OMG HIIIIIIIIII hello my beloved friend hi hi hi <3 <3 <3 okay so when I have people send me music note prompts, I like to lean into like songficcy vibes, and then I saw the sketch you sent on discord of Ed and stede where Ed has the braid and is laying on Stede’s chest and Stede’s got Ed’s hand in his and you said it was inspired by some post princess Ed aftercare
And then inspiration hit me like a TON OF BRICKS because rhys-as-stede gives me SO many Danny Kaye in the Court Jester vibes, and there’s this LOVELY fucking lullaby from the Court Jester and it just fit the vibes of this sketch SO SO SO MUCH
(the lullaby in question):
I really love the image of Stede’s hand wrapped around Ed’s almost like he’s caressing Ed’s wrist which lead to me imagining they’re in bed together after Stede and Ed have done a full, dramatic absconding roleplay complete with ALL THE ROPES because she’s being a full-on brat and she needs her captain to tie her up to keep her from shying away from the pleasure she deserves kind of a thing (I’m thinking maybe Ed and Stede are at the inn, there’s a storm on the horizon, and they decide on letting Ed spend time as a princess to feel some power and also to feel safe to let that power go since storms are full of rough memories for him still), and afterwards Ed’s feeling all floaty after Stede’s let him be a haughty and feisty princess and stede keeps soothing Ed’s wrists from the nice little burn that Ed loves, and this lil scene happens:
Ed’s mind is a dreamy haze of safe, warm, home when he finally settles back into his body—the scene's been cleaned up, the ropes have been tidied away, and Ed is tucked under every blanket they’ve stolen from the merchant ships that keep using their beach for a proper careening. The clouds outside still hang heavy with unshed rain, a deep grey ushering in an early evening, but Ed’s heartbeat is steady and soft against his rib-cage, beating out a tempo that twines easily with the peace settling in him like ripples on a mill-pond. Ed closes his eyes, breathes deeply, and lets his body speak to him in tiptoeing waves.
Fuck, Ed fucking resonates with the love of being well-cared for. His wrists sting from the rope burn, but Stede’s already been there with aloe to soothe it away with a gentle cloth. His face is clean and fresh from a compress Stede always prepares, ready to tend to the fever-hot burn of being a princess from Ed’s skin. The weight of his braid, cool with the fresh coconut oil Stede’s worked into the strands, is enough to pin him to the bed, and there’s only a momentary flicker of disappointment he missed the gentle burn of Stede’s hands in his hair. It’s easily dwarfed by the whine he can feel building in his lungs when he realizes he isn’t plastered against Stede’s warm chest, but before he can part his lips to let it free, Stede is there, sweet and golden like fucking always.
Ed curls in against Stede’s chest, letting out a murmur that sounds something like a laugh when Stede’s chest hair tickles his nose. Stede’s arm wraps around him, and he presses the gentlest of kisses to Ed’s temple, letting out a sigh that gets wrapped up in the wind starting to pick up around the secure walls of their inn.
Stede giggles, a sweet, wheezing thing that gets caught in the kiss he presses to Ed’s temple.
“Mmm, indeed. You were so good, princess.”
A delicious shiver makes Ed’s hand on Stede’s chest start to shake, and he can sense more than see Stede shifting, capturing Ed’s hand in his, pressing it protectively to his chest.
“Ah, too much. That’s okay! I’m here, my love. I’m here.”
Ed lets Stede take the shivers from him, lets his body surrender to the warmth and strength of his boyfriend’s beating heart against his fingertips, and he burrows closer, sighing. His heart might always be full of jagged edges, cracked open on a hidden reef in a shallow tide, but Ed’s never been less afraid of drowning, of feeling the cold hand of the ocean dragging him down to her fathomless depths. He doesn’t need to be afraid with the Gentleman Pirate at the helm navigating them both to a quiet harbor.
As Ed inches closer and closer to sleep, he feels a gentle vibration against his cheek. Stede is humming, a tuneless lullaby that wanders through melodies with no destination. Ed smiles against Stede’s chest, letting the song Stede hums wash over him, soaking up every note and surrendering to the harmony of his heartbeat keeping time with Stede’s.
“Thank you,” he manages to whisper, and he falls asleep to a kiss against his temple and Stede’s thumb pressed against his pulse point, wrapped in the finest thing he’s ever known.
