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Nearly a year they’ve been living here in this inn, not that it ever actually became an inn, just a cosy house for the two of them. A year since they retired from piracy and never looked back, well apart from the occasional adventure, and started this new beautiful chapter of their life.
They’re still fixing the place up, they probably still will be for many years to come, but they’ve got all the time in the world. Flowers line the front of the house and there’s a vegetable patch to the side that Stede tends to daily, singing to himself as he waters the plants, sometimes Ed just likes to sit on the outdoor bench he’d built and watch him.
They’d fixed the window and reinforced the outside in case of storms before renovating inside. The first room they’d started on was the bedroom, creating a perfect sanctuary just for the two of them. This had been Stede’s favourite room to decorate, he’d spent hours choosing the right linens and blankets for the beds, making sure the curtains matched the rest of the room. They’d also spent way too much money on the mattress, but it was worth it, they both find it incredibly comfortable for sleeping on, as well as other activities.
Although it’s not been made to accommodate guests, it is currently housing several members of The Revenge who have decided that they’re on holiday until the wedding which is just a few weeks away. The rest of the crew remain on the ship which is docked just down the beach. It feels nice to be surrounded by friends, just like being back on the ship, so much chaos and laughter in such a small space.
It quiets down by the evening, Olu, Jim, Archie, and Zheng head into the village on a date night, whilst Lucius and Pete sneak back to the currently empty ship. They’re not entirely sure where Roach, Frenchie, Fang or Wee John have disappeared to, but they’re too caught up in each other to care. It’s a nice evening, still warm but with a slight breeze coming from the ocean, giving them an excuse to huddle that little bit closer, not that they ever need an excuse.
They take a blanket and two glasses of white wine to the water’s edge, soundtracked by the lapping of the waves over the smooth sand, watching as fireflies dance above them in the gentle glow of the moon. “I can’t believe we’ve been here a year” Stede muses, breaking the silence, not that Ed minds, he’ll never get enough of his fiance’s voice.
“Hm, sometimes I’d wondered if we’d last this long- not because of- but because I’m me and you’re you, and like you always say, we’re whim prone” Ed quickly tries to backtrack.
“No, it’s fine dear, I know what you mean. But I think we’ve found a balance that really works for us, wouldn’t you say?”
“Yeah, I s’pose you’re right” He takes Stede’s hand, lightly rubbing his thumb over the knuckles “I like being us”
“I like it too” Stede whispers, tucking an errant strand of silver hair behind Ed’s ear “you’re so beautiful” Ed closes his eyes letting Stede’s soft touch and the calm evening wash over him.
Suddenly the calmness is overtaken by fireworks bursting into the sky, bright colours filling the night. “Where’s that coming from?”
“I think we found where the guys went” Ed chuckles, wrapping an arm around his partner, Stede instinctively resting his head on his shoulder as they watch the fireworks paint the sky.
They watch as the colours dance in the night sky, wrapped up in each other, Ed and Stede, two sides of a beautiful, slightly insane coin.