Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"What're you thinking about, Number Two?"

The referenced pirate sighed, his head drooping and adding weight to his arms as he leaned against the windowsill. "Nothing of importance, Captain."

Scarf could tell the Captain wasn't buying it as he heard the taller man stand up behind him, only to feel arms wrap gently around his waist and a chin on his shoulder. "Now, Number Two... " he mumbled, giving Scarf's shoulder a gentle kiss, "you know I don't like when you keep those troubling thoughts to yourself. How's a ship supposed to operate if the best man on the crew is down in a slump?" he chuckled, moving his arms to Scarf's shoulders, and his matelot couldn't help but chuckle back.

Sighing, Scarf gently kissed the bigger man's arms as he thought of what to say. "...I just... You didn't... I-I don't know. I've had... bigger things on my mind since the engagement."

At this, the Captain raised an eyebrow but didn't make any movement or indication of suspicion. "...go on. "

"I just, well... You've always been so wonderful to me. To anyone you've fallen for, really," Scarf chuckled, turning around to face his husband. "A-And I could listen all day about the life you dream of. Really, I could. It's just..."

"Just what?"

"Well, there's some things you speak of that I simply can't provide!" Scarf spit out, his voice raising in pitch ever so slightly. "I-I mean, it's not that I don't want to! If I could, you know I'd stop at nothing to do so, but--"

"But what!?" Captain interjected, holding his lover's face. "What could you possibly give besides everything you've ever given me to love!?"

"Well, I'm not a woman, Captain!" The brief silence that followed after felt louder than what he'd just said, until he gulped and broke the silence.

"I-I'm not... A woman," he repeated. "A-And women possess some traits and abilities that I..." At this, he looked down, his hands moving to his face to hold the Captain's and move them between their chests. "Well, I'm simply incapable of."

"Oh, nonsense, Number Two," Captain scoffed, his eyes squinting slightly in disbelief. "What could any woman in the world have to offer that you don't have double and better?"

With a slightly frustrated sigh, Scarf looked up at him firmly. "A family." And there was that oh-so-loud silence again. "Alright? I can't. I can't give you those little ones you dream of, those-- those ones that'll run around the deck with my mess of hair or your beautiful eyes. I can't. And I hate it," Scarf stressed through his teeth, letting go of the Captain's hands to grip at his own hair. "I-I hate it. I hate that you, you beautiful, beautiful man, had the right to anyone's heart, and I hate that after finding such a wonderful man, I can't..."

He stepped away and paused to take a breath, collecting himself and holding back tears as he continued. "I just, I know you love me. I know. And I know you knew what marrying a man meant for you. But sometimes, I... I don't know. Sometimes I feel it would have just been...easier. For you. For both of us, even. If I'd just been a woman."

Scarf faced away from his partner as he fought back tears of distress, unaware of the heartbroken look Captain had upon seeing his husband this distraught.

"Why, Number Two!" The Captain cried in disbelief, rushing to face Scarf. "You can't possibly believe any of that to be true!" He spoke with a slight undirected anger in his voice as he grabbed Scarf's hand. "I couldn't care less about anything as meager as blood ties, you know I don't A-At least, I had assumed you didnt!" He turned Scarf to face the door to their quarters, where a ruckus of laughter and roaring could be heard from the other side. "What do you hear out there? What goes on every day here, on this ship? You don't think that's already a family as it is? Maybe our blood doesn't come from the same streams, but eventually it all flows into the same sea! And that's why any of us are here in the first place, that's what matters!" At this, he turned then back towards each other and trapped Scarf in a large, comforting hug.

"I would never change a single thing about the decisions I've made to get here. Well, except maybe my decision to trade with Queen Victoria. Or to let you run into that danger with the Bishop. Or when I let Albino drive the-- my-my POINT is," he interrupted himself, "that I would never change a thing about this. About us," he emphasized, squeezing his now overly lovestruck husband. "I don't love you any less because you're a man. Nor would I love you any more than I do already if you were a woman! All I need is you." He gently kissed Scarf's cheek, the soft scratchiness of his beard eliciting a slight smile from the first mate. "This. Everything we've created, everything that's come together on this boat. And we can still have children," the Captain added. "Blood or no blood. They will be ours. Something for us. Our children, who will look up to us and who we'll give all the love in the world! And they'll make the most terrifying, the most incredible, the most dashing pirates of the seven seas with such incredible parents as us!" He bragged, giving that proud smirk that made Scarf unable to resist a loving chuckle. He leaned into the Captain's palm as he saw it reach for his face. "Don't you think so, Number Two?"

Scarf chuckled again, raising an eyebrow playfully. "Well, they'll certainly at least believe that, with a father as proud and confident as you, Captain," he laughed, leaning in for a kiss.

The two remained in silence for a moment, kissing sweetly as the Captain gently lifted Scarf to sit on the desk while the first mate wrapped his arms around the other man's shoulders. There were no sounds in the cabin except for a few hums and sighs into kissed until Scarf thought of something and briefly broke his lips away to stare firmly at the Captain.

"You realize we're not giving any of them weapons until they're at least ten years old."

"What!?" the Captain gasped on his usual dramatic style, clearly offended. "I've been studying swordfighting since I was four and had no severe casualties!"

"Butter knives hardly count as weapons, Captain," Scarf rolled his eyes and muttered, "though I wouldn't be shocked if you found some way to make them dangerous."

With another offended noise, Captain playfully lifted Scarf up. "And what about you!?" he retorted, dropping the first mate into the hammock before crudely climbing in himself. "Didn't your father give you a sword as a young lad!?"

"Yes, and I recall my mother damn near having heart attacks every moment I held it in my grasp," Scarf spoke with exasperation and scorn towards his father, though his smirk gave away the playful nature. "I won't be dealing with anything of the sort."

"Ahhh, well, I'm sure a little persuasion is all we need for you to see it from my perspective," the Captain grinned mischievously, climbing on top of Scarf and purposefully kissing his neck, aware of how his beard tickled the sensitive spot.

Scarf immediately burst out laughing against his will. "No!" He cried, hitting the Captain's back half-heartedly. "This isn't a compromise, this is a hostage situation!" He cried, tears of laughter pricking his eyes as he clung to his husband's shoulders.

"Well, is it persuading you?" The Captain mumbled against his skin, fighting his own chuckling.

"Not in the least!" Scarf laughed, his hands scrambling to grab the Captain's head. "Now enough of that!" He cried, finally lifting the Captain's head away from the danger zone to look him in the eye with a hum of adoration. "Won't you kiss me again, Captain?"

And before he could answer, the first mate had pulled him in, their soft hums and sighs making known the contentment they shared in tht moment.

~~~

Back on land, at the Barnacle's Face, children were the last thing on his mind. In fact, at the moment, he was trying to focus on himself. That, and taking it easy on the drinks. After a slump he'd gone through recently, he'd come to think of alcohol as his new best friend. That is, until Liz (literally) beat it out of him. Between that and the fact that his ex had gotten married, he'd found that maybe it was time to close off a little. He was embarrassed to have ever been in such a weak point, especially in front of his best friends. So, he'd decided he'd rather avoid love as a whole and, only under the risk of getting his ass kicked again, cut back on his alcohol intake.

He sat there, with what was shockingly only his second mug, staring at the dim reflection of himself in the cup, trying to get his thoughts together. It was quiet in his mind, yet the thoughts were so far apart it was like trying to tie them all together in one circle underwater. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to be thinking about. He had laid out the next adventure for the crew, which they planned on sailing out for tomorrow. That was the only reason he'd brought them to this Godforsaken island, so he could get them distracted enough to leave him alone for a bit.

He didn't notice that a familiar face had pulled up a stool next to him at the bar until his name was called. "Bellamy?" Eyes widening, he looked up and saw an unexpected but not unwelcome figure.

"Desdemona?"

Chapter Text

She hadn't changed much in her looks since last time he'd seen her; the vitiligo patches standing bright against her dark skin had grown larger since their last encounter. Her eyes still pierced into him with an assertive stance, one that almost anybody (including Bellamy himself) would no better than to not comply with.

Despite her dominant stature, her eyes softened a bit as he said her name. "Bellamy," she spoke, her voice warm and her British accent prominent. "You look like shit."

At this, Bellamy didn't know what response to register other than a pitched laugh of disbelief. "Well, I feel like shit," he chuckled, his voice still pitched as he ran a hand through his hair. "But um," he was quick to snap back to reality afterwards, clearing his throat, "But uh, nothing about that. How are-- how've you been!? It's been how long?"

"Couple years now, I'd say," she chuckled as she was handed her first pint of grog. "Feels like a lifetime, with how we're looking."

"What? Nah, come on," Bellamy scoffed. "You know you're still, like, top 5 on the hottest women in the sea."

"Ohh, what a grand compliment," she scoffed, rolling her eyes and hiding her smirk in her pint as she took a chug. "I know I'm gorgeous. That could never leave me. You're the one looking a little aged around the eyes there."

"Oh, please," Bellamy laughed, only pausing briefly and hoping Desdemona didn't notice him checking his reflection in the metal accents of the mug. "Ignoring your obvious jealousy of my beauty, what are you doing here? I thought you said Blood Island had too many 'frat pirates' for your liking."

"It does," she grumbled, looking around at the customers of the tavern. "All these old people trying to act like we're still teenagers."

"Well, we didn't exactly sign up for pirating to grow into the 'well-respected, refined ladies and gentlemen' of society's standards, now did we," Bellamy pointed out, sipping slowly. "No really, what are you doing here?"

"I'm just staked out for a few days while I plan my next move," she sighed, and her eyes almost looked as if they turned a darker shade of grey. "I'm honestly not sure what to do. I've hit a wall, Bellamy. I came into pirating just to make a life of freedom, a life with options for myself. I didn't think it'd all just come down to being rich and having nothing to do. Material possessions are hardly my deepest desires." She stared into her mug before glaring over at Bellamy. "I think I'm just resting before I take some time off. Start travelling just for the hell of it, you know? Actually experience the world and its offerings now that I don't have to fight so much just to stay alive."

Bellamy smiled, nudging her. "And then what? Settle down?" He asked in a mocking, high-pitched tone. "Become a proper woman for a loving husband and provide him the children he deserves?"

At this, she provided a harsh laugh. "Don't make me laugh," she sighed, rolling her eyes. "I haven't hit that hard a wall. I could never stand the idea of being a parent."

"Me neither," Bellamy chuckled. "I mean, what, who's actually willing to give up the rest of their lives to raise some ungrateful mooch?"

Desdemona laughed more, trying to calm it down as she spoke. "Ahh, give them a break. Not their fault they can't do anything. It's stupid human genetics that made the children weak."

"Why can't they be like sea turtles?" Bellamy joked. "Sea turtles get left alone before birth and they're just fine."

"Don't most of them die?"

"Eh," Bellamy shrugged, "the concept is still solid."

"Ahh, you're a riot, Bellamy." At this, she clapped her hand on his shoulder, still chuckling.

"Oh come on, Des, you know it's Sam to you."

Desdemona glanced away at this. "You know we haven't referred to each other like that in years."

"Well, maybe it's time we pick up old habits," Bellamy spoke, a suggestive tone in his voice as his hand slowly moved down her arm to somewhat hug her around her torso.

She remained silent, and Bellamy began to worry it was out of hesitation, and he almost pulled away until she spoke.

"Sam, you know why we didn't work out."

"Hm," he hummed, feeling her lean into him. "Remind me."

"You know I can't...feel that way." She spoke slowly, as if she was trying to comprehend it herself. "I did love you. In some way. But it wasn't the love I know you were looking for. It's not like I didn't try. It's just not what I... Am capable of. It doesn't make me sad, not anymore at least. Just, I know you're a different kind of person."

"Well, if it makes you feel better, I don't even know how to love," Bellamy sighed. "I know it's not really the same thing, but I... I find trying to fall in love too difficult. It-It just feels like it takes too much and other people lose interest too fast. I don't know, sometimes I wonder if I'm like you, but it doesn't feel quite the same."

"Now, you can't tell me you've never been in love, Samuel," Desdemona objected. "Whatever happened to that little swordsman you had a thing for? I swear, that's the furthest I've ever seen you fall for anyone. Despite what you may have said to everyone, it was obvi--"

"He's married," Bellamy cut her off.

"....oh."

"Mm."

"To whom?"

"Fucking..." He sighed. "It's not important."

"...you okay, Samuel?"

At this, Bellamy shook himself out of it. He wasn't in the mood for any emotional shit. Especially not with Desdemona.

"Just the grog," he scoffed, rubbing his head. "Givin' me a fucking headache with all this noise."

"Well," Des sighed, standing up and facing him before gesturing towards the door. "Wanna get out of here?"

~~~

The two lovers had entwined in their sleep. After the earlier activities, they'd fallen asleep rather early in the day. It was barely after the sun had set that they were harshly woken up by the door slamming open and Albino poking his smiling face in.

"Captain!" He cried out as the two men startled awake, Captain grumbling as Scarf slowly blinked his eyes open. "You've got mail! And they all look like a lady's handwriting!"

Scarf raised an eyebrow with a joking suspicion while Captain was quick to raise his hands in defense. "Probably some poor old flame who's remembered her passionate love for me. Don't worry, Number Two! I'll let her down easy."

Scarf rolled his eyes at this but smiled, and while it was well past tea time, he figured he'd pour them a cup each while they sat down and read whatever the (presumed) woman had to say.

The Captain sat down in his chair, shifting through the mail and taking note of the same elegant, curly script addressing him on each envelope. With a hum of thought, he shifted one of them to observe the identity of who'd sent the letters.

In a swift moment, Scarf looked up just as the Captain dropped the letter with a sound of alarm, his eyes widened in an uncertain emotion.

"Captain?" Scarf inquired, bringing over the tea. "Is everything alright? Who is it?"

Captain gulped, chuckling nervously as he looked back at the letter. "Ohhh, no one important," he tried to assure with a wave of his hand. "Just uhh, like I said, an old-- an old flame!"

"Well, you've had many of those," Scarf chuckled good-naturedly as he sat down their cups. "What's so special about this girl?" He picked up the earliest dated letter to observe the name. Edina Pinewood. "Don't tell me it's one of our lot or we're in trouble," he joked.

"No! No," Captain cried, "she's not a pirate, she's just-- well--"

He trailed off, but a look at his husband told the Captain he wasn't going to get away without an answer.

"It's just, she-- she was the last woman I'd ever been with before--! Well...before you," he admitted. "Before I proposed, I mean."

"Oh," Scarf uttered. "That's all? Well, that's no real worry, is it?"

"N-No, but..." The Captain trailed off as he saw Scarf open the letter, and he pulled his hat further over his head in an attempt to hide his face as he rested his chin on the desk. "Ohh, just read it to me, will you, Number Two?"

"'Dear Pirate Captain,'" Scarf began, "'I am aware how much time has passed since our last encounter, but rest assured I bear you no ill will because of it.'" Scarf stole a glance at the Captain, who only looked up briefly from under his hat before making a gesture to continue. "'You provided me the best experiences I could have wished for on the night before my wedding. I can still remember the soft feeling of your lips upon my--" Upon reading the next part of the sentence, Scarf's face flushed bright pink before he cleared his throat. "Ahem, well," he spoke, tossing the letter on the desk and avoiding the Captain's eyes, "let's just find the next one, hm?"

Upon a glance over at the letter, the Captain's eyes widened as he scrambled to find the next earliest letter. "H-Here, I think this is it," he hurried, urging Scarf to be quick with it.

"'My dearest Captain: by the time you receive this, I shall have long since been married into luxury.'" At this, the Captain looked up, now confused.

"Well... That's nice for her, I suppose," the Captain spoke slowly, picking nonexistent lint off his sleeves. "But if that's the case then why-- well, go on," he interrupted himself, encouraging the first mate to continue reading.

"'Despite this new situation, do not think that this prevents us from meeting once more. I must confess a great flutter in my heart at the idea of us reuniting once more." Scarf looked up with an almost pitiful look. "She seems rather nice."

"Yes, she was," the Captain muttered. "I do hope she wasn't pining for too long after me, what with all these letters! While I know I'm quite the catch in the eyes of any woman…"

Scarf rolled his eyes at the familiar smirk. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves, shall we?" He teased as he opened the next letter. "'Dear Captain, despite my previous hesitancy, I've found that matrimony can be quite suitable. Currently, my husband and I have agreed to enjoy a year of bliss before engaging in the production of a family.'"

After scanning the page and concluding there was no more words of urgency, he opened the next. "'I'm afraid I've been feeling under the weather lately, though the reasons are unknown. While the symptoms do arouse my suspicions of certain situations, I know that my husband and I have yet to copulate, lest we risk reproduction before we're ready.'"

And the next. "'I've been having morning sickness every day now. It's harder to walk, and I find myself uncharacteristically fatigued.'"

And the next. "'I've begun to fear that the worst has transpired. I refuse to notify my husband of these symptoms until I may figure out for myself.'"

Finally, Scarf slowly opened the last letter. At this point, their tea had gone cold, and the Captain sat at the edge of his seat as Scarf tried not to let his voice shake. "'I'm afraid my greatest fears have been realized. This morning, while attempting to keep the house tidy, I felt it. It was faint, but apparent." Scarf couldn't help but scan ahead, and his eyes widened at what was written.

"...Number Two?" The Captain spoke up, concerned. "What is it?"

"...it…" he slowly looked back at the letter to finish reading. "'I felt a kick. Two, actually, from different sides of my stomach. I'm afraid that I am with child and, considering my short story of history in these affairs…'" At this, Scarf looked up at his husband, unsure how to process whatever he was feeling. "...they're yours."

At this, it felt as though, the whole sea had dropped dead. Not even the birds dared gull, not in this moment of great realization and conflicting distress.
"...Children? Mine?" The Captain asked, gently gripping at his beard. "As in… mine, mine? I-Is she sure?"

"Well," Scarf gulped, reviewing the letters, "she's yet to become that, ahem, intimately acquainted with her husband, so…"

They felt awkward about the intense eye contact between them, yet they were too scared to look anywhere else. Finally, Captain asked:

"Did she write anything else?"

Scarf scanned over the back of the page. "Yes, actually," he confirmed, sounding slightly astonished. "It seems she's planned a whole scheme for this, that I think might just pull itself off…assuming we cooperate, that is."

"Cooperate?"

"Well, she's run away, forging an abductor's note and convincing her husband that she's been kidnapped," Scarf read through, both perplexed and impressed. "She's given us a location to meet at, and she's pleading that we…" at this, he felt his throat tighten. "That we take the kids."

Hearing this, the Captain rushed to his feet, nearly spilling his tea had Scarf not expertly lifted it back up with the tip of his finger. "We take the kids!?"

"That's what she's asking," Scarf confirmed. With an amazed gasp, the Captain began pacing around, a smile slowly growing on his face.

"Number Two, do you realize what this means!? Here's us, dreaming of children and how we'd cover that, and this opportunity just falls right into our laps! And do you realize how close we are to London right now!?" He grabbed his mate lot by the shoulders, shaking him excitedly. "We could go wait for them right now!"

When Scarf didn't respond vocally, despite his warm smile, Captain grew concerned. "O-Of course, this is, uh… a-a two-way street, Number Two," he reminded, mostly himself. "We, uh, we shouldn't do it if you're not up to… Well, children right now. I know you already have much on your plate between me and the crew--"
"No!" Scarf exclaimed, taking Captain's hands in reassurance. "No, no, no, Captain, that's not it at all."

"Well, then what is it?" The Captain asked, looking at him with those big, concerned, bear-dog eyes Scarf loved so much.

Scarf had a lot of concerns. What if they were found out? What if she changed her mind last minute and decided to keep the children? What if it was a trap set up by the husband to lure the Captain in as revenge for the intimate relations he'd had with this woman? What if they weren't even Captain's children, and she was simply trying to dump her unwanted spawn onto him?

But he couldn't disclose all that. That wouldn't matter, really. Captain would love the children, blood or no blood. And he'd be determined to see them either way.

"Just… can't believe how lucky we got," Scarf chuckled, kissing Captain's cheek.

"Neither can I," the larger man chuckled back, kissing the first mate's hands with great enthusiasm. "Now," he spoke, voice filled with a new type of determination, how long ago was that sent?"

"The last letter was…" Scarf looked at the date. "Four months ago."

He watched the Captain's face, which seemed perplexed as he mutterdd under his breath.

"Married for five, plus the engagement period, then before that…" the Captain's eyes widened. "Um… say, Number Two, what's the usual pregnancy period again?"

"Around nine months, give or take," Scarf shrugged, "why?"

"Well, um," the Captain cleared his throat. "Let's just say we should set the course for London and mayyyybe prepare for a doctor if needed because…"

At this, Scarf's eyes widened. "Labor!? She truly was the last girl, wasn't she!?'

"Let's not waste any time on the technicalities!" The Captain cries rushing out the quarters. "Gentlemen!...and Jennifer. Set a course for London immediately! We've got a delivery to make!"