CALL OF THE SEA / PART TWENTY ONE
pirate poly!141 x f!reader tw: NSFW, MDNI, mentions of death, nothing too spicy this chapter :p a/n: hewwoooo! two years later and i'm finally back with a new chapter :3 it's lovely to see u again, and to those who have been waiting for an update, ty for being patient and i hope the wait was worth it because i plan on coming back completely to finish what i started <3 this chapter is a bit lengthy, but it's to connect everything that's happened so far! the next ones will be where the fun starts FINALLY! i have much to update everybody on, but for now, consider this my greeting after so long masterlist
When a group of unhinged pirates invade your small village, you're whisked away from your peaceful home and thrown on to a voyage out at sea. Forced to obtain a new role as their medic, you have no choice but to accept your fate as you join their forces and aid them in their treacherous travels.
Things were returning to normal by the next morning amongst the ship, though, there was a lingering… intensity that was never quite there before.
Sleeping with Price was awkward, something unspoken hanging in the air. You had rushed yourself into bed and forced yourself to rest despite your racing thoughts, and he had simply allowed you the grace, knowing times weren’t kind to you at the moment.
He was happy you were alive, and that was enough to shut him up and have him heeling like a dog.
However, breakfast had you poking at your food, fork pushing around the poached eggs like they were the most interesting thing in the world. The table was quiet apart from Soap yapping on about God knows what so early, as well as the others scraping at their own plates.
With Price across from you and Gaz to your right, you couldn’t help but feel flustered, cornered in like a prey caught by its predator.
Gaz was silent, though you could feel his side eye as he forced himself to eat.
Price was oblivious, watching you like a hawk to make sure you were eating your food properly after nearly losing you.
Ghost was… well, he was normal. Apart from staring daggers into Soap as a silent plea to shut him up, he paid you no mind, something you didn’t know if it was to purposefully avoid you or if it was him being crammed into his typical shell.
It felt awkward. You weren’t quite sure why.
“I think I will take my leave for now,” you announced, already beginning to stand. You couldn’t bear to feel more of the heaviness. “Food is not sitting well with me today.”
Gaz stood just as quickly, knocking your shoulder on accident, his hands coming out to grab for your half eaten plate. You startled at the sudden gesture, eyes going wide as he took it without a word, muttering about how he'll clean it up.
He was so confident last night, going as far as to insinuate intimate things that he had brewing in his mind towards you, and now, he was fumbling around like a doe learning to walk.
“What’s wrong with ‘im?” Soap asked curiously, raising his eyebrows at you.
You threw him a bewildered look, stammering over your words. “I—I do not know, why should I?”
“…Right.” He stifled a smile, much too amused by your sudden frenzy.
You frowned, clearing your throat, placing a hand over your ribs where you previously had a wicked injury from Graves. “I am sore,” you lied. “I will go rest.”
Before any of them could say anything else, you made haste leaving the mess hall, the Captain’s eyes watching you keenly until you were completely out of sight.
The door squeaked as it shut behind you, filling the tense silence at the table.
Gaz returned shortly, knocking his knee into his chair and cursing before taking his seat. All eyes moved to him, and he stared back at his crew with a frown.
“…What?”
“Ye sly dog,” Soap tsked, shaking his head and shoveling a fork full of eggs into his mouth. Ghost grunted in disgust across from him. “Ye did somethin’, didn’t ye?”
Gaz feigned innocence, taking his own bite of his food that had now grown cold. “Don’t know what you’re blubberin’ about, mate.”
“You don’t?” Price asked, and that was the voice that had Gaz wincing. “M’quite sure you do, mate.”
“Wait,” Soap said, narrowing his eyes and pointing his fork between the two of them. “Do ye know somethin’, Cap?”
Price ignored him and smiled. “Go on,” he urged, staring the poor lad down. “Do tell.”
“Perhaps we should discuss this in private,” Gaz tried.
“What? No way!” Soap objected.
“Nothin’ to be ashamed of,” the Captain replied, shrugging. He seemed awfully casual for a man who put together the pieces that his crewmate kissed the girl he had also kissed.
“Both of ye?” Soap tried once more. Ghost hissed at him to shut up.
“It is okay, then?” Gaz asked cautiously.
Price merely grinned. “Why wouldn’t it be?”
Gaz sat stumped, glancing over to catch Soap’s curious and pleading gaze before shifting back to the captain’s. He truly seemed unbothered, keeping his usual relaxed stance, slumped in his chair, fingers tapping absentmindedly on the table.
“It is okay with her?” he asked.
Soap raised a hand. “Oi, I think I can help answer that—“
“Only one way to find out,” Price said casually, pushing his hands against the table and standing. He let out a grunt, stretching. “Do what you will. I will not be a threat.”
And he meant it. That much Gaz could tell.
His captain was indirectly giving him permission to continue yearning for you, so long as he was allowed to do the same. Gaz would do anything for Price, but sharing a woman? That hadn’t exactly been a scenario he imagined happening one day.
Still, though, as he watched Price leave the mess hall, disappearing through the doors and out of sight, he made a mental note to discuss things with you, as he was sure Price was bound to do the same.
“Fuckin’ mutts,” Soap grunted in annoyance, and Gaz looked at him. “Ye mean to tell me ye both did somethin’?”
Gaz sighed, flicking a finger against the brunette’s forehead. “Learn to shut up, idiot.”
Soap huffed, grumbling to himself as he stood to occupy himself in clearing off the table rather than stick around to be ridiculed.
You returned to Price’s quarters to lay down, soaking in the gentle sway of the ocean waves as it rocked you. It lulled you back into calmness, slowing down your racing heart from the awkward breakfast.
It was difficult to forget about it, for your mind kept slowly crawling back to the memories of your kiss with Gaz the night before, then to the one you shared with your Captain.
You thought back to a conversation you shared with Soap when you were bedridden. He had told you it was normal to yearn for more than one person, and in fact, encouraged it. It wasn’t something you were used to, growing up with the idea that monogamy was the only happy way, bound to one’s soul for the remainder of your life.
These damned pirates were constantly teaching you new things everyday.
Was it okay to kiss both of them? Perhaps you should’ve discussed it with Price first, seeing as he was the one who kissed you before Gaz. Or, perhaps you should have told Gaz what happened rather than slipping into the moment too deeply?
You sighed as you stared at the ceiling of the quarters, frowning at it as if it had personally wronged you.
“You seem awfully in your head,” a voice spoke, and you startled, shooting up to see the captain himself standing in the doorway. You must’ve been so zoned out that you didn’t hear it croak open.
“You frightened me,” you murmured, and he let out a soft chuckle.
He stepped in, shutting the door behind him. “You said you were restin’,” he noted with a quirk of his eyebrow. “This does not look like restin’. This looks like ponderin’.”
You huffed, avoiding his gaze. “I can do both.”
“Mm. You can.” He made his way over to you, sinking down to sit on the edge of the bed, the frame creaking under his weight. “Though, I am curious as to what has you lookin’ so perplexed.”
Your hands wrung together awkwardly in your lap, your eyes searching his before sifting away when his gaze felt too intense.
You were torn up over many things at the moment, unsure of which one was best to focus on. You knew the obvious answer was trying to decipher what your recent dreams had meant, such as the one telling you to go home and what it could all possibly mean.
But… it was hard not to let your mind wander. As if your body wanted you to remember, your lips tingled when you remembered the way it felt to kiss both Price and Gaz, both so different yet just as good at the same time.
Gaz was definitely more confident. It showed in the way he had spoken to you, words so honeyed it had your head spinning and your legs pressing together from an unfamiliar heat.
Price, however, for the brute of the man he was, was gentle, capturing your lips in a kiss so warm it had your entire body burning feverishly and your mind going numb.
“Hell, who cares if ye end up with more than one? More love to go around, aye?”
Soap’s words were constantly on your mind, and you wondered if that was truly something he meant. Soap said a lot of crazy things, thought a lot of crazy things, but that didn’t always make them right.
For all you knew, the rest of the world, Price included, would deem you as sinful for even thinking about the idea of another man. Even Gaz may be regretful if he found out you were already being pursued by his captain.
“Dove,” Price said, snapping you out of your thoughts.
You looked at him, a frown tugging your lips, teeth chewing on the inside of your cheek. He tilted his head when he caught it, his eyes shifting down to your lips before returning to your stare.
“I am terribly sorry, Captain,” you said meekly, frown deepening. “I allowed Gaz to kiss me last night without speaking to you first, and I am sorry. It was terrible choice-making on my part, and I should have stopped it so I could speak with you—“
He laughed. Not a small, breathy one in amusement, but laughed. Coiled over, holding his stomach, cheeks flushing a pretty pink.
The Captain was laughing, and you weren’t too sure whether to be offended or relieved.
“…Captain?”
“Ach, I am sorry, dove,” he mused, grinning under his fluffy beard. “Terribly sorry, you see. I did not mean to laugh, but I find it amusin’ that you have been cooped up all mornin’, worried about somethin’ so silly.”
You blinked slowly, confused as to why he wasn’t angry. “You are… not upset?”
“Upset?” He laughed once more. “I am a pirate, dove. It would be pathetic to be upset about you kissin’ up on one of my crew. I am worried about far more things than… that.”
You could practically hear Soap saying I told ye so! in your ear.
“I see,” you murmured in embarrassment, shoulders slightly dropping. You fiddled with your hands in your lap, pouting down at them.
Price was never one to be emotional or good at comfort. Hell, the man was completely bipolar, going from soft and sweet one moment to an angry brute the next. You could never truly predict his next move, nor what he was thinking.
However, he could sense the unease still lingering somewhere in you, and for once, he felt pity, seeing you so worked up over something so miniscule.
“Tch. You worry far too much on this ship,” he said, tone shifting into something softer. He merely smiled when you looked at him again. “You need not to. You do not need my permission to do what you want. If you’re feelin’ me, then I’m glad. If you’re feelin’ anybody else on this ship, then I encourage it.”
You swallowed, eyes practically bugging out of your head. You didn’t expect the Captain to be so open about it, speaking as if it were the weather for the day. He held no resentment or jealousy, merely taking your feelings in stride and encouraging them.
“I cannot say the same for anybody that is not a part of the crew, though,” he murmured quieter, and you don’t even know when he had gotten so close. You could practically feel his breath fanning over your mouth. “While I am quite a generous man to you, I suggest you keep it within a tight circle, or that is when we will have a problem. Got that, dove?”
Given the underlying implication of his words, you could only quickly nod, agreeing without a second thought while he simply chuckled.
He didn’t quite move away, invading your space and filling your nostrils with his earthy smell. Your senses felt clouded. He waited, and when you grumbled out a verbal confirmation that you heard him, only then did he pull away, standing with a grunt.
“We’ll be chartin’ course for your village, now that you’re well,” he said, switching topics and scratching his beard. “Sure hope you’re right about this, dove.”
It was so easy for him to be unfazed, meanwhile, your heart felt like it was about to spring out of your chest, beating wildly. You weren’t used to feeling this way, never having any interest in the men of your village, nor having the chance to even experience feeling this way.
You observed the calmness in his body language, how his shoulders were more relaxed than usual, his mouth was pulled into a neutral line, and his eyes were soft compared to the rage that had been filling them as of lately.
“I am just following my gut,” you said.
“Okay,” he quipped. “Your gut better be right, then.”
“…Yes, sir.”
“Attagirl.” He gruffed out a laugh. “While I encourage you to rest, I fear it may make you lazy. Perhaps you can see yourself to the crow’s nest for a few hours as our look out, since I know how much you loved it before. It’ll be good for ya.”
You nodded slowly, already preparing to stand from the bed. You should’ve known Price would’ve seen right through your ‘soreness’ lie earlier, but he didn’t make it obvious, only encouraging you to get outside and not stay cooped up like you’d been for months.
You should’ve also known that he would eventually get his payback for you running out of his quarters the night Graves showed up, climbing up the crow’s nest ladder like a monkey in the midst of a storm.
“Yes, sir,” you repeated awkwardly.
He cocked his head, staring hard at you, dissecting every bit of your face. You shifted on your feet, unnerved from the boldness, clearing your throat.
“Unless you are not feelin’ well,” he said slowly.
You were quick to disagree, shaking your head and throwing up a wave of your hand. “No, no, I am quite well,” you assured. “I will head off to the crow’s nest, then.”
Before he could utter another word, you quickly shuffled past him, feeling the prying of his eyes on the back of your head. You scurried out of the quarters and on to the main deck, heart leaping in your chest and fighting against your ribcage.
Thankful to see none of the others lingering around, you forced yourself up the rope ladder until it brought you to the crow’s nest, plopping down and allowing yourself the time to calm your beating heart and the strange warmth that had pooled in the pits of your stomach.
The crow’s nest was boring by yourself. You don’t think any of the other men knew you were even up there, lounging about and staring into the vast ocean where nothing had been seen for hours.
The sun had beat down on your poor skin, making you feel hot and clammy. The breeze did little to cool you, and you swore if you stayed up there any longer, you might fry and become their next meal.
Thankfully, the sun was beginning to set, and the heat wasn’t as brutal. In fact, it was starting to become comforting, the sun resting along the horizon, the big, yellow orb shining back at you brightly, and the rocking waves providing you a nice, calming sound.
“Dove!”
You winced, the peace broken.
Reluctantly, you shuffled up, peering over the crow’s nest and down to the main deck where Soap stood, offering a stupid grin. He waved, beckoning you down.
“Been up there all day. How’s ‘bout ye come down and get somethin’ to eat?”
You frowned down at him, shaking your head.
“No?”
“It is quite relaxing up here, and I am not hungry.”
Soap returned your frown, hands resting on his hips before you watched him begin to ascend the rope ladder to lead his way up to you. Your eyebrows shot up but you said nothing, merely scooting over and providing him space to wiggle his way in the crow’s nest.
He let out a grunt as he settled in, back pressed up against the old wood as it creaked against his weight. His shoulder pressed to yours, his warmth seeping into your skin.
“You are missing dinner,” you said.
“Tch. So are ye,” he grumbled, side-eyeing you.
“I was going to join soon,” you argued lightly. “I am just enjoying the air now that it is not blazing hot.”
“Then I’ll enjoy it with ye. Dinner can wait.”
You turned your head to look at him, and he looked back, wearing that stubborn expression. You could only sigh and nod your head, allowing him to bask in your company.
Soap was always a bit on the clingier side, perhaps because he was the first one to accept you as part of the crew. But you noticed that he seemed a little extra clingy since the night with Graves, as if he worried you’d vanish if he let you out of his sight too long, and now that he had you alone, he was going to seize the opportunity to stick to your side.
“Yer feelin’ well?”
His voice broke the peaceful silence. You nodded once more, patting a hand along your side.
“Good as new. Can’t feel anything,” you promised.
You felt him slightly relax from beside you.
“Lady Thea must’ve been reeeal crazy,” he mused. “She had ye fixed up real quick. So quick, she wouldn’t even let us see ye because ye were already recoverin’.”
You listened quietly, the sun beginning to dip low behind the horizon, casting the ocean in an orange glow that reflected off and up towards the two of you.
Only you and Thea knew the truth. Unspoken even now, locked away inside of you, almost like you didn’t quite believe it yourself — a gift. Something you couldn’t grasp or wanted to understand.
You didn’t know how it worked. If it worked. Thea left you little information to work with, speaking in riddle, and now, knowing you had some sort of healing ability that only she knew about, you weren’t too sure you wanted to unlock that box just yet.
“I am grateful to you and everybody else for working so quickly to find her,” you thanked kindly, though something in your tone had Soap glancing at you.
“…Ye almost died,” he muttered, as if it weren’t obvious. “Then, poof. All better.”
You chewed on the inside of your cheek.
“Ye know somethin’, dove,” he continued. “I know ye do. Ye can’t keep much from me on this ship. I’m a nosy bastard.”
That had you smiling.
“I know,” you replied.
He snickered, nudging your shoulder with his. “M’serious, though.”
His smile dropped into a frown, and you couldn’t help but mirror him. You watched his expression, gauging his thoughts, and for once, he seemed truly stumped, like his mind was a whirlwind of too much at once. He didn’t even have it in him to keep up the jests.
“I thought ye were gonna die, dove.”
The words stung. Not because they hurt you, but because it hurt him.
You weren’t used to bonds, or connections. Sure, you had kissed the captain, and… Gaz as well, which was something you were still trying to figure out. But to have somebody be open and vulnerable about their fear of losing you, especially that of your former captor?
For a mangy pirate crew that murdered innocent villages and sailed the seas like they owned them, they were the only ones who had ever shown you such care before. Though it was often in confusing ways, you still always got the hint that it was out of kindness, because they wanted you happy.
Gaz allowed you to speak with him during his nightly watches, even if it was merely to listen to you ramble on about things that didn’t make sense.
Price made sure you were comfortable, whether that be in cleanliness or where you slept, and went out of his way to assure you wouldn’t go another night, feeling like you once did in your old brig cell.
Ghost, though much more distant than the rest, did more than he thought he did. Many times, he’d silently made sure you had a bowl of food, fresh to go. Or, when your life was at threat, he was the first to rage, angrily pushing himself to be the first to try and fix it.
Soap was the one that kept you smiling, always having a new trick up his sleeve waiting for you when you needed a pick me up. The moment you were down or in your head, he was the first to try and fight that, using his own force to lift your spirits and carefully nudge you back into a serene place.
It scared you how much you began to care. How you began to learn their habits like the back of your hand, coming as second nature.
It scared you that you were beginning to fear ever losing them, too.
“I am right here,” you assured softly.
Without thinking, you reached a hand out to grasp hold of his own. His skin was rough and rugged, years of hard labor built in the form of callouses. You didn’t care, simply holding it in your own, linking your fingers together and placing your other hand on top of them.
“But ye almost weren’t,” he pressed, angry. You knew it wasn’t towards you. “We wrapped ye up in this mess, and ye almost died—“
“But I did not.”
He slumped in defeat, his lips still pulled tightly into a frown.
“The circumstances aren’t the best, no. Technically, you all did kidnap me,” you started with a grin, hoping to lighten his mood. His mouth twitched, but that was all. “But it was going to happen one way or another. That is how prophecies work, is it not?”
“This is my first prophecy as well, dove, so ye tell me.” And back at it was the lighter version of Soap, the one you’d come to know and like. The one that kept you smiling.
“We will figure it out together,” you said warmly. “It is not like I can go anywhere otherwise. I am not a great swimmer.”
Finally, he cracked a grin, letting out an obnoxious laugh that nearly shook the boat.
“Guess it’s a good thing Gaz didn’t throw ye over board when ye threw that porridge on him,” he quipped, wiping away a shed tear. “Oh, how he despised ye.”
Your cheeks flushed hot at the reminder, as well as Gaz’s name, sputtering on your words and struggling to form a comeback. It was ridiculous that the mere mention of the man had gotten you so tongue tied.
You knew you would have to speak with him.
“C’mon, lover bird,” he teased, standing and holding out his hand to help guide you down the ladder. “Dinner time. No skippin’ meals, especially not when yer recoverin’. Ghost might have my head if he thinks ye secretly don’t like his cookin’ anymore.”
“Why yours?” you asked, graciously following him down the ladder until your two feet thumped on to the deck.
“He doesn’t have the heart to hurt ye,” he snickered. “Jus’ a big softie.”
You definitely did not see the brute as a softie, recalling the many times Ghost had been quite terrifying to be around. Though, you still enjoyed him nonetheless, despite his clear social flaws.
“Perhaps just for you,” you sighed, feigning annoyance.
He laughed boisterously, wrapping an arm around your shoulder and dragging you along to the mess hall. “Nah,” he hummed. “Definitely ye, too.”
Before you could ask him to elaborate, you were forced into the mess hall where the others were already halfway through eating, Soap already spewing out nonsense as he ushered you to your normal seat beside Gaz.
There was already a bowl waiting for you, lightly steaming, and when you glanced over to Ghost, he simply avoided your gaze. His own was settled on the loud brunette as Ghost sighed heavily from the sudden volume in the room.
“I presume you enjoyed your time in the crow’s nest,” Price spoke, stealing your attention. “You were up there much longer than I intended. I figured you’d holler if you needed us.”
“It was peaceful,” you said, taking a careful bite of your warm stew. “I was quite content up there.”
“Gaz will be up there tonight,” he replied casually, lifting his cup to sip his drink. “We’re takin’ extra precautions until further notice. Perhaps you’d like to help him keep watch for a while after you eat.”
You sputtered on your words, feeling Gaz look at Price in surprise from beside you. He said nothing, simply swiping up another bite of his stew silently.
“O-Of course,” you muttered, sinking in your seat and swirling your spoon around your dinner. “I do not mind getting as much air as I can after being so bedridden for so long.”
Price smiled into his cup, a knowing glint in his eye before he set the cup down, clapping his hands and standing.
“Eat up, then,” he boasted. “I have business to attend to.”
You watched him leave smugly, and you could feel your heart pumping faster at the thought of being left along with Gaz once more. It wasn’t that you were trying to avoid him for bad reasons, but you were nervous. It wasn’t the same as being around Price, because Price made it so easy.
Gaz? Gaz was difficult to be around and act normal. You didn’t know why — it simply just was.
You begrudgingly ate your stew, the table quiet apart from Soap attempting to strike up the conversation, and you wondered just what Price had up his sleeve to be so suspicious.
I encourage it.
The Captain was never a liar, after all, because encouraging was exactly what he was doing.
