ripkarl

[ripkarl]

Things worth remembering:

All Stede knows about Ed's breakdown is that it was because of him (You broke him/he took my leg cos I mentioned your name), He doesn't know about Ed's other trauma aside from his dad and while he knows Ed is disillusioned with pirating, he doesn't know the specifics about why.

Ed tends to speak in metaphors and while Stede tries to understand them, it's clear that sometimes he's missing the mark. Sometimes Ed isn't even sure of the metaphors himself, but once he has them, he holds onto them - the fish thing has got him especially.

And the thing is that Ed's only just learned to sit with himself in episode 5 and it's overwhelming him. At the beginning of 6, he's the stillest and quietest we've seen him and is gazing out to sea while having flashbacks to things he's done and people he's hurt (hello 1x09 callback).

And the thing is he's okay at the start of 7. He's made a decision about shedding the Blackbeard stuff. He doesn't say anything to anyone and he's ok until Jackie points out Stede is the rising star just when Ed wants out

He doesn't begrudge Stede being excited and happy with his new fame. He is afraid of what his presence has led Stede to: the conversation with Jackie is very much his "you defile beautiful things" moment, especially his presence brought Ned to Stede ("It's me you want").

He also doesn't understand why Stede killed Ned because Stede bottled up his trauma like his love letters. He doesn't even know why Stede a) became a pirate or b) went back to Mary, especially since Stede never actually told him where he'd been directly. He had to hear it from Anne - and Stede is betrayed by that as well ("I told you that in confidence")

Right now, he's feeling unmoored by his own identity and now Stede has taken a step that has fully changed him as a person too and dragged him straight back into the heart of piracy. He tells Jackie he wants out and she asks if Stede knows that and Ed's face just drops and he whispers "shit".

And he spends of the rest of the day thinking and quiet and realises that to process any of this mess, he needs to be away from the pirate world for a bit so he can get his head on straight because now it's roaring back in for him. He sits, he thinks, he realises he needs that space - he should speak to Stede but he tried that the day before and Stede still killed Ned.

Stede also lashes out, which definitely doesn't help. He's right. Ed is panicking, but Stede is also missing so many little clues. Ed never told him about dropping his leathers and Stede just sees him as Ed in other clothes. He doesn't understand the significance, even when everyone around them realises something is off. If even the Swede picks up on it, you know it's an obvious flag.

They both need to use their words and explain wtf is happening with both of them, but they are also both ridiculously traumatised by their past experience. Ed is afraid he's unlovable and now Stede is talking down his coping mechanism, so maybe he's right and Ed-as-Ed is unlovable, while Stede has been told his entire life he isn't enough, so becoming the ultimate pirate should be the win he's been looking for, only Ed isn't happy and Ed is leaving him, so maybe it's him that isn't enough after all.

They are both tangled up so much in their own histories and don't know enough about each others and that's why they keep lashing out and hurting each other so much - they each don't realise what they're saying is a different kind of weapon to the other.

[ripkarl]

UwU

[ripkarl]

[ripkarl]

He is.

[ripkarl]

hello tumblr I'm sorry I've been neglecting u

I love you and I'm back to writing fic! I've been busy and preoccupied but I'll try to be better about posting here esp with the new season coming out!!! Love u 😘

[ripkarl]

“With love, we sleep

With doubt, the vicious circle

Turns and burns

Without you, I cannot live

Forgive, the yearning burning

I believe it's time, too real to feel

So touch me now, touch me now, touch me now”

[ripkarl]

looking out

[ripkarl]

Here’s some old unreleased art I made last summer to celebrate the upcoming new season of the gay pirates show 🥰💖

[ripkarl]

The Bonnets just need a fresh start. When an opportunity presents itself in the form of an unbelievably-priced bit of real estate in France, Stede Bonnet jumps at it. But this charming old château may be home to more than just a friendly staff and a few spiders. A lot more...

Chapter Four: Israel

He was almost asleep when he heard it. Ed screaming his name.

“Fuck.”

Izzy disentangled himself from the man sharing his bed, tossing off the covers and jumping out of bed. Lucius sat up against the pillows and watched as he stumbled trying to pull on a pair of sweatpants. “What’s going on, Iz?” he mumbled, half-asleep. Izzy didn’t even look back at him, just ran out of the room as fast as he could to the source of the screaming.

When he got to Ed, he found him and Jim on the floor, leaning against a door. Ed had tears streaming down his face and just kept shouting, “Izzy! Izzy help!”

“I’m here, I’m here,” Izzy said, crouching down and squeezing Ed’s shoulder. When Ed’s eyes opened and met his, there was only terror in them. “What the fuck happened?”

Ed didn’t speak. It was Jim who filled him in between gasping breaths and bouts of tears. He dialed the police, and Oluwande helped Jim up and took them to get cleaned up. When Izzy tried to stand up again, Ed grabbed him by the arms and held on. “Alright,” Izzy said, his voice soft. “I’m here.”

He sat on the floor with Ed until the police arrived. By this time most everyone in the house was up, and the story of what had happened was spreading among them. People murmured to each other under their breath. Stede was fucking pacing in his stupid fucking pink slippers. Lucius was nowhere to be seen. Fucking twat probably went back to sleep.

The cops checked the room and found nothing.

KEEP READING AT AO3

[ripkarl]

The Bonnets just need a fresh start. When an opportunity presents itself in the form of an unbelievably-priced bit of real estate in France, Stede Bonnet jumps at it. But this charming old château may be home to more than just a friendly staff and a few spiders. A lot more...

Chapter Three: Edward

“No fuckin’ way,” Jim said in quiet awe as the house loomed in the distance, dark against the violet night sky except for a few lights shining from its windows.

Ed turned and grinned at them where they sat in the middle seat in the van. He was glad at least someone was showing some enthusiasm. Pete and Fang were sleeping on each other in the back seat. Ivan sat next to Jim, but his head was down, invested in a level of Candy Crush or some other stupid game. And Izzy was clutching the steering wheel with white knuckles, scowling at the road ahead – which, in fairness, was just how he normally drove. Izzy was always tense.

“Look at that!” Jim said, pointing ahead at a little stone chapel. They undid their seatbelt and leaned forward, poking their head out between Ed and Izzy to get a better look. “Creepy.” They grinned excitedly. Ed couldn’t help but smile, too. Jim was the newest member of their crew. They’d been working with Queen Anne’s Paranormal Investigations for a few months, now, and it was nice having them along. Their enthusiasm reminded Ed of the early days, of why he’d started this whole thing.

“What the fuck,” Izzy grumbled next to them, and Ed followed his stare ahead to the driveway, in which was parked a familiar old station wagon with a fading, chipping Ghostbusters logo painted on the side of it.

“Shit,” he said.

Jim squinted. “Who’s that?”

KEEP READING AT AO3

[ripkarl]

i'm tired of this grampa

[ripkarl]

The Bonnets just need a fresh start. When an opportunity presents itself in the form of an unbelievably-priced bit of real estate in France, Stede Bonnet jumps at it. But this charming old château may be home to more than just a friendly staff and a few spiders. A lot more...

Chapter One: Stede

The place was just as described in the advert — an impressive, imposing place nestled in the rolling green foothills of the French Alps. The drive up from the village showed them spacious pastures lined with fallen-down stone walls and dotted with sheep. Sprawling vineyards, most of which sat overgrown and untended. A lake, so still it was a mirror, reflecting back yellowed trees of the forest beyond, and the snow-capped peaks beyond that. The house itself peeked over the horizon and grew larger and larger as they approached, stone brick gold where the setting sun touched it, square gray roofs steepled into towers on the sides giving it the appearance of an ancient castle. Creeping vines covering the north side where the sun didn’t sit so long during the day.

The driver, or rather the cook, who had introduced himself as Roach when he picked the little family up at the airport, had long since given up his rambling about the local village and the people there, sensing his new boss was much more interested in staring out the window at the scenery.

“Wow,” said a small voice in the back. Stede looked back and smiled at his son, Louis, who had his nose pressed up against the glass, taking in the surroundings with interest and awe that matched his father’s. Alma was asleep against her mother’s side, and Mary… Mary sat quietly and looked out the window as the setting sun lit up her eyes and highlighted a tear on her cheek. Stede felt a pang of guilt, but turned back to face forward, watching their new home as it seemed to come up to greet them.

“We only have this one life. We have to try, don’t we?” he’d said.

KEEP READING AT AO3

[ripkarl]

The Bonnets just need a fresh start. When an opportunity presents itself in the form of an unbelievably-priced bit of real estate in France, Stede Bonnet jumps at it. But this charming old château may be home to more than just a friendly staff and a few spiders. A lot more...

Chapter Two: Mary

“Warm,” Mary said, contemplating the flavors on her tongue and smiling. “It’s like…you can taste the sun on the skin of the grapes with this one.” She blushed and ducked her head, laughing softly at herself. “I’m sorry, that sounded…”

“Beautiful,” said the winemaker. He sat next to her at the bar in his little shop, smiling and possibly as flushed as she was. They were so close their knees knocked together when they moved. “I like the way you describe things. The way you see things.”

KEEP READING AT AO3

[ripkarl]

i'm sorry i've been neglecting you tumblr

[ripkarl]

The Bonnets just need a fresh start. When an opportunity presents itself in the form of an unbelievably-priced bit of real estate in France, Stede Bonnet jumps at it. But this charming old château may be home to more than just a friendly staff and a few spiders. A lot more...

Chapter One: Stede

The place was just as described in the advert — an impressive, imposing place nestled in the rolling green foothills of the French Alps. The drive up from the village showed them spacious pastures lined with fallen-down stone walls and dotted with sheep. Sprawling vineyards, most of which sat overgrown and untended. A lake, so still it was a mirror, reflecting back yellowed trees of the forest beyond, and the snow-capped peaks beyond that. The house itself peeked over the horizon and grew larger and larger as they approached, stone brick gold where the setting sun touched it, square gray roofs steepled into towers on the sides giving it the appearance of an ancient castle. Creeping vines covering the north side where the sun didn’t sit so long during the day.

The driver, or rather the cook, who had introduced himself as Roach when he picked the little family up at the airport, had long since given up his rambling about the local village and the people there, sensing his new boss was much more interested in staring out the window at the scenery.

“Wow,” said a small voice in the back. Stede looked back and smiled at his son, Louis, who had his nose pressed up against the glass, taking in the surroundings with interest and awe that matched his father’s. Alma was asleep against her mother’s side, and Mary… Mary sat quietly and looked out the window as the setting sun lit up her eyes and highlighted a tear on her cheek. Stede felt a pang of guilt, but turned back to face forward, watching their new home as it seemed to come up to greet them.

“We only have this one life. We have to try, don’t we?” he’d said.

KEEP READING AT AO3

[ripkarl]

something something “anything goes at sea” and their first kiss being on land-

[ripkarl]

Always Sweet

Ed and Stede are eager to get some alone time at a fan convention...

(I forgot to post this one lol)