan fiction #ed x stede

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dragon-kazansky · 7 months

Text

Spirit of the sea

Izzy Hands x Reader (GN)

{Masterlist}

{Previous Chapter} - {Next Chapter}

Warnings: Not much Izzy and Reader interaction, because, ya know. However, you will be bonding with some of the crew, so yay!

Chapter Six - Out in the open

♡♡♡

You didn't sleep at all. Neither did Izzy by the sounds of it. He spent the rest of the night clearing out his cabin and packing what little he had.

As the sun began to rise and the darkness faded, you stood beside Edward looking down at the dingy below. Izzy was standing in it looking up at you.

Your expression was cold. The light in your eyes was gone, he noticed. Izzy could sense your pain from this.

It hurt him too. To leave you behind was not his plan, but you refused to come with him, he wasn't going to force you. If only he could look you in the eye and be honest with you.

"So, is this it then?" Izzy asks Blackbeard.

"You shouldn't have duelled him, Iz! We could've worked this out."

"You will rue this day, Edward. You will rue it long, and you will rue it hard."

Roach comes up beside you with a smile. "Hey. Made you a sandwich for the trip."

You take the sandwich from his hand and look down at Izzy. It's going to seem childish, bit at least you can get one last insult in. You throw the wrapped sandwich at Izzy with no intention of him being able to catch it. Instead it hits him in the head and bounces into the ocean.

Izzy stares up at you. You ignore the way Edward is side eyeing you too.

"I would've eaten that," Ivan says.

"A fucking pox on all of you!" Izzy growls.

"Well, that's that," Edward grumbles, walking away. Ivan soon follows him. You remain standing at the railing with Roach, watching Izzy sit in the boat and row away.

"Not for nothing, but that guy really is a dick, huh?" Roach says.

You sigh softly, letting Roach leave.

"But he was our dick..."

♡♡♡

Lucius hands his severed finger over to Fang. You watch from the other side of the ship as they throw it into the water.

You were amazed to find out that Lucius cut off his own finger in a moment of hysteria during last night's fuckery. It was disgusting, but also kind of impressive.

Pete had whittled him a wooden one to wear, so all was good in the end.

You walk last Stede to go sulk for a while. He is still stabbed into the mast.

"You alright?"

"I'd very much like it out," he says, looking a little worse for wear now. He'd been there most of the night at this point.

"I'll go get someone."

"Thank you." He sounds rather appreciative. You carry on walking.

As you go below deck, Edward is waiting for you. You smile as you go to pass him, but he holds up his hand, stopping you. You take a step back and look up at your captain.

"He didn't stay."

You didn't have to do much thinking to understand what he meant. "No. He didn't."

"Did you talk to him?" Edward asks.

"Course I did. You know I did."

"And still he left..."

"Ed, I can't force Izzy to do anything. You know him better than I do. You what he's like."

"Nah. You know him better than anyone," Ed says to you. "I figured he would fold if you spoke to him. Assumed you would be his reason to stay, even after that duel."

"Why? It's probably for the best. I unintentionally left you all behind 6 years ago. He's intentionally leaving us. Let the man do what he wants," you sigh.

"You left him 6 years ago." Edward looks at you with stern eyes, his head tilted forward slightly.

"Huh?"

"Nevermind." Edward walks away leaving you confused and dazed.

♡♡♡

A couple days pass. Edward and Stede grow closer and closer. Edward has been a little down about Izzy leaving, but Stede always know what to say or day to bring his mood back up again.

You, however, feel like a piece of you is missing. From the moment Izzy left, the ship has felt incomplete.

You have spent the last couple nights in, what was, Izzy's cabin. He had taken the few thing he owned with him. You sat on the bed and stared at the empty desk. The little wooden sparrow was gone. He had taken it with him. You're not sure what to do with that information, but it was comforting in a way.

Still, there wasn't anything left behind for you to hold onto.

Roach rushes past the door as you're sulking. You look up just in time to catch him flee past. Figuring there is no use in depressing yourself over the loss of your friend, you decide to go figure out what that was all about.

Turns out there are no oranges onboard. Oh, and the Swede has scurvy.

Roach had used most of them for a fucking cake that Stede had asked for. You stare at the gentleman pirate in disbelief.

"You had him make you a cake?"

"It hardly tasted of oranges." Stede says. Roach looks offended.

"So it was a waste." You sigh.

"Well, not completely. I still ate it."

"Either way, we need more oranges."

The crew start fussing as the topic of the Swede having scurvy come up again. You let out a long sigh as you look at this group.

"Let's just accept the fact that, due to Roach's immorderate use of the citrus, we now have to go grocery shopping."

Roach scoffs.

"St Augustine's full of oranges, and we're right near there," Frenchie says.

"Oh! Anything exciting to do there? Maybe something that might impress a world-weary, adventuring type?" Stede asks.

"No! It's boring and awful, and the humidity? Do you understand what that'll do to your hair?" Jim says, standing up.

"So?" Olu asks. Jim walks off.

"I'll wear a hat," Stede says proudly.

"Anyone else's fingernails falling off?" The Swede asks. You groan and leave with the rest of the crew.

♡♡♡

Stede had gone to St Augustine with Lucius. You remained on the ship with the crew. You were sitting in the captain's quarters with Edward. You were stretched out on one of the couches, a book in your hand. Edward was examining one of Stede's robes.

"Are you missing him?" Ed asks.

"Hm? Who?" You ask, not looking up from the book. It was a page on the legend of Blackbeard. You were fascinated by the way people viewed the man in front of you.

"Izzy."

"Oh." You still don't look up from the book.

Edward looks over at you. You had become a lot quieter since Izzy left. "You've been sleeping in his cabin. I've seen you."

"The room's available now. Might as well make use of it."

"Right. Yeah. Sure." Edward says, not so convincingly. He walks over to the coach you're perched on and plants his hands firmly on it, looking down at you.

"I'm fine, Edward."

"You don't look fine. What are you reading anyway?"

You snap the book shut and look up at him. "Just a book!"

"Alright. No need to get antsy."

"I'm sorry," you sigh. "I'm just worried."

"About Izzy?" He asks.

"Yeah. When I left, it was unintentional. I literally couldn't get back to you. He left because of some stupid duel and wouldn't stay when I asked. He would rather honour dueling rules than..." You gasp for breath. "Than stay with me."

Ed places a hand on your shoulder. "Mate..."

You shrug his hand off. "Forget it. I'm being stupid. I just... I just thought Izzy was my friend."

"Yeah, me too, mate."

However, Edward wanted to say more. It just didn't look like the best time. The moment is broken by Stede strutting in with Lucius behind him. He's waving something around in his hand.

"Look at what I got!"

Edward leaves your side to go peer at the item Stede was gushing about. Lucius sends you a look that tells you he was mentally drained. You chuckle softly.

"A treasure map!"

You and Edward share a look.

"Read it and weep, my friend. Adventure awaits."

"Look, mate, I hate to be a downer, but people just don't bury treasure. It's just not done." Ed explains to him.

"Well, why make a map?" Stede asks.

"He's saying the map's not real," Lucius chimes in.

"Yeah, the whole burying treasure thing is just a tale," you add in.

"What? Course it's real! Look at it. Tatty edges. It's burnt. It's been around, it's seen things."

"You got scammed for money," you say plainly.

"If it were real, why would she have sold it to you?" Ed asks. You nod. "Why not keep the map herself, and find the treasure herself?"

"Oh, Strong question. Love that." Lucius says.

"Scam," you add in again.

"Maybe she's just lazy. I mean, she works down at the docks selling maps, for God's sake."

"Best of luck to you, mate. I'm taking a nap." Ed slumps down on the coach you're on and plants his legs over your lap. You glare at him softly.

"Last I heard, a ship only has one captain, and the captain of this vessel says, 'On your feet!' We're having a day." Stede says standing up. "Once I've changed."

Stede leaves to get dressed. You turn your head to Edward.

"Now you have to go."

"If I'm going, you're coming with me," he says, giving you a light glare.

"Fuck that."

"I'm your captain. Orders are orders."

You stare at him in disbelief. "Oh, that's mean."

Edward has a shit-eating grin on his face.

♡♡♡

Within the hour Stede had changed into more 'appropriate' attire and you all went ashore. You continued to give Blackbeard a death stare as he rowed the boat over. He just grinned back at you.

However, once on land, he became self conscious about his very being getting caught on the island. After all, people know of Blackbeard. Scary murderous pirate can't be caught treasure hunting of all things.

You found amusement in this.

"So, we're either here, or possibly here." Stede says, looking at his map. You were walking on one side of him, Lucius on the other. Ed was on the other end.

Edward was trying to hide his face every time he walked past someone.

"Why are you hiding you face?"

"He's freakin' Blackbeard. He can't be caught treasure hunting," you say, returning the shit-eatkng grin back to your captain.

"We're in the middle of nowhere. No one's gonna recognise you." Stede says, looking at Ed.

"Hey, Blackbeard! Treasure hunting!" A resident calls out. You give Stede a deadpan look.

Edward threatens the man. "Shut the fuck up, OK? I'm not Blackbeard. Fuck off, get outta here! Move."

The man hurries off.

"Right, Ed, you go stand over there under that tree, and Stede, you figure out which way you wanna go, okay?" You say, taking matters into your own hands.

Edward walks off to hide under the tree.

"Now look, we're going to have fun today, and that's an order," Stede states firmly.

"You can't really order people to have fun, but..."

"Well, I just did. Guys like Blackbeard, they live for adventure. It's like nourishment for them. So we're going to have an extremely fun, memorable, deeply cool adventure.".

You can't fight back the smile from listening to Stede. Was he trying to impress Blackbeard? Okay, that's cute. He's being cute.

"Now, do I have your support on that?" Stede asks Lucius.

"Yeah, OK."

♡♡♡

Stede takes the lead. You walk with Edward behind him a little ways. Lucius is following behind you both.

Edward seems to be slowly growing more agitated the further this goes on. He swatting violently at the flies buzzing around your heads. You have to duck a few times to avoid getting a snack across the head.

"Well this is fun," you mutter.

"Shut up," Ed spits out, clearly not having fun.

"Might as well make the most of it. We're both stuck here."

Edward sighs and glares at you. "Stupid treasure hunting."

"I say let Stede have his silly fun."

"Would you have agreed to do this if it was Izzy?"

"Izzy wouldn't be caught dead treasure hunting," you say. "He'd have killed the man who dared ask him to."

Blackbeard swats away more flies. "You still upset about Izzy?"

"You mean since we spoke about him last like 2 hours ago? Yes, Edward. I'm still upset the bastard left."

"Sensing quite a bit of tension here," Lucius says, coming up beside you. You roll your eyes. "What's the deal with dizzy Izzy anyway?"

"It's just Izzy," you warn him. "Izzy is... was, my friend."

"Doesn't seem like the type to have friends."

"Hey, he's my friend too," Ed says.

"Is he though?" You ask, looking at Ed.

"What does that mean?"

"Izzy had been trying to talk to you for days, and all you did was brush him aside to go hang out with Stede. You didn't even stop to hear him out."

"I knew what it was about."

"Still, you didn't stop to listen," you say, watching where you were stepping.

"It amazes he even has friends," Lucius says. You glare at him. "I just mean... he was very intense."

"Yeah, well, that's just Izzy."

"Kinda cute really."

"What is?" You ask, eyeing him.

"How much you care for the bastard."

"Shut up."

Edward swats away more flies. Stede had gone on so far ahead, you had lost sight of him.

"Fuck off, flies!" Edward yells.

"They're not that bad. They really a full of blood, though, aren't they? Like little flying grapes." Lucius comments. One then flies into his mouth and he starts choking. "I think I just swallowed one!"

"At least you got lunch. I'm fuckin' starving." Edward sighs.

"Guys! Come quick! I've found something!" Stede calls out.

"Thank God," you mutter, hoping he had found his treasure and you could all go back to the ship.

Stede turns around with an insect resting on his finger. You groan quietly.

"Dryocampa rubicunda, or the candied melon silk moth. A very rare specimen. See? We're already finding stuff."

"Great, you found a bug. Cheers." Edward is less than impressed.

"And who says treasure maps are useless?" Lucius says. You all turn to look at him. "I wasn't being sarcastic, that's just how I talk."

"Laugh at you want, but without the map, we wouldn't have found this little guy, so it's already paying dividends." Stede remains positive.

"Suppose it is pretty interesting, for an insect." Ed says, looking back at the moth. He the goes back to fighting flies. "Fuck this. I'm going back to the ship."

As Edward marches away, you follow after him.

"Oh, come on! We're having fun! You know what your problem is? You just have no idea how to relax!" Stede calls out. "Does he Lucius?"

"I mean, you are kind of intense, like... all of the time," Lucius says.

That's 2 people he has now described as intense.

"It's a running theme with Blackbeard," you say mindlessly.

"You're not intense." Lucius looks at you.

"Give me time."

"I know how to relax." Edward leans against a tree. "See? I'm actually quite relaxed right now."

A snake falls from the tree into Ed's open arms and he starts to fight it, smacking it onto the ground and then stabbing it violently. "Die!"

"According to the map, there are snakes in this area." Stede stands there, looking at Edward. "So, just be careful."

You run a hand down your face and sigh deeply.

♡♡♡

The snake becomes lunch. You set up a campfire and Ed cooks the snake. You sit on the ground beside Lucius while the two captain share a log.

"Is this what Blackbeard is usually like?" Lucius asks you.

"It's how I remember him. But he softened up a lot since Stede it seems..."

You both gaze at the captain's. They're babbling on about Ed having a restaurant where he could serve snake and have a gift shop. You wonder how it came to this point.

"Must have been impressive sailing on his crew." Lucius takes a bite of his snake.

"Yeah. They were good old days."

"What was it like?"

"Probably about what you expect from the stories, to be honest. A lot of raiding and death. But we were also close as a crew. Kind of. Blackbeard as our captain, Izzy doing every little thing that was asked of him. Fang and Ivan working their asses off to please both Izzy and Blackbeard."

"Sounds kind of... well, intense. Doesn't really sound close. More like everyone just working hard to please the others. What about you?"

"Me? I did what I could to keep everyone happy. To keep... Izzy happy..."

"You must really like him. Like, really like him." You jab Lucius with your elbow. "Ow! Okay, sorry..."

"Izzy works his ass off. Yeah, I get it, he's a dick and it's very hard to like him, but he's not all bad. He's just... stressed beyond belief, and the one man he tries so hard to please barely acknowledges it!"

Lucius glances at Blackbeard. "Oh."

"Look, I won't deny it. I have a soft spot for Izzy Hands."

"Yeah, I noticed."

You give him a gentle shove with your arm.

"Well, he's gone now. Maybe you can find some relief."

"Relief?"

"Yeah." Lucius shrugs. "Maybe you can move on. Let that part of you go."

You look down at the bit of snake in your hand. Let Izzy go? Is that possible? Can you do that? You hadn't once let go during the 6 years you were apart of him. But had he? After all, he thought you were dead during that time.

"Maybe make Izzy a ghost of your past," Lucius suggests.

"A ghost...?"

You're pulled out of your thoughts by Stede helping get snake out of Ed's beard. You and Lucius stare at the two. The conversation about Izzy being put to the back of your mind.

"Oh my God, this is happening," Lucius mutters.

"Wow," you whisper.

"What?" They look at the pair of you.

"Nothing."

You turn back to Lucius who gives you another look. Yeah, it's happening.

♡♡♡

The map caught fire. It was a total accident and was bound to happen, but alas, there's not much of the map left.

Stede sits on his knees as he tries to fix it.

"There's still a few scraps that didn't completely burn."

"Ah, give it up, Stede. All adventures have a natural conclusion, and this one's more than fitting." Ed says, watching him.

"No, I think I can fix this. Come on, the day's not fully ruined."

"God, he'll probably be moping all the way back to the ship." Ed groans.

"You don't have to be a dick about it," Lucius says softly, frowning.

"What?" Edward turns to him, his voice sharp.

"He said don't be a dick about it." You look Edward in the eye. "He's put this whole thing together just for you."

"For me? Why?"

"Look, you're very cool, and you wear leather, OK, so maybe you won't understand this, but everyone is worried all of the time whether they're interesting or adventurous enough for you." Lucius tells him right off the bat.

"That bizarre little man over there likes you very much, and you like him." You state plainly to your captain.

"If you can't get over yourself long enough to realise that, you're going to end up another lesther-clad, middle-aged sad sack dying alone in a puddle of his own piss." Lucius carries on angrily. "You can stab me in the face now."

Edward glances at you. He can tell from your expression that you agree with Lucius. He walks quietly over to where Stede is.

"It's hopeless. We might as well head back to the ship," Stede sighs, defeated. "You were right. It's a stupid idea. I... I don't know why we're here."

"I'm actually a little disappointed," Edward tells him. "I was startin' to have fun."

Ed gestures for you and Lucius to come closer. You both go to stand beside him. Ed points to piece of the map. "That little bit there on that lite scrappy bit of paper, that looks like a tree, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, no, definitely does to me," Lucius says. You just nod.

"And the other little squiggly bit. What's that look like?"

"Like a road, or a river." You might as well join in and make the most of this.

"You know what? I think, just with this little bit here, we could probably sort this out."

"Yeah?" Stede asks full of hope.

"They're all the pieces we need."

"Shall I prepare the shovel, or..." Lucius goes to grab it.

"We didn't come all this way to not dig something up!"

"Right!" Stede stands up. "That's the spirit. OK. This way." Stede marches onward.

"That was sweet," you say, turning to Ed.

"Don't, or I will stab you in your face."

You laugh and follow them as they head off further into the trees.

♡♡♡

"Is this how you felt with Izzy?" Edward asks, walking alongside you again.

"What do you mean?"

He gazes at Stede and motions between himself and the other man with his hand. "This."

"Are you implying I was in love with Izzy Hands?" You ask. Edward nods. "What? No! Izzy was my friend. He needs friends, Ed. If anything... no, forget it."

"What?"

"No, nothing. You're not ready to hear that.

"You two were so close, ya know." Edward shrugs his shoudler lightly. "Kind of envied that."

"Envied it? Izzy was your friend too."

"Yeah, but, like, not in the way you were friends. You too had something. He still wears that ring around his neck."

"The ring on his necktie? He's always had that. What's that got to do with anything?" You ask, confused by Edward's words.

"No. Not that. He has a chain he wears under his shirt. There's a ring on it."

"Huh?"

"Izzy found a ring on that ship that night. Pretty little ring. He didn't say anything for a while about after the night we lost you, but eve actually I had to ask. I caught him looking at it as it hung around his neck. Told me he thought of you when he saw it. He was gonna give it to ya, but... well, you know."

You look at the ground, brows knitted together in thought. Hearing Izzy like this was so soft and gentle. He was sentimental.

"Why didn't he say anything?" You ask. "After my return."

"Perhaps he can't bring himself to. You know what's he's like. Doesn't trust easy, for starters."

"He lost trust in me?"

"We thought you were dead," Edward says softly. "Don't forget that. For 6 years you were dead in our lives."

"Fuck..."

"Listen, mate. Don't feel bad. Things didn't turn out as planned and a lot of shit happened. But we're cool. You're back and everything is gonna be okay."

"But Izzy is gone. The bastard left... he left me behind! If... if I meant anything to him, I..."

"Hey, hey, hey! Calm down."

You take a deep breath. "Sorry."

"It's all good. What's done is done. Just don't hate the man, okay?"

"Hate him...?" You fall quiet. "I couldn't hate him."

Ed keeps an arm around you as the group keeps on walking. Eventually the adventure comes to an end. To get this over with, Lucius and Ed guide Stede to an old dead tree.

"You sure this is the right tree?" Stede asks.

"Yeah, definitely."

"Oh, undoubtedly, mate."

"It looks just like the one off the map."

"Plus, pirates are ways burying stuff at the base of trees," Ed says.

"See, now I feel you're patronising me."

"What are you doing to my family's tree?" Jim asks, standing behind Bonnet.

"Good timing. I'm just about to unearth some treasure," Stede replies happily.

"We, er..." Ed goes over to Jim to speak quietly behind Stede. "We're just letting him dig for a bit, get it out of his system."

"I found something! What do you think it could be?"

"A rock." You, Lucius, and Jim all said at the same time.

"I've got it." Stede holds the item up. "I think it's a rock."

You sigh. "Yeah, too bad."

Stede tosses the rock over to Edward. "Yeah, sorry, mate. That's usually how these things go. Just end up finding a rock, or dried-up piece of shit."

Ed uses one of the water tankers Lucius is carrying to rinse the rock.

"Well, I guess the real treasure was our day spent together, am I right?" Lucius smiles.

"Lucius! We spend every day together." Stede puts his hands on his hips.

You laugh a little. Ed looks at you with a smile.

"Treasure is the real treasure."

"Hey, look at that. It's an orange." Edward holds the 'rock' up. "Petrified." He tosses it back to Stede.

"Old tree will had some fruit to give after all." Jim looks at the tree fondly.

Stede offers the orange to Jim, since the fruit came from their tree, but Jim tosses it back. It's Stede's treasure.

"OK, back to the boat," Ed says, turning on his heel. You do not hesitate to catch up. You've had enough adventure for one day.

♡♡♡

Edward joins Stede in his quarters after you all return to the ship. While Lucius smiles and listens to the other party's adventure on getting oranges, you sneak past them to go hide in Izzy's old cabin.

Lucius sees you though.

You sigh as you stand in the doorway and look at the bed. It doesn't feel right without him. You sit down carefully and rest your head back against the wall.

"Where did you go, Izzy?" You whisper. "Why did you leave me?"

A knock at the door startles you and you turn to see Lucius standing there, now without all the gear he had been carrying all day.

"Hey."

"Hi."

He looks at you with a kind softness. "You want some company?"

You sigh softly and nod your head. Lucius comes over and sits beside you on the bed. He rests his head back too and looks at you, planting a hand over yours on your leg.

"You know, I kind of miss him yelling at us all, in a weird kind of way."

You laugh.

"Yeah? You get used to it after a while. Sorry he was such a dick to you though." You apologise.

"Nah, forget about it." He waves his hand as if to brush the apology off. "He definitely had a soft spot for you."

You shrug. "So people keep telling me."

"But it's true. I saw the way he looked at you." Lucius smiles.

"Shut it."

You both chuckles. A moment of silence passes before you sigh and speak again. "I just wish I could apologise to him some more. I want to see his stupid face and know that he trusts me again."

"Blackbeard said he closed himself off after I "died." And I don't luke the idea of him suffering alone in silence."

Lucius gives your hand a squeeze. "Things will get better."

You look at him. "I kind of like being on this ship. It was weird at first because it was so different from other ships I've been on, but it had grown on me."

"Yeah get kind of used to it."

You both smile at each other.

"Thanks for checking on me, Lucius."

"Any time, sweetheart," he grins and winks at you. You laugh and give him a gentle shove. "You ever been sketched?" He asks.

You try to bite down your smile, but to no avail. "No."

"Wanna be?"

You laugh.

It felt good to laugh again.

♡♡♡

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