Chapter Text
Ed strode up to the cabin door and stopped short. Rather than just walking in, he opted to tuck the loose hair behind his ear and press it to the wood. There wasn’t much to hear. It turns out pacing around the room is a fairly noiseless activity. And that’s exactly what Stede was busying himself with on the other side of the door. He emptied the ash tray and put Ed’s pipe back in the case. He fussed with the throws and then the candles. All decidedly inaudible activities for his very loud mind. Lastly, Stede settled on taking care of the fireplace.
Listening was clearly pointless so Ed knocked a few times and then let himself into the room, now considerably darker than when Lucius had pulled him away earlier. The room was cozy when illuminated by the fireplace and Stede’s fancy sconces. Now, with the fire doused and only a couple of candles remaining lit, the quarters were intimate .
Stede stood up from the fireplace, theatrically dusted off his hand and clasped them behind his back. Ed watched Stede primly bounce up onto the balls of his feet just once and clear his throat. Hazel eyes darted around the room nervously.
“Oh, uhh. Sorry to just let myself in,” Ed started. Despite the apology he took a few more steps into the room.
“No, not at all, Ed.” Stede’s eyes settled on his co-captain. “This is your cabin too, of course,” Stede was rambling. “What’s mine is yours and all that. We are co-captains, after all,” he offered. He took the candle from the mantle and carried it with him around the chairs and stopped a few feet in front of Ed. “Also,” he continued, softer than before, “I had hoped you might come back.” Stede discarded the candle on the table nearest to him.
The warm light of the last flames cast their shadows across the room. The two friends observed each other for some moments. And then the two shadows slowly melted into a single dark pillar leading to the bed nook.
Ed brought his fingers to the other man’s cheek, recreating the moment just before they were interrupted. Stede leaned into his co-captain’s hand without hesitation this time. He brought his own hand up to thread through Ed’s beard and rest at his jaw.
“Edward,” Stede whispered. He looked down to Ed’s lips and then back up to see an expectantly quirked eyebrow. “Kiss me.”
“ Fuck ,” Ed sighed out and then finally — finally pressed his lips against Stede’s. It was firm and chaste. When Ed pulled away Stede made a small noise of protest and then slowly opened his eyes to look at Ed. They went in for more.
It started slow. They angled their heads a few different ways, bumping noses and laughing. When they found a comfortable way to fit their faces together, the kiss deepened. Their tongues tangled together and hands started to explore. Ed ran his fingers through Stede’s golden curls. He tried a gentle tug and earned himself a small moan. Stede's hands had slid around Ed’s back and then down to his hips which he used to pull Ed even closer. Stede could feel Ed against his thigh. Ed moaned too, at the feeling of Stede’s half-hard dick on his own thigh.
“I’ve wanted to do that since I first saw you.” Ed broke away to lean his forehead against Stede’s. Both men collected their breath along with their thoughts.
Stede, already flushed from their kissing, turned from a soft pink to hot red. He was genuinely shocked. He stared at Ed blankly for several moments, swollen lips gaping, until the reality of his current situation set in. Their situation.
Then the gentleman’s shock shifted into a smug smile.
He softly dragged his nails up and down Ed’s back, under his shirt.“Hmm. And what else have you thought about doing?”
“ Stede .”
“Well, you could take me to dinner first.” He smirked at Ed.
“Stede,” Ed emphasized, unable to stop himself from chuckling at Stede’s bad joke. He sombered a bit and then continued “Are you sure you want to do this, mate?”
There was a fear behind the question that Stede would not allow. Both of them had spent so much of their lives afraid. But not here — not together.
“You’re the first thing I’ve been sure about in my whole life, darling.”
Edward blinked several times, as if forcing the truth Stede’s words into his brain. Then a brilliant smile spread across his face and they were kissing again. If there was a bit too much teeth in their kisses still, neither man noticed. Their manic enthusiasm eventually slowed back into something softer. Grasping hands became light caresses. Their lips lingered and they exchanged breaths. .
“Can I take you to bed?” Ed whispered into their kisses.
Soft hands came up around Ed’s beard so that Stede could thumb gentle passes over high cheekbones.
Rough palms covered soft hands — “You’re shaking.”
Stede hadn’t even realized. “I’ve got to be honest. I’m a bit nervous, Ed.”
“I’m nervous too, love.”
That bolstered Stede’s nerves a bit. He took a deep breath, gathered Ed’s hands and brought them down to his lips.
He kissed the left, “Edward.”
He kissed the right, “let’s go to bed.”
Stede slowly brought his gaze up to meet Edward’s and added a firm, “Please.”
Ed smiled bashfully and nodded.
Stede licked the tips of his middle and index fingers to quickly extinguish the candle beside them. The only light remaining in the cabin was that of the candle next to their bed and the slivers of moonlight sneaking through the curtains. Ed looked between Stede’s fingers and mouth several times. “ Christ , Stede,” he muttered. And before Stede could offer an adorable inquisitive look, Ed led him to the sleeping alcove.
Goosebumps prickled over Ed’s skin when Stede traced the tattoos he exposed as he eagerly removed Ed’s jacket. Ed inhaled sharply when Stede ran a thumb over a taught nipple. The blonde glanced up to be sure it was a good inhale and was encouraged by Ed’s lidded eyes and bottom lip between his teeth. So he continued to tease Ed through thin, purple cotton.
Ed had his head tipped back and allowed himself to savor the way Stede charted his body with such reverence. He nipped at Ed’s earlobe and trailed his hands along the waistline of Ed’s trousers. Ed snapped his head up.
“Clothes off, Bonnet.” Ed’s voice was deeper than Stede had ever heard it.
“Yes, Captain,” Stede replied and quickly obeyed. He shrugged off his dressing gown and winked. Stede turned around from hanging it up and saw that Ed was watching him.
“You too then. Go on!” Stede encouraged with an impatient hand wave.
They laughed together and removed the rest of their clothes. Stede left his nightshirt piled on top of Ed’s leathers and slid under the covers. Ed was already laying on his side with his back to the windows so Stede settled in to face Ed.
“Hi.” Ed smiled.
“Hi.” Stede returned the smile.
They intertwined their fingers and held hands between their chests.
“Still nervous?” Ed asked.
Stede thought about it and then replied, “not so much anymore — no. I love trying new things with you. I trust you to show me anything I haven’t already managed to read or learn about myself.”
Ed smirked and prompted “Read or learned about yourself, huh?”
“You’d be surprised what kind of books you can find if you know the right places to look,” Stede laughed. “I know enough. I’m not concerned about what to do so much as what you would like me to do.”
Ed thought about it and realized, “nobody’s ever asked me that before.” He did not care for the sad look Stede started to make and quickly followed up with, “But I’m more than willing to find out with you,” with a suggestive eyebrow waggle.
Stede snorted out another small laugh. He looked away shyly, the pink in his ears now everpresent. Ed brought a hand up to touch the blush along Stede’s cheekbone. He leaned into another kiss and traced along Stede’s lips with his tongue. Stede opened his mouth to let Ed in; their kisses were more practiced now. He worked Ed’s bottom lip between his teeth gently and pulled. It earned him a pleasant whine in the back of Ed’s throat. The sound encouraged Stede to dig his fingers into Ed’s shoulder blades. The whine turned into a growl when Stede used his nails to etch red streaks through black ink.
Ed pulled back to catch his breath and Stede quickly checked in—“was that alright?”
“More than alright love.” He bumped his nose against Stede’s and then asked “Do you trust me?”
“Yes.”
Ed raised his eyebrows, still shocked by Stede’s lack of hesitation with him.
“What?”
“No, nothing. I’m just still surprised at how much you trust me, is all.” Ed looked to where his thumb was rubbing small circles on Stede’s freckled biceps.
Stede returned Ed’s nose bump to encourage them to look back at him. When Ed looked back up, Stede gently tucked a silver hair behind the other man’s ear.
“Well get used to it, dear. I’ve trusted you since the moment I saw you.” Stede echoed Ed’s words.
Now, Ed blushed. “I trust you too, mate. Just, erm, do what feels natural, okay? I’ll stop you if there’s something I don’t like. Seems like the best way to figure stuff out,” he ended the sentence with an upward inflection, implying a question. “I’ll check in with you more often than you need to with me, ‘cause I know a little bit of what I like already,” He slid his fingers down Stede’s side to rest on his hip.
“Mmm,” Stede hummed in assent, “that sounds lovely.”
Soft hands buried into salt and pepper curls and Stede pulled Ed back into a slow kiss. The hand that had been gently resting on Stede’s hip fanned out and gripped into pale flesh.
The jolt of pleasure from Ed’s nails caused Stede to instinctively grind his hips forward. Both men moaned in pleasure and relief. They’d both been hard before crawling into bed — the whispered confessions and soft touches had only made them want each other that much more.
“Fuck,” Stede managed between kisses. “Edward,” — kiss — “please” — kiss — “touch me.” He emphasized the question with a roll of his hips. His hands made their way from Ed’s beard up into silver tresses, of which Stede took a handful, gently tugging for emphasis.
Smiling, Ed pulled back to look at Stede. “I should’ve known you’d be bossy in bed.”
“Well, I did say plea — oh. Yess.”
Ed managed to snake an arm in between them so he could wrap a large hand around Stede’s cock. “What was that, love?”
Stede couldn’t be bothered to reply. His head was now reclined, eyes closed and lips parted. Ed circled a thumb over the head of his prick with each upstroke. The hand in Ed’s hair uncurled and played in the strands. Stede relaxed onto his back and subconsciously slid his legs apart until one fell over the edge of the bed and the other was hooked between his lover’s legs.
Ed propped himself up on his elbow to get a better look and continued to play with Stede. He watched how stomach muscles tightened under golden hair when he gave the base of Stede’s cock a squeeze. Ed was able to extract small gasps and whines with each twist of his wrist. Stede still had one hand tangled in Ed’s hair and the other now thrown across his forehead.
“Let me see your face, love,” Ed encouraged. “I want to look at you — you look beautiful like this —all spread out for me.”
Stede removed his arm and looked over to meet consuming brown eyes.
Ed eagerly swung a leg over Stede’s thigh and kissed him. Kissed his cheeks, his nose, his forehead, and then finally lips. They moved their hips together and swallowed each other’s moans. Stede managed to hook a foot around Ed’s uninjured leg and flipped them. Ed let out a decidedly un-Blackbeard-like squeal as he was upended. Stede chuckled at Ed’s shocked expression.
“Hiding all that muscle under those fancy clothes, mate?”
“My best fuckery yet, I think.”
“You’re a fucking lunatic.”
“Yes. And I know that you happen to like that about me.”
Stede smugly nipped at Ed’s lips and slid himself lower in the bed. Ed’s answering laugh was cut short when Stede grazed a nipple with his teeth. A sharp intake of breath turned into a long moan when Stede sucked and flicked his tongue over the taught nub; he pinched and tweaked the other nipple between his fingers. Ed was now rhythmically grinding his cock up into Stede, the room was filled with moans and the soft sounds of Stede’s mouth moving across Ed’s skin.
Stede moved up to give his co-captain a quick kiss and then rested back on his haunches so that he could reach the shelf up above Ed’s head.
“What are you..” the question trailed off when Stede waggled a small bottle in front of Ed’s face. “Of fuckin’ course you’ve got supplies. Stede Bonnet you little harlot. What’s gonna happen if everyone finds out the Gentleman Pirate isn’t such a gentleman after all?”
“Hmmm,” Stede feigned contemplation and fiddled with the bottle in his hand. He turned it over until Ed thrust his hips impatiently. Stede leaned down for a languid kiss and then whispered “just our little secret then, yeah?” into Ed’s ear. The tickle of Stede’s breath and the promise of his words stirred the heat in the bottom of Ed’s stomach. He tried to chase Stede’s words with another kiss but the other man was pulling away again. Ed canted his hips once more, searching for more friction.
Stede tutted and pressed a palm over Ed’s sternum. “Patience, darling. I am going to take my time with you, okay?”
“ Fuck Stede,” Ed groaned and let his head fall back into the pillow.
“I am asking, Ed. Is that okay?”
He slowly opened his eyes to see that Stede’s face had softened for the first time since flipping them over. Brown eyes pleadingly glittered in the moonlight filtering in from the window.
“Yes please .”
Stede smirked and cocked his head. “Please what, Edward?”
A small whimper escaped from the back of Ed’s throat but he did not look away from his lover. “Fuck me, Stede. Please fuck me.”
Hazel eyes glazed over briefly until Stede regained his composure enough to offer Ed a coy smile. The hand that was playing with the hair along Ed’s chest moved up to hold his face.
“There’s a good man,” praised Stede.
Ed mewled at Stede’s words and then gasped when a soft, oiled hand closed around his cock. He moaned at the relief of it. Relief from the immediate throbbing hardness. But also the relief from the push and pull of the last few weeks. The relief of finally giving in to the tide.
Stede kept a slow rhythm around Ed. He waited for Ed to fully melt into the bed and then leaned down to steal one last kiss.
“That’s it, darling,” Stede encouraged. “Let me take care of you.”Lips trailed across Ed’s collarbones, his chest, and down his stomach. Stede had moved down the bed carefully, choosing to nestle himself between Ed’s legs rather than on them. He continued to work and slid his thumb over a pre-cum slick slit. Stede darted his tongue into Ed’s navel and then over the bit of tummy that had been teasing him for weeks. He mouthed along Ed’s hipbones, encouraged by his partner’s panting and whining. Ed murmured more soft pleas that Stede was eager to answer.
“You’re being so good for me, Edward.”
Ed spread his legs and moaned. Stede hummed his approval and snatched a pillow from the bottom of the bed to tuck under Ed’s injured knee. Stede then encouraged Ed to bend his other leg and guided it over his shoulder. He took oil from where he had tucked it into the side of the bed and drizzled it onto Ed so that it ran around his balls and over his entrance.
Ed looked at Stede and nodded desperately. “ Yes ,” he panted. And then a louder, drawn-out “ fuuuck ” when Stede finally pushed one slicked finger inside of him. After a second finger was added, Ed began moaning in earnest. Long, gravelly groans as fingers pushed in and then increasingly desperate cries with each swipe of Stede’s fingers against the important bits. By the time Stede had three fingers inside of him, Ed was fucking himself down onto Stede’s knuckles.
Stede only glanced away from his work of stretching Ed to look up and catch glimpses of him in various states of pleasure. Stede continued with his litany of praise for his lover. Words tumbling out as if he couldn’t help himself and Ed fucking loved it.
Stede was mouthing another “so so good for me, darling,” into the inside of Ed’s thigh when Ed finally managed a breathy “ please .”
Stede slowed Ed’s pace around his fingers and looked at him.
“Inside me, please,” Ed panted. “I’m ready.”
“Yes. Okay then.” Stede nodded.
He sat up and fussed with the blankets a bit to make things just right. He checked the pillow was still tucked under Ed’s knee and then placed another under his hips for a better angle. Ed noticed the tremor in Stede’s hands had returned when he began pouring oil into his palm.
“You’re shaking again, love.” Ed brought his hand up to Stede’s cheek.
“So are you,” Stede responded and turned to kiss the palm of Ed’s shaking hand.
Stede positioned himself and pulled back so that he could look at Edward. The other man had been waiting to meet his gaze. Ed gave him a small nod and Stede slowly pushed himself into Edward.
A duet of groans and sighs filled the little bed nook as Stede sank himself lower and lower until he finally bottomed out. He bent his head to rest against Ed’s as they panted into each other. Despite needing to catch their breath, the two men continued to kiss while Ed adjusted to Stede’a length inside of him.
“Edward. Fuck .” All of Stede’s cheeky composure, and his anxiety, gave way to ecstasy. “So good. You feel so good around me,” he crooned.
Instead of answering with words, Ed took the initiative to moved around Stede. Blonde hair tickled Ed’s nose when Stede let his head fall forward to his shoulder, overwhelmed by the tight heat. Stede braced himself with his surprisingly strong arms and began to meet Ed’s thrusts with his own. They tried to go slow but were both so desperate for each other. Their movements quickened until Stede was fucking Ed hard enough that his balls slapped against Ed’s ass. The sound was filthy and Stede loved it — he worked harder for it.
Ed cried out with each thrust and warned “I’m not going to last much longer.”
“ Yes, love,” Stede’s voice was ragged with pleasure and exertion. He wrapped a hand around Ed’s neglected prick. His mouth opened in a silent cry and Stede fucked him harder. “That’s it, Edward. Be good and come for me, darling.”
A few more strokes and Ed spilled over Stede’s hand.
“Fuck — Stede — yes!... Thank you… That’s it, love.. Keep fucking me…come inside me… Please… Please..”
Ed rambled through his blissed-out state. He needed Stede to feel like this too. The tightness from Ed’s orgasm quickly sent Stede over the edge as well. He finished buried inside of Ed just like he was asked and they slowly fucked through their orgasms until it was too sensitive and Stede was forced to pull out.
He pushed himself off of Ed so that they could lay beside each until their chests were no longer heaving. Stede rolled over briefly to snatch his nightshirt off the floor and cleaned them both up. He tossed it back onto the ground; it was a good enough for now. Neither was willing to leave their bed.
The co-captains rolled to face each other with hands held between them. After some time spent in comfortable silence, Stede finally wondered aloud, “do you think the crew heard us?”
Ed snorted. “Well, if they hadn’t heard us — which I’m pretty sure they did — Lucius was already making comments about ‘interrupting’ when he pulled me outta here earlier, so I’m sure the boy already filled ‘em in.”
“Always so perceptive, that one,” Stede acknowledged fondly. He then sombered slightly and timidly asked, “will you sleep here… with me?”
The crows' feet around Ed’s eyes deepened with his smile. That mischievous look was back in his eyes but his tone was genuine, “I mean, I had planned on it. After all, you said ‘what mine is yours but if you’ve changed your —“
Stede quieted him with a kiss. “Please do stay though — here, on The Revenge too, I mean. I know that you were saying that you were looking for the next adventure but I had rather hoped that maybe this, us,” Stede looked down. Edward almost didn’t hear him whisper “I thought maybe we — could be the next adventure? It’s stupid..”
Ed lifted Stede’s head with two gentle fingers under the chin. “S’not stupid, Stede. This is the most fun I’ve had at sea in ages. With you,” he paused to find the right words. “So I reckon any adventure with you is where I want to be. You make me happy.”
Stede preened in Ed’s admitted affections. “This is the most fun I’ve ever had. You make me happy, Edward.”
With Ed still gently holding Stede’s chin, both men leaned in for a slow, deep kiss and fell asleep in each other’s arms for the first time.