A Pirate's Life For Us

Chapter 6 - Gullible's Travels

Stede was quite surprised when Captain Bonny invited him into her cabin for dinner. He didn't expect to get any more respect or treatment from her and the crew than anyone else who came, hat-in-hand to ask for a favour.

Apparently, he had underestimated the accord that pirate captains could have for one another - whether they currently had a ship or not.

Stede stepped up to the door just as it opened. He nearly walked right into Lucius.

Lucius curled up his lip at Stede and justled the man's shoulder as he strode past.

"Lucius..." began Stede.

"Shut it, you. I'm on my way to forgiving you because you rescued Pete. And the others, I suppose." Lucius canted his hip and rested the leger on it, a sour look leveled on his former captain. "But I'm not there yet. All right?"

"Fair enough," said Stede with a hangdog expression.

Lucius sighed dramatically and flicked his wrist. "Go on in. She's ready for you. Like an inexplicable number of people, she seems to like you." Something about that statement suggested that he himself was among that inexplicable number.

"Ah, thank you," Stede murmured. "Lucius, I really am sorry. For everything."

"I know," said Lucius. "Idiot," he mumbled, with some affection as he minced off.

Bonny's cabin, Stede noted, was more like his own than other captain's cabins he'd seen. It was not as elaborately finished, but nor was it pragmatic and threadbare. There was a small gallery of paintings in various styles on one wall, few crates that likely had nowhere else to be stored.

Bonny herself had shed her well-tailored jacket and was in shirtsleeves and trousers. She was seated, going over nautical charts while a young man set the table for dinner.

"Captain Bonny?" Stede said awkwardly.

"Captain Bonnet," she replied. "Welcome."

Stede opened his mouth to correct her on his title, but thought the better of it. "Thank you for the invitation. It's very kind of you."

Bonny was writing something. That surprised Stede. He hadn't met too many people on the seas who were literate, which is why someone like Lucius was so valuable. "I thought we should discuss strategy."

The young man acting as steward eyed Stede, finished setting the table and then took that as his cue to depart.

"Ah, yes. I do admit I'm a little...concerned we might be at cross-purposes. I want to find Ed, not hurt him." He'd already done that.

"I don't want to hurt him, either," said Bonny as she finished writing and pushed the papers aside. She motioned for him to take the seat across from her.

Stede opened his mouth, closed it, opened again, and then finally admitted, "I have...as much to do with Jack's death as Ed. Maybe more."

Bonny picked up a cup of tea and then said, "I know. Lucius told me alllll about it."

Stede's cheeks pinkened. "And yet you still want to help?"

"This isn't a revenge mission, Bonnet. I know Ed. And while I'm pissed as hell that he and Jack ran off together, I'm not tracking him down to kill him."

Stede exhaled a held breath in relief. "That's good to hear. Em...I hope you don't take this the wrong way, but having met Jack, and having seen how you run your ship, I have a bit of a hard time imagining you two together."

Bonny smiled and chuckled. "Mhmm, that's because it was a marriage of convenience. Well, it didn't start out that way. Jack and I met while I was in disguise as a man, and he actually kinda fell for me thinking I was one. He stayed with me even when he found out. But I was always the exception, not the rule. Turns out..." she shrugged, "...it was the same for me."