old and new, a 07-ghost fanfic

Preface

Old and New
Posted originally on the Archive of Our Own at /works/38029225.

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Archive Warning: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Category: M/M Fandom: Our Flag Means Death (TV) Relationship: Blackbeard Edward Teach/Stede Bonnet Character: Mary Allamby Bonnet, Stede Bonnet, Blackbeard Edward Teach, Assorted other pirates Additional Tags: In which Mary gets to meet Stede's new family, Mostly because I wanted her to interact with Ed, dumb pirate shenanigans, kind of a continuation of my last fic (but not really), so you can definitely read this without reading that first, It's time for a family reunion!, exasperating pirates are exasperating, Mary has also contracted the OFMD brainrot and worries about her sanity lol, whoops there's angst now, canon typical violence (but only for a bit), actions have consequences and Stede keeps having to face them, poor mary, awkward and slightly misguided attempts at comfort, the pirates try to fix their mistakes to varying levels of success Language: English Series: Part 1 of Mary Bonnet's Guide to Befriending Local Pirates Collections: Ed and Mary meet, our flag means death 3 break his bed not his heart, My heart is full, Lilranko Great Stories to Rediscover Stats: Published: 2022-03-29 Completed: 2022-04-01 Words: 10,992 Chapters: 4/4 Old and New

by the_author_anonymous

Summary

Mary looked at Stede. Stede looked back at Mary, his eyes pleading. Mary sighed again. Stede was annoying, and undoubtedly the stupidest man she'd ever had the misfortune of knowing. But she had wondered for a while if, now that they had thrown off the shackles of their forced marriage, they could, possibly, be friends. And this would probably be her only chance to find out.

Besides, she was dying to meet this 'Ed' of his and see for herself what sort of person could fall in love with a man as odd as Stede Bonnet.

Notes

Back again with another BlackBonnet (Stedeward? BlackStede?) fic! I just really wanted to explore Mary a little more, and maybe see how she and Ed would interact. I hope you enjoy!

See the end of the work for more notes

Chapter 1

Chapter Notes

See the end of the chapter for notes

The Widow Mary Bonnet set her brush aside with a sigh. The painting before her was nearly complete: Once she added a few more details, and perhaps cleaned up the background a little bit, she knew she would be satisfied with her work. But it was late, and all of that would have to wait for tomorrow. Mary rubbed the strain from her eyes and extinguished the candles around her workspace. Time for bed.

The night was cool when she stepped outside, crossing the dusty courtyard to get to the main house. A light breeze ruffled her hair, freeing a few strands from her loose bun and drifting them across her face. The full moon overhead bathed her home in eerie blue light. As she opened the door, she idly wondered if she could use the image as inspiration for her next project. But such a painting would likely end up as nothing more than a mess of ill-defined shadows, and she quickly discarded the idea.

The house was quiet. She had put the children to bed two hours before, and Doug was still away, visiting his sister in the next town over. Only the hall sconces were lit now, A flickering path to guide Mary in from the cold. She absently lit a candelabra from one of them and started making her way down the hallway, blowing out the sconces as she did. She was tired, but her mind whirled with brushstrokes and shapes and color, too active for sleep. Perhaps a cup of chamomile would be in order before bed.

As she made her way to the back of the house, she slowly became aware of a light in the kitchen. Mary frowned. It looked almost like candlelight, coming from several sources, but she knew everything in there had been extinguished before she left the house. She always checked! Mary slowed her pace, creeping towards the room on silent feet.

As she got closer, she heard the low murmur of voices. Mary's breath caught in her throat, her heart pounding loudly in her ears. Intruders? She gripped the candelabra tightly. Her children were upstairs. She should probably run to them immediately and take them to get help. But her curiosity got the better of her: She couldn't leave without finding out more about her unwelcome guests.

Mary inched closer to the door. A dark shape slid past the doorway, and she froze, not daring to breathe. The voices inside increased in volume, but no one came running out to find her. One of them hissed something, and the others quieted back down to a whisper. Mary breathed out. Ever so carefully, she took another step –

"Mary!" A familiar voice called.

Mary startled, before closing her eyes with a sigh. Of course, it was him. Who else would break into her house at midnight and not even bother to be secretive about it? Mary turned around to face her guest.

Stede beamed as he walked down the hallway towards her. He was dressed simply, in plain breeches and a slightly tattered shirt. He looked a little bedraggled, and more than a little tired, but the circumstances that led to his appearance didn't seem to have dampened his spirits. Mary watched his jaunty approach, bemused, and allowed him to pull her into loose hug.

"There you are! I was looking all over for you. You weren't in the bedroom, so I thought you might be in your studio. But then I said to myself, 'Oh, what if Doug is in there with her?' And I knew you wouldn't want any of the guys seeing that! So, I told them to wait here, while I – "

"Stede!" Mary hissed, pulling back from his embrace, "What are you doing here?"

Stede grimaced slightly, glancing away from her. "Ah. Well, you see, Mary, we're in a spot of trouble, the guys and I. People looking for us and such. Not the law! Well, I suppose the English navy is, and the Spanish, too, but I'm talking about other people. Bad people. We needed a place to lay low for a while, and I – "

"There are 'bad people' looking for you, and you came back here?" Mary asked incredulously. She felt like tearing her hair out. "You would put the children in danger?! What is wrong with you, Stede Bonnet?"

Her insufferably idiotic ex-husband had the gall to look hurt by her accusation. "I'm not putting them in danger, Mary, I swear!" He exclaimed. "I would never do that!"

"And how do you know that Stede."

"Look, the people hunting us – they know me. They know I, er, abandoned you, and the kids, and that I cut myself off completely from our old life. This is the one place they'll never think to look for us!" Stede looked at her imploringly, "Please, Mary. I promise that I thought this through, and this is the best solution I could come up with. Besides, it will be lovely to spend time with the kids again. And you, of course," he added hastily.

Mary sighed, "But you're supposed to be dead, Stede. You can't just go wandering around the estate, someone will see you!"

"We'll be careful, Mary, I promise. I won't even go outside if I don't have to," Stede wheedled. "Please, Mary? Just for a few days. You can meet the guys! They're wonderful people, once you get to know them. I'm sure you'll all get along spectacularly."

Besides, she was dying to meet this 'Ed' of his and see for herself what sort of person could fall in love with a man as odd as Stede Bonnet.

"Fine," she groaned after a few beats of silence, "but only for a few days. And none of you can go wandering around outside, alright? If anyone sees strange men on the grounds, we're going to end up with half the constabulary on our doorstep. And if anyone sees you, I will actually murder you this time, I swear to God, Stede!"

Stede beamed and pulled her in for another quick hug. "Thank you, Mary, I promise we'll be discrete! I have to tell the crew – oh, you really should meet them, Mary. They'll be so excited you're letting us stay," he babbled, ushering Mary towards the kitchen.

As they stepped through the door, Mary was greeted by eleven grubby faces wearing expressions that varied from nervously polite to hostile suspicion. Some of them were holding half-eaten scraps of bread, and she could tell by the empty tin on the kitchen bench that her biscuit stash had been plundered as well. They all stopped talking as soon as she entered the room, looking between her and Stede.

"Er," Mary said, unsure why Stede thought she would get along with any of these strange people.

"Everyone, this is Mary," Stede announced cheerfully, oblivious to his ex-wife's discomfort. "She's agreed to let us stay for a while! Mary, this is my crew. Introduce yourselves, guys!"

The assembled crew proceeded to introduce themselves at the same time, and Mary didn't catch any of their names in the clamor. Some of the names had been mumbled so sullenly that Mary wasn't sure if she would have heard them even if they had gone individually. But she honestly didn't care what most of their names were, anyway. She looked from pirate to pirate, scanning the crowd and trying to determine which man was Edward. She hesitated over a couple faces, but she really didn't have enough information to single out the man in question.

"Um. It's wonderful to meet you all – " Mary began.

"Hey Stede," a deep voice called from behind her, "Where's the – oh. Erm."

Mary turned around. A tall, leather-clad man stood in the doorway. He had a short beard and long grey hair that was haphazardly tied away from his face. Black ink swirled down his exposed arm, before disappearing into a glove of the same dark leather as the rest of his attire. He looked dangerous, if slightly ridiculous, and a little out of place compared to the rest of Stede's men. He stared at Mary with wide eyes, shuffling his feet uncertainly.

Ah, Mary thought. She extended a hand towards him. "Mary Bonnet," she greeted firmly.

The man glanced at Stede, before cautiously reaching out to press her hand in a loose grip.

"Edward Teach. But, uh . . . you can call me Ed."

Chapter End Notes

Thanks for reading! I'm planning two more chapters for this one, so stay tuned!

Chapter 2

Chapter Notes

Here's the second chapter! Man, I am really pushing these things out this time (because I've spent way too much time writing this. Seriously. I have other things I should be doing lol). Hopefully the third chapter will be up soon!

See the end of the chapter for more notes

Over the course of their stay, Mary found herself fascinated by the pirates. They were unlike anyone she had ever met, both as individuals and as a group. All of them, including Stede, had decided to set up camp in the back parlor. She'd offered her ex-husband personal use of one of the guest bedrooms, but he'd declined on the basis of 'maintaining good rapport with the men.' The crew spent two hours that first night turning the parlor into a massive blanket fort, squabbling and laughing and generally acting as if there was nothing odd about being there at all. They settled down expectantly when Stede entered the room with a book, and Mary watched, awed, as they drifted off to the sound of their captain reading one of her children's favorite stories aloud.

Mary started recording observations in her journal, if only to prove to her future self that this experience had really happened. She had no idea if Doug would believe her, either, since the pirates would likely be gone long before he returned. Their behavior defied logic, and it was riveting. Mary only forced herself to stop writing when she realized she had started to mutter as she scribbled. She stared down at the book, wondering if she, too, was catching the madness that clearly had Stede's entire crew in its thrall.

So. A few observations about the crew:

Oluwande was the first crew member to truly introduce himself to her. He was kind, and gentle, and seemed to possess a measure of common sense that the other pirates lacked. Mary wondered why he wasn't the captain instead of Stede. In all honesty, Olu probably was captain in all but name, although the man clearly didn't want command. But the rest of the crew trusted him implicitly, and he quietly kept the peace while Stede focused most of his attention on Ed.

Really, his only flaw seemed to be that he went a little stupid around Jim, and the chaos level increased significantly whenever they were in the same room. But that was alright, Mary thought. Love made her a little stupid, too.

Jim was . . . difficult to read. They had an air of competence that Mary had rarely seen. Whenever she was in the room they watched her intensely, dark eyes silently cataloging her every movement. They were always armed, and she often found them wandering around the house, twirling a dagger or two with dexterous fingers. The overall effect was highly intimidating, but Mary was nevertheless intrigued. Here was a person who was dangerous and knew it, and they didn't care if you knew it as well.

But, for all her interest, Mary never did work up the courage to talk to Jim. She was mostly sure they wouldn't hurt her if she did speak to them, of course, but . . . even with her apparent new-found attraction to trouble, there were still some perils Mary was reluctant to face.

The one called Frenchie had obviously worked in service before. He unconsciously slipped back into that role the first time they spoke, treating her with a deference that was instantly recognizable. Mary could tell the exact moment he realized he had fallen back into old habits; the pirate paused midsentence and shook his head with a muttered curse. His gaze was defiant when it met hers again, as if daring her to comment on his lapse. Mary resolved not to allow such a thing to happen twice. She went out of her way to provide him with tea and biscuits and all the other trappings of a guest, and hoped that the man was reassured that she didn't think of him as anything else.

Frenchie was also an excellent musician, Mary found. His singing voice was lovely, and he could pick out almost any tune on his lute. Mary congratulated him on his skill, but had to pull him aside to discuss the appropriateness of performing certain songs around the children. Frenchie had smiled, thanking her for the compliment and stating that he would take her concerns 'into consideration.' He still continued to play after that, but the subject matter of his pieces was, to Mary's eternal relief, much less violent.

Stede introduced Lucius to Mary as a fellow artist. He dragged her over to speak with the other man, beaming like a proud parent as they sat down awkwardly in the front parlor. Stede told them to get along and chuckled, before flitting out of the room to do God knows what. Across from Mary, Lucius sighed and gave her a keen once over, before pulling a tattered book out of his pocket. He then proceeded to show her some of his work, which ranged from half-finished still lifes to incredibly meticulous studies of the other pirates.

He was really quite good. His old sketchbook had been much better, he explained, but he'd lost it several weeks ago, and this was what he had left. Then he went quiet for a while, staring at a space just over Mary's shoulder. Mary hastily offered to show him her own work, out in the studio. Lucius smiled and seemed to come back to himself at that, agreeing that a tour of her studio would be lovely.

At one point, Lucius stepped out of the room for a moment to talk to the other men, leaving Mary alone with his sketchbook. Ever curious, Mary had used that opportunity to flip through to a few of the sketches he hadn't shown her. After a few pages Mary paused, her eyes going round at the artwork within. She blushed crimson, and quickly slammed the book closed. Then, after making sure no one was watching, she cautiously lifted the cover for another peek.

Very talented indeed, that man. She wondered if Lucius took commissions, and if Doug would be willing to pose for one of the pirate's more . . . detailed pieces. Mhm. Now there was a thought.

Mr. Buttons was an odd duck, though Mary wondered if 'odd gull' might be a more apt description. She then wondered when she had become the kind of woman who made such bad puns. But following that line of thought would certainly lead to insanity, so Mary dropped it quickly. Buttons spent most of his time sitting in the back parlor, staring out the window and sighing. The fifth time Mary caught him there she made the mistake of asking what was wrong. Afterwards, she couldn't remember exactly what he said, though she was pretty sure he had garbled something utterly incomprehensible about seagulls and moonlight. Buttons had looked so distraught by the end that Mary found herself agreeing that he could spend time out on the veranda, so long as he remained hidden.

When she glanced outside a short time later, she saw him out there, hiding in the bushes. He was wearing an expression of absolute bliss, a seagull perched comfortably atop his bald pate. Mary stared for a few moments, then shook her head. She wasn't going to ask, not even under pain of death – she doubted her sanity enough already, thank you very much.

The remaining crew members avoided Mary at all costs. They eyed her warily whenever she entered the room, pausing in their mutterings until she left again. She had tried asking one of them (Fang? She was almost certain someone had called him that the night before) if he would like some tea. The big man had blushed, stammering out a polite refusal and all but running away. Mary didn't know why they were so afraid of her, as she'd never thought of herself as scary or even imposing.

When she asked Olu about it the man had just laughed. He told her that Stede had cautioned everyone to be polite around her, which, by itself, was not usually enough to make them behave. But then Ed had come along after him, quietly informing each man that there would be consequences for rude behavior. Apparently, he had terrified some of the pirates so much that they were afraid to even speak in her presence. It was a sweet gesture, if unnecessary and completely over the top. Privately, Mary found the results quite funny, and struggled to keep herself from laughing every time one of them bolted from the room.

And that was Stede's crew. Which just left Ed, and Ed was . . .

"Did you fall in love with fucking Blackbeard?" Mary hissed over breakfast the first morning.

"Hm? Oh. Yes," Stede replied, not bothering to look up from the paper.

Mary was filled with a sickening sense of déjà vu. Her mind was thrust back to ten years of unhappy marriage, Stede sitting at the table just as he was now and ignoring her presence. Her heart fluttered slightly in panic, and she closed her eyes against the feeling.

The illusion was shattered by a loud bang from the next room over, followed by muffled cursing as the other pirates continued their attempt to dust her cabinetry. Mary took a deep breath.

"And when were you going to tell me you brought Blackbeard into my home?" Mary demanded.

Stede put the paper down with a sigh. "Really, Mary. He's quite lovely, I promise. Not at all like the books say – well, sometimes he's like that, but most of that is just for show. Like our fuckery, remember? Ed's the one who taught me that, he used to do it a lot when he was, erm . . . "

Stede trailed off, rustling the pages in his hands absentmindedly. "Look, I promise he's alright," he finally said. He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, "And, uh – maybe don't mention the whole 'Blackbeard' thing, okay? It's a bit of a touchy subject right now."

"Fine," Mary agreed waspishly. She badly wanted to press Stede for more details. It was impossible to miss the tension that existed between Ed and the rest of the crew, and she knew there was a story in there somewhere. But Stede was getting the squirrelly look that always used to mean he was one wrong question away from retreating to his study for the rest of the day, so Mary let the matter lie. She could figure it out on her own, and she resolved to keep an even closer eye on Edward while he was there.

Blackbeard. God, Stede.

But Ed really was nothing like she'd read in papers and story books. He spent hours on the first day just wandering around the house, inspecting the dishware and peering into cupboards. He touched everything, running his hands over couches and pillows and the shelves upon shelves of Stede's old books. Once he was finished investigating a space, he would run to find Stede and ask him questions with an almost boyish wonder. He asked about the fabrics he found, and how someone had managed to blow glass so thin, and who could find enough time to paint all the tiny details on her grandmother's china set.

There was so much he wanted to know, and most of it seemed utterly frivolous to Mary. If Ed had asked any of Stede's former peers the questions he was airing now, he would have been met with ridicule and scorn. But Stede just smiled kindly, and patiently answered the barrage of inquiry as best he could. Mary got the feeling that this was a common occurrence for them, just as she realized how hard Ed's life must have been for him to know so little of comfort, and be so interested in what she had always considered mundane.

"He is quite handsome, I guess," Mary said, watching Ed rifle through her best silverware.

"Yes, I suppose he is," Stede admitted quietly. He chuckled into his hand when Ed pulled out a prawn fork and glared at it.

"His beard is rather something," she continued.

"Isn't it? Oh, but this is nothing, Mary. You should have seen it when we first met! It was so long and wavy. Quite magnificent."

"Hm," Mary agreed. There were a few beats of silence as they both pondered the merits of Ed's facial hair. "I've never kissed a man with a beard. That must be something as well," she mused slyly.

Stede shot her a startled look, flushing down to his neck. His eyes flicked nervously to Edward, who had long since gotten used to their watchful presence and was ignoring them in favor of sorting through her napkins. Stede flicked his eyes back to her. He cleared his throat and shuffled in place.

"We haven't . . . well. Not since the beach, before I left. And he was clean shaven then so . . . I wouldn't know," he finished at a mumble.

Mary regarded him evenly. "You know, for a man who tells his crew to talk things out, you seem remarkably bad at following your own advice," she commented.

"What are you talking about?" Stede asked, looking puzzled.

Mary rolled her eyes. "Look, I know you didn't tell me everything, Stede. But it's obvious that your strategy to win him back didn't go quite as planned," Stede looked away guiltily, "There's a lot of tension between him and the crew, and I'd say there's even more between the two of you, though you're both better at hiding it."

"You're not wrong," Stede sighed. "He took my abandonment badly. Much worse than you seemed to, I must say. It's silly, how I keep doing that to people I care about, isn't it?" Stede frowned, looking more lost than she'd ever seen him. He took a deep breath, "But he's here now, and so is the crew. And that's what's important, right?"

Mary reached out and touched Stede's elbow. "Talk to him, Stede. You know you love him, and it's clear he still cares about you very much. Allow yourself to find happiness, as I have," she advised quietly.

"Thank you, Mary. I'll think about what you said," Stede smiled weakly.

He nodded to Mary and excused himself from the room. Mary watched him go silently. She wondered how bad their falling out had been, for this rift to still exist between them. And the fact that it affected the entire crew . . . she shook her head. It must have been terrible, and it didn't bear thinking about now. She would figure it out soon enough.

The next surprise about Edward came from the children. Mary had, naturally, been wary of exposing her children to the company of bloodthirsty criminals. But given the state of her guest's confinement, she could hardly keep them away forever. Alma and Louis were ecstatic to find out that their father had come to visit, and he'd brought real life pirates with him, too! They had rushed out to meet the crew before she could fully dismiss them from lunch, yelling and screaming as they ran down the hallway. Mary hurried after them. While she couldn't prevent them from meeting, she was still unwilling to leave them alone in the pirates' care.

It quickly became clear that the crew didn't have much experience with kids. They spoke to them in halting sentences, answering Alma's rapid-fire questions and constantly looking to Mary, as if afraid their answers might be inappropriate. Louis managed to coerce a bewildered Wee John into swinging him about as if he were on a ship at sea. The pirates were out of their depth, but the children just laughed and giggled and made the hard men around them smile. It was the happiest Mary had seen either of them in months. But while they loved all of the crew, their favorite pirate by far was Ed.

They adored Ed.

Ed had treated them just as awkwardly as the rest of the crew at first. But he was gentle with them, and answered all their questions with the careful consideration most men gave to more serious matters. They were fascinated by his leather coat, and the knife at his hip, and the wild tangle of his beard. Louis asked if he would play pirates with them, and Ed turned him down with a quiet shake of his head. But Louis was persistent, and by the time Alma joined in Mary could already see Ed's resolve cracking. Mary smiled in spite of herself: No one could resist the combined powers of her children's pleading eyes for long.

They played pirates for hours, swashbuckling throughout the first floor of the house. Ed led them on a merry dance, his wooden sword parrying theirs easily as he shouted mock curses and ridiculous insults. Occasionally he allowed Alma or Louis to get a hit through his guard and fell to the floor with a yell. Every time he fell he would fake a different gruesome death, complete with realistic gurgling and other sounds of dying. The children loved it.

Despite the kids' hysterical laughter, Mary wondered if it was perhaps too realistic. She sighed, resigning herself to dealing with the ceaseless cycle of the nightmares that were sure to come. At least they were enjoying themselves right now. To believe she once thought no one else could be as bad as Stede . . .

The last thing Mary noticed about Ed was less obvious than the others. In fact, it took nearly the whole day for her to pick up on it. She couldn't tell if it was on purpose at first, but as time wore on, she became more certain.

Edward was avoiding her.

Oh, he would coexist in the same room as Mary, even speak with her if prompted. And he never acted as if her presence was unwelcome. But there was always someone else around them. Sometimes she would follow him into an empty room, and in the blink of an eye she would be alone there, as if by magic. Mary didn't even have anything she particularly wanted to say to the man, but his avoidance was driving her to distraction. She became more determined to corner Ed alone with each escape, but every time she tried, he managed to slip from her grasp.

Mary found Stede later that evening with the intention of confronting him about it. She opened her mouth, frowning, and then stopped, taking in his appearance. His blouse looked somehow more disheveled than before and was partially untucked on one side. His hair was mussed, blonde curls sticking up at odd angles. Mary took one look at the dreamy smile on his face and grinned.

"I suppose congratulations are in order?" She teased.

Stede blushed. "I don't – it wasn't like that, we just – God. Mary!" He stammered.

Mary laughed at her ex-husband's discomfort, and Stede glared at her, before breaking out in a chuckle of his own. She teased him for a little longer, while Stede adamantly insisted that 'nothing happened, really, we just talked and . . . well. Stop grinning like that, Mary, I told you it wasn't like that!' But for all his protestations, Stede readily accepted the guestroom when she offered it again.

Giggling like children, they saw each other off to bed. A few minutes later, Mary heard the thump of heavy boots coming down the hallway. The guestroom door groaned open, then clicked as it locked shut. Mary smiled to herself, giddy with secondhand happiness. She lay down to sleep, all thought of Ed's avoidance forgotten.

Chapter End Notes

Lucius is alive and well and you can't tell me otherwise.

Chapter 3

Chapter Notes

Sooooo this chapter got a bit out of hand, and I decided to split it in two.

Also of note: This one is a bit of a change in tone compared to the first two (which is on par with canon, isn't it DAVID JENKINS). I was always planning on having the angst, but, again, this part went on a little longer than I anticipated. Whoops. This chapter is mostly hurt, but the fluff/comfort comes back in the next one.

TW for canon typical violence.

See the end of the chapter for more notes

Mary awoke suddenly, bolting upright in bed. There was a loud crash from downstairs. Someone screamed.

She quickly stumbled out of bed, not bothering to pull on her dressing gown. In the dark, she fumbled with the bedroom door and jerked it open. She heard cursing and the distant clang of steel as fighting broke out somewhere in the house.

Oh God, Mary thought. What have I done?

There was a flutter of movement as Ed sprinted past her. He was buckling his weapons belt on as he moved, though it appeared he had shed the rest of his leather for the night's rest. When he got to the stairs he leapt on the banister, sliding down rapidly, and disappeared over the landing.

"Mary!" Stede emerged from the guestroom. He was in a similar state of half-dress, and Mary saw the glint of a sword in his hand. "I – "

"Go," Mary commanded, "I'll get the children."

Stede nodded sharply and scrambled to follow Edward. The sounds of fighting escalated as he descended. Glass shattered, and she could hear the moaning of injured men. Mary took a deep breath, heart pounding. She rushed down the hallway towards the children's rooms.

Alma's door was ajar. Mary felt a flutter of despair and tried to reign in her panic. She opened her mouth to call out, but then the door cracked open further. Her daughter's head peeked out, turning to face the stairs. She ran to Mary when she approached, clutching at her mother's waist tightly.

"Mother, what's happening?" Alma asked tremulously.

Mary's heart broke at the terror in her voice. "Everything's alright, darling. Let's go get your brother," she soothed, ushering the girl further away from the stairs.

Louis' door was firmly closed. Mary opened it quickly and scanned the room for her son. But the bed was empty. She strained her eyes to look again, but she still couldn't see him anywhere.

"Louis?" She called frantically, "Louis, you need to come out, darling."

Alma released her mother and ran towards the bed. She lay down on the floor beside it and peered underneath.

"He's down here, mother!" Alma whispered.

Mary felt a surge of relief. "Louis, we need to go somewhere else. Please come out?" She pleaded, taking an anxious step forward.

After a few moments of shuffling, Louis' head appeared from beneath the bed. He was sniffling, and moonlight glinted off the tear tracks that ran down his face. Alma grabbed her brother's hand and pulled him the rest of the way out. Both children hurried towards their mother, neither of them releasing the grip they had on the other.

Mary checked to see if the hallway was clear before leading the children out of the room. She quickly shepherded them towards the study. It was the farthest room from the stairs, Mary reasoned, and it should be the safest place for them to hide. As soon as the door closed behind them, she scrambled to grab the key from Stede's old desk. In her rush, she almost knocked it to the floor, but she managed to catch it at the last second. Her hands were trembling as she went back to the door, but after a few attempts she managed to turn the lock.

Mary exhaled. They were safe.

She still took Alma and Louis to the far corner of the room, behind the desk. With her guidance they managed to wedge themselves between the dormant fireplace and the adjacent wall. Louis was crying again, sobs rattling his small shoulders. Alma wrapped her arms around her brother and held him tight. Mary knelt before her children.

"Everything is alright," she repeated, not sure who she was trying to convince at this point. "We're safe here. But we need to be very quiet, okay? Do you think you can do that for me, darlings?"

Alma and Louis nodded. Mary ran a hand through Alma's hair and forced a smile. Her children responded quickly, though their answering smiles were a little wobbly around the edges. Mary hoped hers had looked more believable than that. She kissed each child on the forehead, then stood up and tried to figure out what to do next.

Assuming none of the attackers made it up the stairs, Alma and Louis would be perfectly safe where they were. And even if they did . . . the door was locked, there was no light, and the children were very good at staying silent. That should keep out the idly curious. She could only hope that Stede or the other pirates would notice any interlopers before they got too keen in their investigation.

Mary refused to consider what would happen if Stede and his crew were overwhelmed. Everything will be alright, she told herself. They were bloody pirates, after all. Getting into fights was what they did for a living –

There was a loud bang! and the study door rattled on its hinges. Mary jumped at the sound. Bang! The door shook again, and Alma stifled a muffled yelp into Louis hair. Mary stepped forward to stand between her children and the doorway.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Someone cursed roughly in the hallway. Mary looked around the study wildly, searching for something, anything she could use to defend them –

With a resounding crack! the door burst inward. Mary lunged for the poker resting against the fireplace. She raised it in front of her with shaking hands as the intruder stepped into the room.

The man was huge. He was bald, and had blue tattoos that spiderwebbed across one side of his face and down his neck. She had never seen him before, but he was dressed in a way that practically screamed his profession: Pirate. But unlike Stede's crew, who Mary thought of as amusingly bizarre and mostly harmless, this man exuded an aura of true menace that had her taking an unconscious step back.

The pirate smirked when he saw her poker and raised his sword.

Mary forced herself to stand up straight. "Stay back," she ordered, brandishing the poker with as much confidence as she could muster.

The man just laughed at her. He shook his head and took another step closer. Mary held her ground. He took another step, and then another. He was now only feet away, and she could see the moonlight glinting off the whites of his eyes –

A black blur raced through the doorway and slammed into the stranger's back. He crashed to the ground at Mary's feet with a shout, his sword clattering beneath the desk. The man squirmed wildly, struggling to rise again, but his attacker had him pinned.

Edward snarled from where he was wrapped around the pirate's back. Mary could see the glint of steel in his hand as he tried to drive a knife into the other man's side. The bald man squirmed again, and Ed's blade buried itself in the floor. He tried to pull it out of the wood with a grunt. But the stranger managed to get his feet beneath him. He bucked Ed off with a smooth motion of his hips and turned to face him.

Knifeless, Ed grinned madly before launching himself back at the pirate. The two men grappled each other, shoving and snarling wordlessly. The bald man tried to ram an elbow in Ed's face, but Edward ducked out of the way. Ed feinted left, then drove his skull into his enemy's chin with a crack. The other man reared back, dazed. Ed pushed up on the balls of his feet and slammed into the pirate again, pushing him down. The intruder fell over backwards. Ed scrambled on top of his body, pinning him to the floor once more.

Ed trapped the pirate's hips between his thighs and locked his shins around the other man's knees. The stranger growled at him and bucked up, but Ed just swayed with the motion and refused to be dislodged. The man tried to punch him. Ed just took the blow, grabbing the bald man's wrist before he could pull away and forcing it to the ground. With only one hand free now, the pirate was getting increasingly desperate. He clawed at Ed's face recklessly and tried to struggle out of his hold.

Ed wrenched his knife out of the floor.

The stranger grabbed Ed's forearm as he began lowering the blade towards his throat. Ed just grimaced and leaned forward, applying pressure against the man's grip. Slowly, inexorably, the dagger got closer to the intruder's neck. The bald man still struggled, but this close, Mary could see the fight leaving his eyes. He was going to lose, and there was nothing he could do about it. The blade was less than an inch away by the time his strength gave out. Edward surged forward, the edge of his knife kissing skin, and –

Ed hesitated, glancing at Mary. A hint of uncertainty and fear passed over his face and was gone almost as soon as it came. He looked back to the other pirate and pulled away slightly. He faltered only for a moment, but that was all the time the bald man needed.

The stranger twisted out of Ed's grasp and managed to flip them over. He thrust an elbow into Ed's sternum. Ed gasped, curling in on himself. With both hands, the other pirate managed to pry the knife from Edward's grasp. He thrust the blade down towards Ed's face. Ed caught his forearm and pushed back; their position was now completely reversed from what it had been mere moments before. Mary could see his muscles straining as the bald man grimaced and settled more of his weight against Ed's resistance. The tip of the knife wavered lower –

As if in a dream, Mary saw herself step forward until she stood over the struggling men. She raised the poker above her head with both hands. On the ground Edward snarled. The bald man hissed in triumph, the blade dropping another inch closer to Ed's eye –

Mary brought the poker down over the intruder's head. Then she did it again, and once more for good measure.

The bald man sagged on top of Ed, the knife dropping from his loose grip to rattle against the floor. Ed shoved the dead man off his chest, panting. He looked up at Mary with an awed expression.

"Fucking brilliant, you are," Ed croaked, "Thank you."

Mary just nodded, unable to form a verbal response. She felt numb. The poker was a cold weight in her hands. She'd just killed a man.

God. She'd killed a man.

Edward got up on shaky feet and retrieved his knife. "Might want to keep that close at hand, for now," he said, pointing to her poker.

Mary nodded again. Ed gave her a shrewd look and glanced down at the body. He stepped towards her carefully, placing a gentle hand on her elbow.

"C'mon," he muttered, and led her back towards the children.

Both Alma and Louis were crying now. A cold chill went through Mary: They had been mostly hidden by the desk and the fireplace, but God knew how much they had seen. Had they seen Edward struggle with the man, or put a knife to his throat? Did they know how close Ed had come to being stabbed himself? Or – God – did they witness what their mother had just done to protect their father's lover – to protect them?

Mary knew she should say something to them, should bend down and gather the children in her arms and whisper soothing nonsense until they calmed. But her heart was beating so hard in her chest. She was too raw right now, and she knew that any attempt to speak would only come out as screaming.

Ed stepped past her. He knelt in front of the children, put his hands on his knees and smiled. "It's alright, yeah?" He said, "All taken care of. You're okay, and your mother's okay, and everyone else is going to be just fine."

Alma blinked up at him, rubbing tears from her eyes. "How do you know," she whispered.

Ed winked at her. "It's just like playing pirates. And you're always fine after that, right?" Alma scrunched her nose skeptically, too old to truly believe the lie. Ed laughed. He reached out and gripped her hand, opening up her palm. Then he pulled the dagger from his belt and wrapped her fingers around the hilt. "Hold on to this for me, will you? After all, we can't play pirates if you don't have a weapon, now, can we?"

"And what about me?" Louis asked, peeking out from beneath his sister's arm.

Ed snorted. "Louis, a pirate as strong as you doesn't even need a weapon. Isn't that right, Alma?"

Alma rolled her eyes but nodded along. Louis frowned up at her, then pouted at Ed.

"But that's not fair," he whined.

"Don't worry, Louis, we can share. And if another pirate comes after us, I'll even let you have it first," Alma said.

"That's the spirt. Very piratical of you," Ed approved. He rose to his feet. "Both of you stay here until we tell you to come out alright?" The children nodded in agreement, though their attention was still primarily focused on the dagger. Ed grabbed the fallen sword from beneath the desk and rejoined Mary in front of the fireplace.

Mary wasn't sure how happy she was that the man had given her children an actual weapon to play with. But the gift had been an effective distraction from the horror that just took place, so she didn't have much room to complain.

"Thank you, Ed," She whispered, voice scratchy.

"Yeah," he agreed, taking in the white-knuckled grip Mary still had on the poker, "'Course." He settled into a defensive position beside her, holding the sword loosely in front of him and keeping a hand on the pistol at his hip. "It really should be over soon. Just a little while longer," Ed told her quietly.

They waited in the study for what felt like hours, staring out into the hallway and preparing for the next attack. Mary twitched at every sound from downstairs, but no one else ever came. She could feel the weight of exhaustion settling over her shoulders as the adrenaline of the fight wore off. Her arms were shaking from holding the poker up for so long, but she couldn't bring herself to lower it. Not yet.

Eventually the fighting downstairs died away, and the house went quiet again. The sound of footsteps approaching the room had both of them tensing up, but they relaxed when they saw Stede round the corner with a candle.

"Ed? Mary? Is everyone – my God!" Stede exclaimed, taking in the splintered door. Her ex-husband had blood spattered over his face, and the right side of his nightshirt was completely soaked with it. "God, God!" He repeated, distraught, hurrying over to Ed and Mary.

Stede glanced between the two of them before turning to Ed. "Are you alright?" He whispered urgently. He swiped a thumb over Edward's cheek where the dead man had punched him.

"Yeah, 'm fine," Ed replied. He ran his palm over Stede's bloody side, pulling away when he found no injury. "Fucker almost got me, but Mary saved my life. Should have seen her, Stede, she was fuckin' brilliant."

"Mary," Stede breathed, turning to face her, "God, Mary. I'm so sorry!" He pulled her in to a tight hug.

Mary hung there limply, too tired to pull away. 'Sorry' was not enough to cover this mess. Mary knew she should be angry with him. Hell, she should be furious, with how badly he endangered the kids. But right now, she couldn't bring herself to care. She'd have plenty of time to be angry at him later.

"I'm glad you're alright," Stede said when he finally released her. He gave her a wretched look. "God, this should never have happened. We were so careful! Fuck, I'm sorry, Mary. This is all my fault."

"I know, Stede," Mary sighed. She really didn't want to deal with this right now. "Can you check on the children?" She asked, blatantly trying to redirect him.

"Of course," Stede agreed immediately. He stepped around her and made his way behind the desk. "Louis? Alma? Are you alright?"

There was a chorus of 'yes' as the children got up and swarmed their father. Mary closed her eyes, listening as they peppered him with questions about the battle that took place downstairs. Stede answered all of them in more detail than she thought necessary, but somehow he still felt the need to call Ed over for a second opinion. Mary set the poker down slowly, leaning it against the fireplace. Then, with a final glance at her family, she slipped out of the room and into the dark.

Chapter End Notes

Thanks for hanging in with me, guys! Writing action is not my forte, my characters tend to be too introspective when facing life-or-death peril, but I think I managed it this time. Just as an FYI, even though Mary was worried, the kid's saw nothing that happened in front of the desk. I can't be that mean.

Next chapter will deal with expanding Ed and Mary's relationship, and I promise this story ends on a happy note! If I keep writing at this pace, it should be posted by tomorrow . . .

(Side note: I've enjoyed exploring Mary so much that I'm thinking of writing a short sequel to this fic . . . all fluff this time. Promise.)

Chapter 4

Chapter Notes

Here it is, the last chapter! We've made it back to comfort/fluff land (mostly)!

See the end of the chapter for more notes

Mary collapsed against the doorframe of her bedroom with a muffled sob. Her eyes prickled with tears, and she raised a shaking hand to cover her mouth. She'd just killed a man. Something she had never even imagined she could do. She had done it without even thinking, just calmly walked over and bashed him on the head. And now there was a dead man on the floor of her ex-husband's study.

Mary staggered inside and put a steadying hand against the wall. She couldn't stop thinking about how limp he looked as he fell. It had been so dark in the room that she hadn't been able to make out details when it happened, and she'd deliberately looked away from the body when Stede came in with the light. Had she deformed his skull with her blows, had she drawn blood? Did he lay there, now, mutilated beyond recognition, her children occupied by their father only feet away?

What kind of monster had she become?

She killed a man, God! She wasn't supposed to be capable of such brutality. She killed a man, and all she had felt in that moment had been relief. How could she ever be the same after this, with the knowledge that she was capable of such an act –

"You alright?" A voice rumbled behind her.

Mary startled and glanced over her shoulder. Ed was leaning in her doorway. His arms were crossed casually over his chest, and he regarded her with a calm gaze. Mary saw that his knife had once again returned to his belt. She felt a moment of relief, knowing that her children hadn't been left alone with a deadly weapon. Well – left with Stede, she amended, which often amounted to the same thing as being unsupervised.

"I'm fine," Mary lied.

She sniffled and pushed herself upright. She couldn't let him see her like this. He was a fearsome pirate with years of killing under his belt, and she doubted he'd be sympathetic to her moral crisis. Mary walked over to the mantlepiece, moving away from Ed under the pretense of lighting the fire. She fumbled the tinderbox and dropped it on the floor, cursing her clumsy hands.

Soft footsteps came up behind her as Ed entered the room. He knelt and grabbed the tinderbox, then busied himself with the fireplace.

"It's okay if you're not," Ed said once the tinder was lit. He added a few logs to the fire. "Most people aren't, their first time. I've seen grizzled men vomit, or faint, or run screaming into the ocean after their first kill. So . . . you're handling yourself well, really."

Mary giggled a little hysterically. "I have to tell you, it was a near thing on all three," she admitted, sitting heavily on the bed, "though the ocean is a bit far away for me to run to it. It would have been more of a quick stroll. And I suppose I would have had to pace myself with the screaming, to make it all the way there. God knows what the neighbors would have thought."

Ed chuckled and stood, wiping his hands on his shirt. Mary noticed for the first time that he was barefoot. Had he fought the whole time without his boots on? It was an inconsequential observation, but it was just strange enough to make her smile. Ed raised an eyebrow at her and she waved him off. He shook his head, turning to regard the painting above the fireplace.

"How did you get used to it?" Mary asked after several minutes of silence.

Ed paused, fiddling with a loose chess piece he had found on the mantle. He shrugged. "Most pirates do, but . . . I never did," he admitted quietly, refusing to look at Mary.

"Oh," Mary breathed, and she suddenly felt like she had a much clearer understanding of the man before her.

Blackbeard was one of the most infamous pirates in the Caribbean, renowned for his savagery, brutality, and ruthlessness. But Edward was a gentle man. He was curious and kind and good with her children. He freely offered her comfort after one of the most traumatizing experiences of her life, and he confided in her a vulnerability she was sure few others knew. Mary thought back to Ed's hesitation, to the fear she'd seen in his eyes when he'd been poised to slit the other man's throat. She wondered how many people he had actually killed before, and how many deaths he'd simply claimed to support his persona.

This. This must be what Stede saw, Mary thought. Blackbeard and Edward: Myth and man. A dichotomy wrapped up in a single bizarre individual. All the pieces clicked into place, and Mary finally understood why Stede fell in love with him.

Ed watched her from the corner of his eye. "Even if you never get used to it, you do learn to live with it. In my experience," he continued warily. He turned to face her, leaning back against the wall. "And besides – you saved my life, and you were protecting your kids. That's a damn better excuse than most people have."

"Thank you, Ed," Mary whispered, "That . . . that helps."

Strangely enough, it did. Mary didn't feel great about it by any means: She still thought murder was a terrible act, and no amount of justification would absolve her of that guilt. And she certainly expected her victim to haunt her nightmares for a while. But she felt calmer now, and she breathed easier. She'd always been a rational woman and having a logical excuse for her actions . . . it helped. She'd done a horrible thing, but at least she had a good reason why.

And besides: If Blackbeard, scourge of the seas, could live through worse and still retain a gentler nature, then Mary would be damned if she couldn't do the same.

"Yeah. 'Course," Ed said, looking at his feet.

They lapsed back into silence. Ed shuffled his arms around and tapped his foot on the floor. He kept glancing up at her and opening his mouth, but after a few seconds he would frown and go back to examining his toes. Mary waited patiently for him to work out whatever he wanted to say. She felt slightly unfocused, her fatigue giving her surroundings a haze of unreality.

"Can I ask you something?" Ed finally mumbled.

"Of course, Edward," Mary replied.

"Um," Ed raised a hand to rub the back of his neck, "Can you – can you not be too hard on Stede for all this? It's really not his fault."

Mary felt a tiny bubble of anger burst against the bulk of her exhaustion. "Ed. He has to face this."

"'M serious. It's not his fault! We were careful, and we made sure we weren't seen, and we bribed a fuckton of bartenders and dockhands to lie about seeing us elsewhere. Stede did everything right." Ed looked down at the floor again, "If you want someone to blame, then you can blame me. It's my fault."

"Ed – "

Ed shook his head sharply, his foot tapping at a more agitated pace, "It is my fault. They wouldn't have come here if it wasn't for me. If I had, I don't know, talked to Izzy about leaving, or worked up the courage to just kill the fucker, or . . . or gone my own way while Stede came here with the rest of the crew – "

"Edward!" Mary said firmly. She patted the bed beside her. "Come here."

Ed settled down reluctantly and sat on the edge of the bed. His shoulders were hunched inwards, and he clasped his hands tightly in his lap. He glanced up at Mary from beneath his eyelashes, his mouth set in a grim line. Mary motioned for him to continue.

"I should have known this would happen. But I didn't want to leave Stede again. And he was so excited about seeing you and the kids . . . I don't know. I thought we could make it work. 'M sorry," he finished quietly.

Mary regarded the man beside her as he curled in on himself further. He looked like he was preparing for a blow, or waiting for her to scream and curse and evict him from her presence. He was protecting Stede and was prepared to take the brunt of her fury to do so. But while Mary's anger with Stede was still simmering below the surface, she knew she didn't want to do any of that.

"Ed. Why were you avoiding me yesterday?" She asked, trying to buy more time to put together a coherent response.

Ed looked up at her, surprised by the change in subject. "Um. It's . . . sure. Uh, Stede told me he figured out how he felt after talking to you. Said you helped him cut ties with his old life so he could come back to me," Ed huffed a laugh, "fucking savage beast, honestly. Wish I could've seen it. But it's just – you've known him a long time, and he cares about you, and I was just, well . . . I was afraid you would get to know me and realize I wasn't good enough for him," he muttered.

The I was afraid you would tell him so, and he would realize it, too, went unspoken, but Mary heard it anyway. She laid a gentle hand over Edward's knuckles and waited for him to look her in the eye.

"Ed, I've spent the past 24 hours with Stede and his crew, but I can honestly say that is one of the craziest things I've ever heard," she stated flatly. "Of course, you're good enough for him – you changed his life! Changed my life, too. Stede and I were married for a long time, but . . . we never really knew each other. It wasn't until he ran off and met you that we could even begin to try. He's so alive around you, Ed, and even if you were a complete dullard, I'd be glad he has you at his side. Because you make him happy, and I think he makes you happy, too."

"He does," Ed agreed quietly. "I don't know if I deserve it, but he does."

"You do deserve it, Ed. You're honestly perfect for each other," Mary sighed. She tapped a finger against his hand. "Look, I reserve the right to be bloody – no, fucking – furious with Stede over this later. And maybe I'm too tired to think rationally right now, but . . . here. You say it's your fault the pirates are after you – fine. I believe you. But it's still Stede's fault for bringing you here, and you can't convince me otherwise. And . . . it's also my fault for allowing you to stay."

Ed furrowed his brow and tried to pull away, but Mary gripped his hands tightly. "I let you stay because I wanted to, Edward. I knew the danger, but I wanted to get to know Stede and the person who altered our lives for the better. I don't regret that. I only regret that I didn't order you to come back after the danger had passed," she laughed bitterly. "So, for the sake of brevity, let's agree that we all had a part in what just happened and leave the arguments for a later date, alright?"

"Yeah. Okay," Ed agreed, blinking rapidly. He smiled at her tentatively and stood up. "You should get some sleep if you can. Stede's putting the kids to bed, and the crew are gonna clean up the mess we made. I can stay here and keep watch if you want?"

A frisson of fear ran down Mary's spine at the thought of being left alone. "Yes. Please stay," she asked softly.

Ed nodded and settled himself on the couch at the foot of the bed. Mary hesitantly pulled back the covers and lay down. She was scared to close her eyes, afraid to see the dead man's face leering at her in her dreams. Ed started humming softly, a gentle tune that Mary couldn't place, for all that it sounded eerily familiar. She didn't actually know if he meant for her to hear it, but she found it soothing, nonetheless. Mary sighed and pulled the covers around her. She finally closed her eyes, and a short time later she drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

~*~

When Mary came downstairs the next morning, she was surprised by how . . . normal everything looked. The pirates had clearly been hard at work throughout the night, and their effort truly showed. Her floors were well scrubbed, and there was a fresh coat of whitewash on some of the walls. All the cabinets gleamed with new polish, and the windows had been wiped completely clean down to Louis' grubby handprints.

And, most importantly, there was a distinct lack of dead pirates anywhere.

"What did you do with them?" She asked Olu as he bustled past with a damp stack of dishware.

The pirate paused, balancing the china in one hand and placing the other on his hip. He gave her a long look and raised an eyebrow. Mary frowned at him.

"Are you sure you want to know?" He asked a few moments later. "I'll tell you if you want me to, but . . . "

"Right," Mary agreed hurriedly, suddenly thinking of phrases like plausible deniability, "best not."

As the pirates continued their labor, Mary wandered around the house and took stock. There were a couple of suspicious dark stains on the floor in the hallway, and a good third of her furniture was missing from the back parlor. The window in the kitchen was short two panes of glass, and the frame for her favorite painting had a gash down one side. She frowned as she rubbed gaping wood, wondering what sort of reminder the wound would serve for her in the future.

But the painting itself was fine, so Mary didn't let it worry her too much.

Lucius assured her that the hall stains were nothing a few rugs couldn't handle. He did make a face after he said it, so Mary didn't know how much she believed him. But she was willing to try the idea. Most of the missing furniture reappeared that afternoon in various states of repair. Mary could tell the pirates had tried their best to fix it, and she had to admit that some of them did have fair skill with woodworking. But none of men had any experience when it came to cushions, and a few of the chair seats were even patched with burlap.

Mary resigned herself to purchasing a lot of new furniture in the coming months.

A little after lunch, Frenchie approached her with an arm full of blankets and a cautious smile.

"Some of them got a bit torn in the scuffle, but I only had to toss out a few that were bloody. I fixed the rest up for you," he explained, offering her the pile.

"Thank you, Frenchie," Mary said, "that's very kind. I appreciate you taking the time."

Frenchie beamed at the compliment. "You're welcome. 's the least I could do, after we messed up your house." He sketched a gallant bow and loped off to join Wee John in the kitchen.

Mary set the stack of blankets down on a nearby table. She pulled one off the top of the pile and shook it open. She could tell immediately that it had, indeed, been torn. In fact, given the size of the tear, she'd been more inclined to call it slashed. The edges of the hole were sewn together inexpertly, and an obvious row of uneven black stiches extended half the length of the blanket.

Mary shook her head and sighed fondly. Frenchie was sweet, but she was pretty sure all the blankets in the pile had served their initial purpose. Perhaps the children could use them for picnics, though lambswool was not usually a fabric she pictured for such a use.

But while she spent a lot of time that day surveying the pirate's progress around the house, most of Mary's effort was used to avoid Stede.

"Mary," Stede whined as he cornered her in the dining room for the third time, "I just want to talk."

He looked awful. His skin was sickly pale, and his hair was limp against his skull. His eyes were rimmed with red, and Mary was pretty sure he had been crying again. Stede looked miserable, but she was still so angry with him that she was afraid of what might slip out.

"Not now, Stede," Mary said curtly, pushing past him to exit the room.

Stede caught her by the elbow. "Mary, please, I want to apologize. I am so sorry – "

"I know you are, Stede," she hissed, snatching her elbow from his grasp. Mary took a deep breath. "I know," she repeated calmly.

Stede fixed her with a pitiful stare. "Mary, I – I just want you to know that we're going to take care of this. Ed and I talked, and we don't think this is a problem that will go away on it's own. So, we've decided to go – "

"Stede!" Mary interrupted. Her ex-husband closed his mouth instantly, and she counted to ten. "I know you're sorry, and I know you have a plan for getting yourself out of this mess. But I just . . . can't, right now. Alright?" She said quietly.

Stede nodded wretchedly. "Okay, Mary. I – okay."

And when Mary moved to leave again, he didn't try to stop her.

By nightfall, the pirates' work was finished, and her home looked almost the same as it had two days before. The crew packed away their meager possessions and gathered by the door. Mary said goodbye to each of them individually, even the ones she'd never gotten the chance to speak to. Most of them gave her gruff nods in return, but Olu and Frenchie hugged her, and Lucius shot her an amused wink.

And then the only pirates left to see off were Edward and Stede.

The two men stood beside each other in front of the door, the rest of the crew milling around behind them. Stede mustered up a crooked smile when Mary stopped in front of them.

"Well. I guess this is goodbye," he croaked. His eyes wandered around the space above her shoulder, and his hands twitched aimlessly at his side.

Mary sighed and pulled him into a hug. After a pause, Stede exhaled shakily and wrapped his arms around her tightly.

"I really am sorry," he whispered, "I don't know what else to say."

"I know," Mary replied. "Looks like you'll have plenty of time to figure it out."

When she released him Stede looked away and rubbed at his eyes. "I'll make it up to you, Mary. I promise."

Unable to come up with an appropriate response, Mary nodded. She was still angry with him, but . . . she didn't think she would be forever. Stede was an idiot, but he had a good heart, and she did care about him. Given time – a lot of time – she knew she could forgive him. Mary sighed, then turned to Edward and dragged him into a hug of his own.

Ed was tense in her arms. Mary wasn't sure if it was from surprise, or if she'd just crossed a line she hadn't known about. Regardless of the reason, they were here now and backing down was not a viable option.

"The children will miss you," she whispered in Ed's ear.

Ed flinched, then slowly relaxed into her hold. He raised a timid hand and pressed it against her back.

"Oh," he murmured, "that's different. I'm not used to being missed."

Mary squeezed him again before pulling away. "Take care of each other," she commanded.

Ed winked. "Yeah. We'll be fine. Don't worry about us."

"We're going to fix this, Mary," Stede promised. With one last look around the darkened hallway, he ordered his crew out into the night.

Mary watched them file out the door one by one. The night outside was darker than usual as storm clouds rolled fitfully over the stars. She lost sight of them quickly in the gloom, and quietly hoped that they would make it off the island safely.

"Stede!" Mary called out when only Stede and Edward were left. Both pirates paused in the doorway, Stede with his foot raised over the threshold, and Ed with his hand pressed gently to Stede's back. "Next time you want to visit, make sure you deal with the people who want to kill you first, alright?"

Ed snorted and hid his face in the leather of his jacket. Stede smiled ruefully and stepped back into the house. He saluted Mary and bowed deeply.

"My dear Widow Bonnet, I wouldn't dream of coming to see you any other way."

Chapter End Notes

Thank you guys so much for sticking with me, the story has been a joy to write!

I think I will write that sequel, but I have stuff to write for capstone so . . . idk when that will be posted. This is fun, but I would like to graduate lol.

See you next time!

Afterword

End Notes

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it!

Please drop by the archive and comment to let the author know if you enjoyed their work!