Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

In all honesty, Stede felt far too calm for a captain whose ship had just been raided, especially when he’d been raided by a childhood bully but he was too relieved to care. Even when he was roughly shoved to the floor, even when his crew was being bound all around him, he was calm. 

Ed was back. He’d come back to him. For him. 

There would be hell to pay later but for now, he was just too happy to care. He was still reeling from the gentle brush of Ed’s foot against his and he just couldn’t stop smiling. Even when he was roughly pulled to his feet again and dragged to a corner of the deck where the rest of the crew had been corralled, he was perfectly content. 

Only for the good feelings to be squashed at the sight of Chauncey Badminton sneering down at him. “What to do with you lot?” He mused as another soldier shoved Ed into the little group. “Is there a brig on this ship?” He asked the younger man. 

“Aye sir, but it’s only big enough for two or three people.” 

“These two should be locked up, make sure they’re separate.” Chauncey ordered, waggling his sword at Stede and Ed. “As for the rest of the crew-“

“Admiral!” Another voice rang out. Stede glanced at the source of the voice and saw one soldier had opened the trapdoor to the lower deck along with what he assumed to be a second soldier, who appeared to be struggling with something. 

“Let go of my arm!” A high pitched voice shrieked. Stede was certain his heart stopped in that moment. No. No they couldn’t have…

The shock soon turned to panic, Stedes blood may as well have been replaced with ice water with the debilitating chill that ran through his body. Sure enough, the thing that the second soldier was struggling with was Isabella.

“Get your fucking hands off her!” Ed bellowed, leaping to his feet only to be shoved back down once more. Before he had the chance to stand again, the soldier pulled his pistol out of the sheath and pointed it at Ed’s temple. Stede didn’t know who he was more frightened for; Isabella, who was currently fighting to pry the soldiers hands off her arm or Ed, who was watching his daughter being manhandled with a gun to his head. 

In a brief burst of movement, the girl had swiveled her arm and tossed her head back, getting the soldier in the nose just as Ed had taught her. He cried out in pain and let go, his hands flying to his face. 

“Go for the boats!” Oluwande yelled. The rest of the crew started shouting their agreement and Isabella looked from them to the lifeboats, still fastened to the side of the ship. There was only a moment of hesitation before she made a break for it. Only to be tackled to the ground by two more soldiers. “No!” Stede heard himself screaming. For a second he thought that they’d bind her hands and toss her with the rest of the crew but after tackling and overpowering her, they pulled her to her feet, each clutching one arm as they dragged her over to Chauncey. 

“Let go of me!” She screamed again. 

“What’s all this then?” Chauncey snapped, looking at his lieutenant. 

“Found her hiding in a closet.” He informed. 

“I’m warning you, if you don’t let me go right this-“ a firm slap on the cheek from Chauncey quickly silenced her and in less time than it took to blink, the entire crew began shouting in protest, Ed especially. Chaotic shouts filled the air and Isabella started arguing in a language that sounded like Gaelic, only to cry out in pain as the soldier on her left arm squeezed tightly. Stede winced in sympathy. There would most definitely be a bruise, likely worse if she and the crew didn’t calm down. Oh no he had to do something! But he couldn’t think he just couldn’t think!

Chauncey rolled his eyes and grabbed his gun from his belt, firing a single shot into the air. The sound shook the boat and the crew was instantly silenced. “The next person who speaks out of turn is getting a bullet through the leg.” Chauncey roared. “You should consider yourselves lucky that we need you alive for interrogation or else all of you would have been dead the second you were bound.” From the back of the group, Lucius made a noise that sounded like a wounded cat. Chauncey gave them all an icy glare before looking at Isabella, giving her a brief once over. “This is low even for you Bonnet.” Chauncey sneered, turning back to Stede. “She can’t be older than fifteen.”

“What are you talking about?” Stede asked. 

“I know what happens to young women on pirate ships. Don’t play dumb.”

“Wait, you think I…WHAT?! NO! Absolutely not! What kind of a monster do you take me for?!” 

“Not like you’d admit it, coward.” Chauncey said again. 

“Don't talk to him like that.” Ed snarled. 

Chauncey’s condescending scowl aimed from Stede to Ed. “So it’s you then?” He accused. 

“What? No! You’re fucking sick man!”

“Hmm…” he looked back at Isabella and snapped his fingers, the soldiers let her go only for Chauncey to grab her wrist and yank her over to the front of the group. “Point out the one who kept you.” He ordered. 

“I already told you that none of them did anything to me!” She snapped. 

“She’s-“ Ed started.

“Don’t feel the need to defend them, little one,” Chauncey condescended in a way that made Isabella feel like she would never complain about the rest of the crew even about the most minute things. Hearing how he spoke down to her made her thankful that there wasn’t anyone in the crew anywhere near as patronizing as this ass. “They’ll pay for their crimes and you’ll be sent back to your family.”

“That man is family!” She yelled

“She’s my fucking daughter!” Ed shouted. Chaunceys smirk was replaced with a brief look of doubt and then disdain. “You can’t be serious.”

“He is.” Isabella confirmed. A tiny smirk crossed her face when she noticed just how bothered he looked by the fact that he didn’t have a reason to throw Stede under the carriage. She wasn’t sure what his problem with the captain was but she certainly knew that she was going to have fun with him. “Isabella Noa-Teach. Lovely to meet you.” The sour look on his face was priceless.

The disdain in his eyes deepened but a cheap smirk soon followed. “Well a pirate ship is no place for a young woman. Perhaps this one should be brought back to England.” 

“Sir, she’s hardly noble. Why should we take her with us?”

He looked at Stede, reading the panic on his face at the idea of her being taken away, and a grin came to his lips. “Imagine what kind of prize the crown would consider her. Daughter of the famous Blackbeard. And with the proper sponsor,” he smirked, most likely to be talking about himself than anyone else, “perhaps we’d be able to find someone who’ll teach her to be a good and proper lady. If she’s lucky maybe she’ll find a lofty marriage.”

The color drained from Isabella's face at the threat of marriage. She’d never had any kind of romantic inclination as of yet but the idea of marrying a man made her gag, and it was only made worse at the thought that her groom was very likely to be much older than her. 

“Not even a minute ago you were appalled at the idea of us forcing ourselves on her, now you threaten to do essentially the same thing!” Stede argued. The sudden anger only deepened when a realization crept into Stedes mind: Chauncey was just using Isabella as a means to bully him again.

“If you think she’d be better off in this pigsty-“

“Chauncey, your issue is with me. Leave her out of it.” Stede asserted, shocking himself at the sound of his own voice. When he was a boy he could hardly string together a sentence without stammering around either of the Badminton twins but the timid little boy was gone. Granted, the timid little boy grew into a shy and unlucky man but knowing that Chauncey was willing to hurt Isabella or Ed or anyone in his crew to get to him gave him the strength he needed to keep that from happening. “You said you wouldn’t hurt us if we cooperated. So we’re going to cooperate.”

“I’d hate to agree with him admiral but he does bring up a fair point.” One the captains cut in. “We’re wasting time with this unnecessary banter.”

Chauncey took a breath, steadying himself. “You’re right.”

“What should we do with them sir?”

The admiral looked over the little group, his eyes lingering on Isabella, ed, and especially stede. “Put those two in separate cells in the brig and keep the girl in one of the spare rooms until I’m ready to question her. The rest of the crew stays here.” 

“Yessir”

Stede was very roughly pulled to his feet as two of the soldiers grabbed Isabella's arms again. “Not so hard!” Stede gasped. “You’ll hurt her!”

“You’re not exactly in a position to be giving orders, Bonnet.” Chauncey sneered. 

Stede, Isabella, and Ed were dragged towards the below deck entrance. The last thing Isabella saw before the door slammed shut behind her was the terrified faces of the rest of the crew. The underbelly of the ship seemed much darker now that they were away from the bright morning. The little gaggle of soldiers that were handling the captains led them off towards another staircase that led downward and dragged Isabelle in the opposite direction. As much as she wanted to resist, she knew that if she caused any trouble, it wouldn’t just be her own neck on the line. 

Ed on the other hand had no qualms about giving them a piece of his mind. “If any of you fuckers lay a finger on my daughter-“

“Shut him up.” The admiral droned, rubbing his temple. “Make sure those two are separate and make sure the rest of the crew is kept away from the girl. They might try to intimidate her to change her story.” 

“You mean she might tell the truth instead of spewing the narrative you want?” Ed jested. Another slap stung at Isabella’s face at the outburst. 

“Stop that!” Stede shrieked. 

“I fucking warned you!” Ed roared. Isabella felt a terrifying rush in her chest. The more they messed with Chauncey the more danger all three of them would be in. Ed was already trying to force himself out of the soldiers’ arms to get to her. 

“Dad, stop.” She said calmly. Ed looked from Chauncey to her, confused. Without saying a word, she gave him a little smile, what she hoped was a silent assurance that she’d be okay. 

With a sigh, Ed submitted and let himself be dragged towards the staircase leading to the brig as Isabella was pulled further and further away, shoved into a room that had been stripped of everything, and left alone.

Chapter Text

She was honestly surprised that she hadn’t worn a hole through the floor with all the pacing she’d done in the last two and a half hours. Had it really been that long? In truth, she wasn’t sure how much time had passed, it could have been an hour, it could have been ten minutes. Time always passed much slower whenever she was anxious. 

Unfortunately her mind would begin to wander to very worrying places whenever she got anxious. Every little tap against the wood sent her mind spinning into different scenarios; like they’d already had the trial without interrogating her and someone would come get her only to find them dead. 

No no, don't think about that. 

From what she’d observed about Badminton was that despite being an uppity prick, he was thorough when putting together information. Even if that information was scrapped if it didn’t fit the narrative he’d crafted in his mind. Well, he was a fancy boy Brit. He was probably used to things going his way. All the more reason for her to insist on the truth until he got it through his fat head. It would likely end up taking forever because she’d also observed that he was a stubborn jackass. It was a very fine line she had to tread: if she pushed him too far, he might just declare Stede guilty out of spite. But if she didn’t push enough then he’d walk all over her and spin her words however he saw fit. Luckily, she was an expert when it came to treading fine lines. 

The sound of the lock clicking drew her out of her thoughts and she turned to see one of the nameless soldiers who’d been on deck. “The admiral wishes to see you first.” He droned. Clearly he didn’t get paid enough for this horseshit. 

First? Damn it must have only been about five minutes since she’d been locked up. She really did need to try and rein in her anxiety, it felt like she’d been in there for hours. The soldier gave her a look of impatience and she quickly skittered out of the room, following him through the hallway. To her surprise, he led her back up the stairs and to the deck. There were soldiers everywhere, making the crew look even smaller by comparison. The crew of the revenge was already smaller than the average pirate ship but with three soldiers to one pirate, it further drove home just how vulnerable the crew truly was. Every single expression, even the ones from folks trying to act tough like Pete, were twisted with nerves. Once Isabella stepped back onto the deck, a few of them relaxed, exhaling in relief but it was a very marginal amount of reassurance. She could tell that a few of the crew, like Oluwande and Lucius, wanted to dash over and hug her (both for her comfort and their own) but were too afraid of the soldiers to try moving. The soldier behind her gave her back a little nudge to keep her moving so the best she could offer was a glance over her shoulder and a tiny smile before she disappeared behind the captains door

Chauncey had set himself in the lavish chair behind Stede’s desk, which only further cemented the earlier impression that Isabella had of him. Off in the corner was a mousey young man with a pad of paper open in front of him, a quill in his fingers. 

“Miss Noa-Teach was it?”

“My friends call me Isabella…so call me Miss Noa-Teach.”

Chauncey sneered. “You’re not in a position to be giving me attitude, girl.” He warned. 

Isa steadied herself. Easy now, lass. Don’t get his goat just yet. 

“Miss Noa-Teach.” Chauncey said once again. “How long have you been on this ship?”

“A month and three weeks.” She answered flatly. The quill started scratching against the paper in the corner. 

“What kind of events have you witnessed during that month and three weeks?”

She had to think for a moment, there had been plenty of events but not the kind that he was referring to. “Well, there was this one raid where we were attacked out of the blue, they used the mist as a surprise attack.”

Chauncey leaned forward, weaving his fingers together and leaning forward in interest. “How did Bonnet handle that situation? Did you see him kill anyone?”

“Oh god no.” Isa almost laughed. “He said he’d try but he’d never harm anyone.”

“Never?” Chauncey prompted. “You are aware of the reason why we arrested him, are you not?”

“Because you have some kind of middle school grudge on him?” She answered coolly. 

“I told you to watch that attitude.”

“Rather hard for me to watch something that isn’t physically there.” 

“Now is not the time for being cute, girl.”

A pretend look of flattered charm came to Isas face. “You really think I’m cute?” She lilted. 

"I think you're simply being petulant." Chauncey sneered. "That or you were persuaded to keep your mouth shut..." He leaned forward and cocked an eyebrow.

“I beg your pardon?” She balked

"It's not unheard of for victims to fall for their captors... I dare say you may think you're protecting them by not confessing." He hummed.

“The only mistreatment I’ve gotten while on this ship is from you slapping me earlier!”

Chauncey tightened his lip. "Well, where I... And where the rest of society comes from, women and children know to respect authority."

“Then perhaps that’s why most of us ran off to be pirates. To get away from you stuffy twats.” She knew she was playing a very dangerous game and that she had to be careful but this ass just made her blood boil.

In one swift movement, Chauncey had stood from the chair and grabbed the front of her shirt. “You’re already on thin ice you insolent child.” He snarled. “And you forget yourself. I’m in charge of this ship until further notice which means that I decide the fate of the entire crew. And I could easily just order that they all be put to death.” Isa’s body went cold. Chauncey read her expression. “So I’d suggest you not push your luck.” He took a breath, letting it out slowly. “Now are you aware of why we arrested Stede Bonnet?” 

She shook her head, holding back another snippy remark. Already he was hot under the collar and she didn’t need to risk making him angry. 

“He’s a murderer.” Chauncey said with a sneer, his lip upturned and his nostrils flared. 

“A murderer?!” Isa gasped. “You must have the wrong man. Stede Bonnet wouldn’t harm anyone.”

“Oh he wouldn’t?” He gave a nod to the two soldiers flanking the door, who unrolled a large flag. Sewn into the white fabric was a black cat, lifting its paw. It very much resembled the flag Frenchie had made only the cat was in a different pose. What was more, the flag was covered in blood. “He murdered my twin brother and sent my man back to the ship with his hands tied to the oars. Apparently they used this flag to clean up the mess and sent it back with him.”  

Isa was speechless. “There must be a mistake.” She argued after a long silence. “Someone else must have done it.”

“Nothing is confirmed but he is the prime suspect.” Chauncey explained. “Which brings me back to my question. Have you seen, heard of, or know of any acts of violence committed by Stede Bonnet?” Isa shook her head, her thoughts too wild and disordered to make any kind of sense of them. She didn’t have all the pieces, there had to be something she was missing. Stede would never…would he? Life as a pirate was always bloody and dangerous but Stede was an outlier among the vicious brutes. Self defense. It had to be self defense. “I know it’s hard.” Chauncey went on, his voice back to the soft condescending tone. “To learn that someone close to you is secretly a brutal scumbag. But maybe this was the kind of wake up call you needed.”

“What do you mean by that?” She asked, narrowing her eyes. 

“As I said before, it’s not uncommon for young women in this situation to form an affectionate relationship with their captors. Perhaps even an intimate relationship.” He stepped out from behind the deck, pacing around her chair. “It’s not your fault, but you might not have seen him clearly. Now that you know he’s a murderer, it might be a bit easier for you to talk about what he’s done, especially to you.” His fingers brushed against her, ghosting along her long black hair.  

“I’ve told you before and I’ll tell you a thousand times again. He. Did. Nothing . To me.” She growled, utterly disgusted. 

“Please try to think clearly. I know you may wish to protect him but he doesn’t deserve your defense.”

“I’m telling the truth!” She declared, rising to her feet. “Just because you have some kind of beef against him, it doesn’t mean he’s the scumbag you think he is.” She took a breath, calming herself before sitting back down. “If all you’re going to do is lob baseless accusations, then we’re done here.”

“I decide when we’ve finished.” Chauncey argued. 

“Then by all means, ask your questions. But if they’re all about Stede assaulting me, then I’m afraid you’re going to be here for a while because I’m telling the truth and I’m not going to say anything different.” 

He huffed, turning to his officer. “Get her out of here.”

“Can I at least stay with my friends instead of going back to the closet you shoved me into?” She asked. “You’ve already interrogated me to your satisfaction, so you don’t need to worry about them ‘intimidating’ me to make me change my story.” 

Chauncey rolled his eyes. “Fine. But if I hear even a whisper of trouble, you’ll be separated again.” 

She let out a sigh of relief as the officer led her back to the deck. As soon as the captain's door was open and she was let back out into the sunlight, she made a mad dash to the other end of the deck, where the rest of the crew was gathered. Instantly she flung herself into Oluwandes arms and he hugged her tightly. “Did he give you any trouble?” He asked. 

“Not too much.” She pulled away as Lucius tugged her into a tight embrace as well. 

“Did he do anything to hurt you?” He fussed.

She shook her head.  “Just tried to put words in my mouth.” 

The officer she’d run away from came storming over and grabbed Oluwande by the sleeve. “You next.” He barked, dragging him towards the door. 

“Let go of him!” Isa demanded. Pete and Roach were already on their feet, ready to defend their crewmates. 

“Admiral Badminton wants a word with all you lot and the longer you try and delay, the more annoyed he’s going to get. So I suggest you all comply.” 

Oluwande gave her a nervous but still reassuring smile and she pulled him into another hug. “Be careful.” She whispered before he was yanked away again.

“Y’alright, Lu?” Isabella asked, pausing in her nervous pacing to look at the scribe, who was hunched in on himself, arms wrapped around his stomach.

“You’re holding yourself a bit odd.” Pete added. “Nervous tummy?”

“They’re looking for Stede’s journal. For evidence.”

“Well there’s nothing we can do about that now.” Oluwande said flatly, sadness in his dark eyes. “He’s done for.” Isa halted in her pacing for only a moment before picking it up again. They were so dead set that the captain was a goner and frankly their doom and gloom attitude was starting to get on her nerves. There was still hope, wasn't there? Oh who was kidding? She knew how the world worked, she knew it was hopeless.

“I have Stede’s journal.” Lucius whispered, a quiver in his voice as he lifted the edge of his shirt and revealed a corner of Stede’s extravagant journal. “Grabbed it when we got boarded.”

“You gotta get rid of that babe!”

“I know that, babe. But I can’t get to the side of the ship to throw it over.”

“Give it here.” Frenchie hissed. “I was born for this kind of espionage.”

“Awesome, do it!” Pete encouraged. “Go go go go go.”

“Roach, need a distraction.” Frenchie requested, tucking the red and gold bound book into his jacket.

A crazed glimmer came to the cook’s eyes as he stood up, walking to the nearest officer. “What’s your problem, darkie?” The officer sneered. Isa wanted to punch him in the face just for saying that word.

Fortunately, Roach beat her to it. “Your face.” He answered, smacking the officer across the cheek and making a break for it. It was incredibly satisfying to watch.

While the sailors were distracted by Roach, Frenchie started to make a dash for the edge of the boat. His boot snagged on a board that had loosened over the weeks and he tumbled forward, sending the journal flying…landing right in front of one of the officers.

Lucius huffed and slammed his forehead against Pete’s shoulder as Isa sat down on a barrel, pinching the bridge of her nose.

They were all screwed.

Chapter Text

It was another agonizing two hours of absolutely nothing before the admiral emerged from the captain’s quarters, her dad and Stede following close behind, their wrists still bound behind their backs. As soon as they stepped into the sunlight, Isa started running towards them. A heavy force shoved her back as a very grumpy looking officer stepped into her line of sight. “Move.” She growled. The officer stayed put. “I said move .”

“And why should I?”

Damn, come on, think of a good excuse, you’re great at making up bullshit. “Because I’m family. You wouldn’t deny a girl the right to see her father would you?”

“‘S far as the crown is concerned, you’re all under our custody so we decide who you can and can’t see. Now get back with the lot before I use you for target practice.”

Isa gave him a very hard, intense look. It was at times like these that she was grateful for the fact that she had her dad’s eyes and could easily replicate one of Blackbeard’s dark looks. The officer did look shaken for a little but she also had the unfortunate luck of being short for a girl her age with a bit of a baby face so it didn’t have the exact outcome she was hoping for. He gave her another shove and she got the message, rejoining the rest of the crew where they were gathered by the stairs to the steering deck in a nervous little jumble. 

On the upper deck, Chauncey and his officers stood like a gathered jury, standing over Stede and her dad like the righteous hand of God. Clustered near the captains were more officers along with some of the crew of the Queen Anne. Near the front was someone she didn’t recognize, a short man with a rat-like face and well combed salt and pepper hair. Underneath his right eye was a little black x and there was a scowl on his face like he’d smelled something unpleasant. Isabella didn’t know who he was but she had a feeling she wasn’t going to like him.

“In the name of His Majesty, King George, this tribunal shall come to order.” Chauncey began, one of the officers handing him a gavel. “Edward Teach, or ‘Black beard.’”

“It’s just ‘Blackbeard.’” Her dad huffed. “Just run it all, one word. ‘Blackbeard’, don’t have to put a gap in there.”

Chauncey gave him a hardened look. “You face death. For general crimes of piracy against the crown.” 

Isa’s entire body went stiff and if she weren’t frozen from shock, she likely would have started yelling out in protest but she couldn’t move. Her dad however was far more casual than she expected him to be, merely shrugging and letting out a brief, “Yeah.”

“But a friend of the Crown has prevailed upon me to remand you to his custody. You shall be released to Captain Izzy Hands in exchange for his service to the King.” The short rat man gave a tiny little wave towards Edward and the rage in Isa’s chest only grew hotter. Already she hated this dick. Apparently the rest of the crew hated him as well, if the angry shouts and insults were anything to go by.

“Order!” Chauncey shouted, slamming the gavel. The crew reluctantly quieted down, though Isabella could still hear some hisses of anger. “Stede Bonnet, for the wanton murder of Nigel Badminton, your sentence is death by firing squad.” With another slam of the gavel it was done. 

“No!” Isa shrieked, once again rushing forward to try and reach the captain only to be shoved back. They couldn’t do this, they just couldn’t! It wasn’t fair! Her pulse pounded in her ears as she fought against the grips of the soldiers separating her from Stede. “You can’t do this!” She screamed.

“Isa, don’t!” Stede retorted.

“We’ll find a way out of this.” Ed tried to reassure him.

“No, don’t Ed. I deserve this. It’s time. The bills come due.” Stede said, misery in his voice.

“He’s innocent! He was framed! He never did anything!” Isa continued shrieking.

“Isabella,” Stede looked at her, gentle sadness in his brown eyes, “they’re telling the truth. I’m a murderer.”

“I don’t care, they can’t do this!” She argued.

“Luv,” Stede stilled her attempts to get to him with a single look. It was frightened and defeated, but it was still gentle and comforting. Stede was by no means a complex man but there was a lot in that one gaze, a lot he was trying to say. How sorry he was, how much he wished things had gone differently, but most of all there was gratitude. A silent message of “ I’m glad I got to be in your life and you got to be in mine .” The look lasted for only a moment before Stede was dragged to the side of the ship and Isa was forced back to the cluster of devastated crewmen, unable to do anything but watch.

At this point, Stede started to understand the reality of his sentencing, which only dawned further on him when a blindfold was tied around his eyes and the gunman took their position.

“Oh God.” He wailed. “I don’t wanna die!”

Across the deck, her father’s face read every crazy fucked up thing going on in her head at that moment. This couldn’t be happening! A numb sort of anxiety wormed through Isa’s system and she wanted to look away but she couldn’t move. Her nerves were shot and all she could do was stand there, watching as the captain blubbered for his life. A warm hand settled on her shoulder and she looked up to see Oluwande, a simple warmth and kindness in his eyes. Immediately, she curled into him, wrapping her arms around his plush tummy and burying her face into his chest, his hand cupping the back of her head as he held her tight.

“Gunmen at the ready.” Chauncey ordered. “Take aim…”

Isa waited for the final order, for the bullets to ring out and for her to open her eyes to see the lifeless body of the man who’d taken her under his wing. But instead, she heard her dad’s voice, calling out three words;

“ACT OF GRACE!”

“There’s not really any point in packing anything.” Ed groaned. “We’ll likely have to give them all our shit as soon as we get there.” 

Stede thought about it for a half second and slipped his small bag under his bed once again, a slight pout on his lips. 

Isabella was still quiet in the corner, running her fingers over the red silk in her hand. Ten years. It was going to be ten years until she saw her dad again. It shouldn’t have been as hard and daunting as it was to her. After all she’d gone fourteen very long years without ever knowing her father. Couldn’t she do another ten? But deep down she just couldn’t stop the ache. She’d just gotten her father back and now she had to say goodbye to him again. And Stede was practically a second father to her, heck he’d taken her as his ward less than an hour after meeting her. She would be in her twenties the next time she saw them. If she ever saw them again. 

She clutched the silk even tighter. Her dad would be expecting it back. It was something really important to him and he’d be wanting it back. But for some reason she was reluctant to give it up.

“Songbird?” Her dad interrupted her thinking. “You’re pretty quiet over there.”

“‘M alright.” She said, “Just got a lot on my mind.” 

Stede looked over to her and Ed before sitting at the table, gesturing for her to do the same. “What’s bothering you, luv?” He asked. 

“It’s…” she took a breath, forcing herself to be calm, clenching her jaw and breathing steadily. “It’s going to be a very long time before I see you again.” 

The captains exchanged glances before looking back at her. 

Another unsteady breath left her. Go on and say it. “Eh-what im trying to say is im going to miss you.” She said, holding out the silk to her dad. He gave it a cursory glance and looked over to the desk. Without a word, he took the fine red square, stood, and grabbed something long, black, and shiny. The sound of snipping filled the room and both Stede and Isabella nearly gasped. 

“Dad…” was all she could say as he sat back down and pressed into her palm what once was a large square of silk but was now rather a long thick strip of fabric, half of a square to be precise. She looked from her own half in her hands to the half in her fathers hand, which he was now using to tie back a section of his unruly gray hair. 

A little light came on in Stedes eyes and he picked up the hairbrush from off the dresser in the corner. “May I?” He asked. She quietly nodded and he stepped behind her, gently brushing through her long raven locks. The gentleman pirate, or now rather, the gentleman navy sailor, couldn’t help but think about if she’d inherited her hair from her mother or from ed. Which only led to thoughts of Ed as a younger man, still with fire in his eyes and long black hair dancing with the wild ocean air. It made his cheeks go pink at the thought for only a moment before he returned to his task. Little by little, the usually tangled mop was smoothed out, lovely and soft as silk. “May I see your bit there?” He asked, pointing to the strip of silk in her lap and she silently surrendered it. There were a few tugs here, a bit of weaving there, and before long, a fine sleek braid hung from her head, with a thick red stripe running through. His mind wandered once more, this time to Alma. Surprisingly, while it was clear that Alma preferred spending time with her mother, one thing she always asked him for specifically was doing her hair every morning, a task he always did happily. He’d become rather skilled at styling over the course of his decade or so of fatherhood and he would always feel perfectly giddy whenever Alma looked at the braid or updo he’d given her and she would reward him with a smile and a soft thank-you.

His heart both warmed and pained at the thought of the now two daughters he had, both that he’d had to leave behind. A heavy sigh left him as the thought entered his mind. 

His daughter. Truly he did think of the girl in front of him as his daughter. But she already had a father in her life now, she didn’t need another one. Especially not one as inept as he was. Besides, she deserved a father who didn’t run away. That was all he ever did. He was just a coward who always ran away. 

He tied off the braid with a thick cord and laid it out across her shoulder. In his desk he had a small mirror (he’d packed one in case he needed to clean himself up to meet with an enemy captain…in a way that had happened) which he retrieved and held it up for the girl. She looked up from her hands and to the mirror in front of her, a painful and bitter cross between sweetness and warmth coming to her chest when she saw the silk woven into her hair, standing out brilliantly against the deep black. 

“Stede…” she said softly. 

“Red for courage, luv.” He crooned with a smile, giving the tip of her nose a cheery little tap, though his eyes were framed in sadness. She quickly stood from the chair and threw her arms around him. 

“I’ll miss you too.” She whispered. As Stede hugged her back, one final word was on her tongue and why was she so sca- nervous to say that final word. Go on and say it. 

Father . 

Yet she didn’t say it. Deep down the fear won over. She hated herself in that moment but she’d rather regret something she didn’t do for a few years over doing something foolish and getting herself hurt. So she said nothing but still chose to commit everything about that final embrace to memory, a little share of something happy to be remembered and treasured when things got rough in the future. The warmth deepened and the squeeze grew just a tad tighter and when she opened her eyes, her dad had joined in on their hug. It felt…nice. To just let people hold her, keep her warm, even if it was only for a little while. 

She suddenly felt the urge to give something to them as well but she didn’t have anything aside from her cross. Call her selfish but she wasn’t ready to part with the last thing she had of her mother…apart from her reflection. And her voice. Wait…

She pulled away and looked between the two men. “Can I sing for you?” She asked quietly. 

“Please.” Stede answered. It would be a very long time before he’d get to hear her sing again and he wanted to cherish every bit he could get. He sat down in his chair again, Ed taking his place as well, both listening with anticipation. 

I don't know if you can see

The changes that have come over me

In these last few days I've been afraid

That I might drift away

I've been telling old stories, singing songs

That make me think about where I've come from

That's the reason why I seem

So far away today

Let me tell you that I love you

That I think about you all the time

Caledonia, you're calling me, now I'm going home

But if I should become a stranger

Know that it would make me more than sad

Caledonia's been everything I've ever had

Now I have moved and I've kept on moving

Proved the points that I needed proving

Lost the friends that I needed losing

Found others on the way

I have kissed the fellas and left them crying

Stolen dreams, yes, there's no denying

I have traveled hard, sometimes with conscience flying

Somewhere with the wind

Let me tell you that I love you

That I think about you all the time

Caledonia, you're calling me, now I'm going home

But if I should become a stranger

Know that it would make me more than sad

Caledonia's been everything I've ever had

Now I'm sitting here before the fire

The empty room, the forest choir

The flames have cooled, don't get any higher

They've withered, now they've gone

But I'm steady thinking, my way is clear

And I know what I will do tomorrow

When hands have shaken, the kisses float

Then I will disappear

Let me tell you that I love you

That I think about you all the time

Caledonia, you're calling me, now I'm going home

But if I should become a stranger

Know that it would make me more than sad

Caledonia's been everything I've ever had

Caledonia's been everything I've ever had

Caledonia's been everything I've ever had

Caledonia's been everything I've ever had

A sad smile came to stedes face as he stood again. “Magnificent my girl. Truly magnificent.” He praised as he wrapped his arms around her again. 

A heavy knock pounded against the door. “Fifteen minutes are up.” One of the officers barked. “Boats are waiting.” Stede looked from the door to Isa once more, pressing a kiss to her forehead before pulling away. 

“Coming.” He replied, the saddened lilt still in his voice. 

Ed quickly replaced him, wrapping his arms around his daughter again, kissing her forehead as well. “Think of us?”

“Always.” She whispered. “I’ll write every week.” 

He slowly stroked her hair. “Can’t guarantee we’ll write back but we’ll read every single one.”

“Ed?” Stede prompted gently. 

“Coming.” Ed pressed one more kiss to his daughters forehead before turning to the door himself, both quietly wandering out of the room, leaving Isa alone. She should go with them, see them off. It would be her last chance. She should, she knew she should but she couldn’t make herself move. Instead, she simply sat down on the empty chair, taking in the empty, lonely room.