Me:It has been so long since Seteth has fallen in love, that he had literallyforgotten what it felt like before he started falling in love with Byleth. He thinks it’s familial affection because that has been the only love he’s felt for centuries.
Summary: John’s twin sister is a battle-hardened WWI field nurse who shares her brothers’ philosophy that every day back home is extra. In a bid to curb her disastrous thrill-seeking, Tommy sends her to Boston to keep her out of trouble and handle legitimate business. Tommy’s plan backfires when she meets rival gangster, Jack Nelson.
Author’s Note: The story is told with flashbacks, which I’ve listed with dates. Nearing the end of this fic, probably 1 or 2 more parts to go.
“Scarlett, come out!” Ada shouted through the locked door.
Scarlett let out a strangled cry, “Go away, Ada, please,” she pleaded. Ada was worried about her older sister. She had been ill for weeks now, but kept refusing Ada’s insistent demands to call a doctor.
“Scarlett, this can’t go on. I’m going to…I’m going to tell Tommy!” Ada threatened her sister with the only thing left she could think of.
The door slowly opened and Ada gasped as she saw her sister on the floor, pale and clammy.
“Scarlett, I know you’re sick. Please let me help you,” Ada implored.
Scarlett sat up wiping her mouth on the back of her hand. She pulled her knees into her chest making herself small in the corner before admitting, “I’m not sick, Ada, I’m fucking pregnant.”
“he doesn’t kiss, nobody likes him” consider that stede’s scary story says just as much about stede as ed’s kraken story says about him.
consider that stede was the odd boy out growing up. consider that his relationship with mary was perfunctory and very likely passionless - an expectation. it’s clear that they don’t have any kind of affection in their relationship.
he doesn’t kiss. nobody likes him.
maybe he’d done it once or twice. once on his wedding night, grimacing through a duty-bound and anxious consummation with someone who doesn’t want to be there either, because that’s how he always imagined it, that’s how it is in the stories - falling in love, spending the first night of the rest of your lives together.
this isn’t that story.
so there it is, really. stede grows up and he grows older and he learns that the only dreams he can have are the ones he can create for himself.
he builds a ship to captain because he knows no one would take him otherwise. he hires a crew with regular pay in case he can’t inspire loyalty. he brings his stories because he knows that’s all he’s ever going to know about love or romance.
he doesn’t kiss. nobody likes him.
when you believe something about yourself so deeply and for so long, it becomes part of you. it becomes true. you forget the possibilities of anything else. the scariest thing ed teach can think of is the kraken. the scariest thing stede can think of is a man who doesn’t kiss, who nobody likes.
is it any wonder then that stede is surprised when ed kisses him? that it’s a little awkward and a little clumsy, a little uncertain? that stede can lose himself in the moment, but that he begins to panic so shortly thereafter? he knows himself, after all. he’s a failure of a father and a husband and a pirate captain and he’s a murderer besides. a defiler of beautiful things.
he doesn’t kiss for a reason. nobody should like him.
it’s not a very big step then, is it, to go back to what he should be. things have changed, though, and he’s very aware of how he doesn’t fit, but he’s used to that. that’s how it should be. he only becomes a little bitchy about it when he catches mary with doug - the reminder of what he cannot have. he doesn’t kiss. nobody likes him.
but then mary tells him about love, and stede’s realization isn’t just that he’s in love with ed. he also realizes that ed is in love with him.
it feels easy. it’s just like breathing. they understand each other’s idiosyncrasies, finds them charming even. they expose each other to new things, and they laugh a lot. they pass the time so well together.
he hasn’t kissed. not really. but ed loves him. and that’s not the scary story it was that night sitting alone on the beach, watching ed run headlong into a future stede didn’t think he could ever have.
he knows that future is real, though. it’s possible. he’s going to fight for it.
I might have already said something about this but just bear with me for a moment. Uncle is an incredibly underrated character and people are honestly super mean about him. Yes, the jokes are funny and I understand that it’s literally ~The Thing~ that he is lazy and useless and doesn’t work/messes up when he does. But Uncle is great.
First of all, it’s explained in a few camp encounters that Uncle had a really rough childhood, living and making it alone- his parents dead. Imagine a nine or so year old kid trying to make it on his own, hungry, scared… No wonder he wants to just chill out. Especially somewhere he feels safe- near Arthur’s tent, under a tree and the warm sun, or so on.
And somehow he ended up with Dutch and them; his loyalty to Dutch is clear. But it isn’t blind. When the time comes, and it does… He knows when to cut and run. He’s intelligent, he’s just not the type to brandish big words or massive plans. He’s cunning, but not in a malicious way. I think Dutch likes that about him: he isn’t useless to Dutch, or the gang. He has wisdom and he’s the kind of guy that knows things, hears things, sees things… Keeps em to himself until needed.
He tries to get people to open up, he’s very empathetic and emotional and he wants to have PEOPLE. Can you blame him? He even gets Charles to laugh a few times, and his jokes and his banjo playing and his drinking lighten up the camp even during the darkest days. He is truly a light.
He has his skills like anybody else, and maybe he isn’t a strongarm or a mastermind or rolling the dough in for camp- but he’s loyal to what matters, like Arthur says. This is proven when he gives his life in RDR1 to protect the Marstons, declaring that the enemy should get off of *their* land. It isn’t because he is a leech or because he feels he owns something he doesn’t, it’s because the Marstons gave him a home and it IS *their* home and THEY are his home.
Before that, the Van Der Lindes were his home. “Camp” was his home. He loves Arthur and John and everybody, and despite what they say- they love him too. They take care of him like they take care of one another. Simple.
I only wish he had gotten to die in peace sleeping in his attic bedroom at Beecher’s like any old man should.
Vax: I want to tell you something. We’re almost like family now, and I’ve seen you do many great things, and you’ve earned my trust. But if you hurt my sister…if you hurt anyone else in this group inadvertently-
i suddenly got so emotional over how pretty tom holland is. like look at his cute lil boopable nose and pretty doe eyes and his curly cute hair fuck i’m crying rn because he is so beautiful and perfect and i just want to tell him this but i’m mad cause i know i’ll never be able to:(
