Chapter Text
Stede couldn’t help but feel a little thrill as they approached the market. It was the first time he was unloading their goods without Ed, the first time he’d made enough of a name for himself that he would be taken seriously. It helped that Izzy trailed at his heels, glancing around the market with his hand on his sword.
“Beautiful day, isn’t it Izzy?”
“Yes, captain.”
And that was another thrill on its own, the way people glanced past him to land on Izzy, the way they stiffened and avoided them, the way they looked back at Stede with more caution.
Anyone that had Blackbeard’s dog at heel must be someone to pay attention to. And out here in view of strangers Izzy was even more obedient than usual, quick to jump to Stede’s commands with no back talk.
It made him want to touch Izzy, to grab his jaw and tilt it up, to show off exactly how obedient Izzy was for him. But it was a two way street. Izzy didn’t give him back talk and he respected Izzy’s space, understood how important it was for both of them to look the part.
He slowed and waited until Izzy was level with him before he turned his head and kept his voice low, unable to resist giving their first mate at least a little praise. “Such a good boy for me, Israel.” Out of the corner of his eye he saw Izzy blush and scowl before motioning roughly in the direction of an alley.
“Down that way, that's our best fence.”
He went the direction Izzy herded him in, felt him move up closer to Stede’s back as they moved into the darker gloom of the alley, and he tried to push down the sudden nervousness. “Are they dangerous?”
“Not to me.”
Stede knew that Izzy didn’t mean anything about it, could tell just by his voice that he wasn’t even paying much attention to what Stede asked, clearly keeping an eye on their surroundings for possible threats, but it still rubbed him the wrong way. The implication that he was in danger while Izzy could handle it fueled that insecurity that he didn’t seem to be able to fully shake, even after all these months.
His shoulders went back and he stood to his full height as he struggled with the urge to lash out at Izzy. To put him in his place.
“Right here, Captain.” Izzy slid around him to knock at a door and waited until he heard a confirmation from inside and pushed it open.
Stede’s hand darted out to grab Izzy by the collar of his shirt and yanked him back before he could make it through the door. “I’d imagine Captains first, yes?”
Izzy stumbled, clearly startled, but he only straightened his shirt and lowered his eyes, “Of course Captain, sorry.”
Guilt only made Stede feel worse as he slid through the doorway and watched Izzy follow him, shoulders pulled up around his ears, curled in on himself. Body language that Stede was intimately familiar with, knew it was the way Izzy looked when he thought his captains were angry with him, and he’d have to apologize later.
They were met by a large man and Stede bristled when the man’s attention immediately went to Izzy.
“Hands, been awhile.” Something in his voice set Stede on edge, and he felt Izzy move next to him. He assumed he was moving to greet the man so he stepped forward aggressively, forcing the man’s attention to him. He didn’t look impressed. “Bonnet, I’d assume, seeing as you have Izzy Hands with you.” His eyes darted to Izzy again before they came back to Stede, “Only ever seen him with Blackbeard before.”
“Yes, I'm Captain Bonnet.” Out of habit he almost added that it was a pleasure to meet him but stopped himself. “I am here to deal, and I do not have all day.” He made sure each word was snapped out, no hesitation, and was gratified when the man shrugged.
“Sure. What do you have for me?”
Throughout the negotiations Stede was aggravated as the man kept glancing at Izzy, like he was confirming what Stede was saying, and it didn’t help that Izzy looked progressively more upset. He had thought they were passed this, that Izzy didn’t fuss about Stede being one of his captains, but he looked plenty uncomfortable now. It fed the spark of anger he had felt earlier, and he grit his teeth.
The man, Adams, was currently trying to undercut them and Stede could feel himself getting heated as they argued. Izzy shifted next to him and he threw him a dark glare, sure that he had intended on stepping in, and Izzy settled back with a frown on his face.
Adams watched the exchange and when Stede looked back at him he gave him a considering look. “Listen, how about this? I’ll give you the price you want if I can have use of your first mate when the cargo is delivered.”
Izzy’s shoulders went back, his whole body going tense, as Stede tried to work out what the man was asking. The price was good, Ed hadn’t thought he’d be able to get that much and he’d love to be able to go back and brag about it. The man had an eyebrow raised, a challenging look, like maybe he thought that Stede wouldn’t be able to order Izzy to do anything. He was sure it meant to unload or sort, or whatever it was the man needed help with. Izzy would be furious at being ordered around by someone other than his captains, but that urge to put him in his place still burned so he shrugged. “Okay.”
The man’s face lit up with surprise, and for a moment there was some sort of unease because it didn’t seem like that big of a deal, but before he could think that through Izzy spoke up next to him.
“Bonnet,” his voice was low, a little frantic, and the fact that he used Stede’s name in front of someone other than their crew should have been a warning. “I don’t think you know what that means-”
And the insecurity that had been burning under the surface finally snapped out. He grabbed Izzy by the cravat and tugged him close, using his height to crowd into his space. “I know exactly what it means.” Izzy’s eyes went wide, a flash of hurt in them, but he was too far gone to take notice. “I am your captain , or did you forget? If I tell you to do this, then you do it and I don’t want any back talk, understand?”
He could see Izzy’s throat work and then the tension slipped from his shoulders as they slumped, “As you wish, Captain.”
Stede let him go and turned to look back at Adams. He was staring at Izzy with a smirk on his face, and that was more like it. He hadn’t wanted to embarrass Izzy, but he couldn’t allow him to question his authority like that. Izzy should know better. He’d feel guilty about it later once they were back on the ship for the night, but at the moment he was pleased with how he handled it.
Once the details were settled they perused the market for a few things Stede wanted. Izzy was quiet the entire time, a murmured ‘yes, captain’ or ‘no, captain’ when he was forced to answer, and Stede finally huffed out that they should just head back to the ship, aggravated that Izzy was being so dramatic about having to help move some crates around.
At the ship he left Izzy with orders to have the crew organize moving the crates and complete the deal with Adams and went to find Ed to tell him about the price he had gotten and show him a few things they had picked up.
He could feel Izzy watching him and he glanced at him, mildly guilty when Izzy looked away but he would make it up to him later when he returned.
All in all it had been a good day.