Tickletober 2023 - Our Flag Means Death - Stede / Ed - lee!Ed
[see my other tickletober 2023 fics]
[read on AO3]
A/N: I’m weak for season 2 and I need soft sweet moments between them forever and ever. This is very late yes shhh #Tickletober2023butits2024
Words: 750
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Stede slowly blinked open his eyes. There was a warmth next to him, it felt so inviting. He reached out, clumsy with the fog of sleep, until his hand met the warm skin of Ed’s shoulder. He sighed, content, wrapping the arm further around his bedmate. Ed sleepily turned to face him, eyes closed with a smile on his face.
“G’mrning.” Ed mumbled. He reached up with one hand to run a thumb over Stede’s fingers.
Nestled in the blankets, they whispered stories and ideas with each other for a long, drawn-out half hour, during which Ed had the pleasure of Stede’s soft affection - a hand twirling his hair, fingers traipsing gently down his arms, it felt safe. It felt like home.
Stede scratched just behind Ed’s ear and he nearly let out a purr. Fingers glided down Ed’s neck, leaving a grin and a shiver in their wake.
Stede smiled fondly. “Ah, ticklish?”
“Dunno mate.” Ed shrugged, a bit impeded by their current position. “I guess.”
Stede raised a brow, smile somehow both terribly endeared and a yet little sad. “You don’t know?”
Ed mumbled a confirmation, nuzzling a bit closer to Stede.
“Right, right. Who would try to tickle the great Blackbeard, hm?” Stede said, his eyes scanning down Ed’s body. He reached out cautiously, and brushed a finger, gentle and slow, over the skin just above Ed’s night pants, watching him with a blooming curiosity.
“Heh-” There was that shiver again, Ed’s eyes shooting open. They flicked from Stede’s hand to his face.
Stede’s smile was warm, playful. “I think you are, in fact…” Stede paused then. Ed was watching him, wide-eyed. Stede held his hand up. “Listen, say the word and I’ll stop, okay? Is it alright if I give it a try?”
Ed felt warmth blossoming along his cheeks. He rolled his eyes and looked up at the ceiling, wriggling onto his back and pulled his arms up over his head. “Sure, mate. Go nuts.”
But, loyal to the gentle nature of their morning, Stede did not in fact ‘go nuts’. Instead, he traced a few fingers, soft and wiggling, across Ed’s stomach.
Ed’s stomach sunk beneath the touch, sucking in as he snickered out a laugh. His arms twitched with the desire to pull down and protect himself. “Ehehe, Stede.”
Stede paused. “Is that you asking me to stop?”
Ed squeezed his eyes shut, blocking out the sensation a bit with the added benefit of not having to watch Stede watching him. “Did I say stop?” He answered after a few beats.
“No, you didn’t.” Stede hummed, pleased, and then Ed gasped as fingers pinched lightly at each of his sides. He sucked in a breath, wobbly with near laughter.
“Ticklish anywhere else, hmm?” Stede asked, trailing his fingers up to poke gently along Ed’s ribs.
He squirmed at that, wriggling side to side in an effort to alleviate the sensation and keep the tangle of laughter building up inside him, well, inside. It was a hopeless endeavor by the time Stede’s fingers traced their way up, up, up… Two fingers touched down in the center of each armpit and Ed’s arms came crashing down with a giggly shout of surprise.
“Oh! Oh shit. Ehehe— wait!” Ed giggled, and Stede pulled back right away.
“Alright there?” Stede asked with a bemused but cautious smile.
“Fine. Heh, just kinda, surprising.” He mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck when he could get his arms peeled away from his sides. “Feels… weird.”
“Oh, it’s all in good fun. I know plenty of folks don’t like it though, I won’t do it again—”
“No! No.” Ed stammered. He took a breath, and a few ghosts of giggles slipped out. “It’s, uh, good fun, yeah, like you said.”
Stede practically beamed at him. “Mm.” He ran a hand gently down the side of Ed’s face, tracing along that chin he loved.
Ed’s heart nearly swelled from the sweetness of the moment. He thought it might burst. An out, quickly. “What about you, then, hm?”
Stede raised an eyebrow.
“Are you ticklish?” Ed smirked.
Stede’s nervous grin and blush were answer enough.
Soon, they were scrambling about the bed with laughter and shrieks and wiggling fingers. It would be a while before either of them received any morning briefing from the crew.
