It was one of those rare stops that were made for The Revenge. There was a need to stock up on food and none of you wanted to get scurvy like Swede did. It was some small port that you and Ed pointed out to Stede that was mostly neutral to pirates. Although Izzy made sure to remind you and Edward that no one had to worry about the crew of the Revenge being taken as pirates. Despite loving the man to death, his comments about the crew and captain of The Revenge made you roll your eyes. You were Stede's first mate and held loyalty to the crew, regardless of your relationship with Blackbeard's first mate. Even with his comments, he had agreed to put up with "Stede Fucking Bonnet" and the crew for Edward and for you.

It was strange how you and Izzy fell together like long lost souls. You were one of the only ones deemed competent on the Revenge, with the inclusion of Jim. He saw how you handled yourself with a sword when he rescued you and a few others from the Spanish. He saw the potential you had and got to know you, helped better your swordsmanship before you two confessed feelings.

Currently, you and the rest of the crew were putting away all the food Stede had purchased for the vessel. You were close to finishing, hoisting the last bag of potatoes over your shoulder, Wee John carried up two crates of oranges right behind you, Stede and Lucius were carrying a few loaves of bread, and everyone followed along with the remaining groceries. When you got to the hull kitchen Roach pointed you to where he wanted the potatoes and after that you went back to the deck.

You stood on deck towards the front of the ship, placing your hand on the shoulder you used to carry all the sacks. You rolled it and winced as some pain bloomed from your shoulder and shoulder blade to your spine. You cursed under your breath and dropped your hand, figuring you must of lifted something wrong and pulled a muscle.

"Are you alright?" You heard Izzy's distinct voice behind you. You felt his hands caress the spots between your shoulder and neck, his thumbs kneaded circles into the tender flesh and muscles for just a few moments before he stood by your side. He never was much a fan displaying affection in front of the crew, despite everyone already figuring out you both were a couple.

"Yeah, I think I strained my shoulder carrying food. It'll probably heal in a few days. Are we leaving after this?"

"Well, fucking Stede wants us all to go to the tavern and enjoy a night off." He scoffed.

"A night out sounds fun, it can be almost a proper date night." You smiled and watched his face visibly soften at that idea.

"Will we still go to the tavern with...everyone... or..." His voice trailed at the thought, making you chuckle.

"I would like to spend an hour with everyone before we go off on our own for privacy." He rolled his eyes and you chuckled again. "I know you think less of our crew, but maybe this time on the land in a joyous occasion will be fun."

"Let's hope, my dear." You bit your tongue and looked down at the bustling docks. You hoped he held you as an exception to his discontentment but you can't help but feel hurt by his words, as you were still a key part in Stede's crew.

----------

The tavern was bustling with energy and lively music. Stede had promised to buy everyone their first round of ale, but you knew everyone was probably going to dip when morning comes. The crew were causing a ruckus but everyone seemed happy. Everyone except Israel Hands, who sat next to you in the back corner brooding. Every time you tried making conversation, it always resulted in him giving you short, half-assed replies. He hadn't even touched the drink Stede had bought him. You had it at his pride against your captain, the crew, and the way things are run on The Revenge.

"Israel," The use of his actual name had him blink in shock and turn to face you. "Why are you so tense? You should be relaxed and should be enjoying the ale."

He clicked his tongue and scowled. "We should be back on the water right now, looking for a ship to raid and plunder. These dogs shouldn't be having fun like this when they haven't done shit to earn it."

"Well, I am a part of those dogs, Israel." You glared at him, some pent up frustration building up. "I was hoping you and I can at least dance and be somewhat tipsy and happy before we go on our own."

"Dancing makes you soft. All this makes you weak." He spat and gestured to everyone. This time he included you with his insults, whether intentional or not. "Blackbeard has been falling since he came across Stede and you lot."

"You know what, Izzy?" You stood up from your chair and practically snarled at him. "I know losing your reputation and losing what Edward used to be may be the end of the world for you, but it isn't for me. Stede is an idiot, yes, but he saved my life from the destitute and pain I experienced by giving me a spot with his crew. His crew is not the most pirate ready people, but damn do they make good friends. I have tried to tie you, someone I deeply care for and love, in with them but you insult them without getting to fully know them."

"(Y/N)..." He tried speaking but you didn't allow him.

"I don't know if you realize it but every time you insult them, you insult me. And your last remark here? Just solidified that you truly see me as nothing more than a dog." You removed your coin pouch from your hip and dropped it in front of him. "If you're not going to drink that because Stede bought it, use my funds." After that, you quickly stormed out of the tavern, not caring how everyone was watching you tear into Izzy.

"Shit." Lucius muttered and quickly went to follow you. Stede saw his first mate looking upset so he decided to excuse himself from Ed to try and help. With a raised brow and a disappointed look, Edward Teach decided to approach Izzy on what happened.

Outside the tavern, you paced with tears threatening to fall. When you heard the door open you quickly turned so your back was facing whoever came out. You could feel your body tremble as you kept your arms wrapped around yourself.

"Hey, it's just us." You heard Lucius speak softly, approaching you on your left.

"What made you upset?" Stede asked on your right.

"That was the first time either one of us exploded at each other." Even your voice trembled, a tear slipped from your glassy eyes and fell along the curve of your face. "I just... I don't know if he realizes how mean he sounds sometimes."

"I think he does. He is an angry little twat." Lucius snorted, which made you slightly chuckle through the tears.

"But what we also know is he cares for you deeply, (Y/N)." Stede placed a hand on your upper arm and you looked to face him. He visibly gulped at your tear stricken face. "And you do for him."

"I'll never see why but I respect you." Lucius added. "You are amazing, the best of us next to dear ol' Jim. He needs to see that in order to respect you, he needs to learn that things aren't going to be the same as they were for him."

"Blackbeard has taught us a lot, and you have been a great help in that. I'd say we are ready for a true adventure after this." Your captain smiled but you knew he was just trying to make you feel better. So, you smiled and nodded, giving them both a short hug.

"Thank you both. I am just going to take a quick walk for some fresh air, I'll be back in a bit."

"Stay safe, I will need my first mate for when we sail tomorrow." Stede winked and headed back into the tavern.

"And when you get back I'll get you a drink, (Y/N)." Lucius gave you another hug, leaving you alone. You sighed, shoving your hands into your coat pockets before walking down the street.

It was quiet and empty, the only light source was the half-moon and the lit lanterns down the path. You had no real destination in mind, you just wanted to clear your head and enjoy the silence. You had hoped in your heart Izzy would take your words into consideration but you feared your outburst would forever damage your relationship with him. You knew you were right, but you didn't think losing your cool like that was what was needed.

You shook your head. This walk was to clear your mind, not dwell on the encroaching heartache.

---------

Back in the tavern, Ed was having a simple talk with Izzy on what happened. Suddenly Stede and Lucius came back in and immediately made their way to Izzy. The shorter man groaned at the thought of dealing with them both but Edward slapped his arm.

"See, that attitude has (Y/N) upset, mate." Edward scolded. Lucius and Bonnet pulled up chairs and sat across from the two and it seems the rest of the crew started paying attention to what was happening.

"You're lucky they like you." Lucius said with a curled lip, disgust on his face.

"Iggy..." Stede tried to start but Izzy gave him a look. "Sorry, Izzy, when you yell and insult us... Do you realize that you are also insulting (Y/N)?"

"What?" He was confused. He thought his actions towards you would have been obvious that he never included you when he was ordering around the crew.

"You never really differentiate it when you do. Regardless if you should or not, your insults also hurt them as we are the closest thing to them as a family." Stede concluded his remarks and everyone nodded or hummed in agreement.

"Yea mate, would you like it if they did the same thing to Blackbeard, Fang, Ivan and you?" Frenchie asked, pointing a finger at Izzy.

"I-I get it. I was a complete twat to them. I'll apologize when they get back." Izzy sighed, gritting his teeth slightly. "I... I apologize for my behavior and will try to work on that."

"That is great! Remember, when we get angry on the Revenge: we like to talk it through, as a crew." Stede smiled and Izzy gave him a glare, but bit his tongue from retorting. "Okay! We shall leave you alone for a bit."

------

You went down to the docks on your walk and now you were heading back to the tavern. The cool air nipped your face but after some time to yourself, you felt much better and calm. You planned to apologize to Izzy about your outburst. You recognized that snapping at him in front of everyone before talking to him about it in private was a bit out of hand and you likely embarrassed him, but you weren't going to apologize for your message.

You were about two minutes away from the tavern when you felt the hair on your neck seemingly raise in alarm. You felt as though you were being watched. You slowed to a stop, putting your hand on the hilt of your sword, and turned around. Sure enough, there was a man following you.

"Couldn't help but notice that nice coat you're wearing, and that sword." He spoke, a smirk on his face. He slowly approached and slowly unsheathed his own sword, a bit rusted and damaged.

"And?" You tilted your head, slowly mimicking his action with your own sword, wincing ever so slightly at the pain from your shoulder.

"Why don't you hand those over and any other nice things, and I won't have to kill you?"

"Why don't you fuck right off?" You raised a brow and cocked your head to the side. The man spat in your direction and immediately started taking swings at you. You expertly blocked each swing, the sound of metal clashing echoed in the night. You were playing purely defense against him. You allowed him the offense to tire out, which he did. You could see his swings were getting sloppy.

You shifted to offense, taking swings at him. You landed a few cuts on his arms and legs, nothing too serious but you wanted to get it across you weren't to be fucked with. Thinking back to Izzy's lessons, you easily maneuver your weapon and disarm him. His weapon was sent to the ground and you swiftly put the tip of your weapon at his throat.

"Walk away now or my blade will enter your throat." You hissed. It didn't seem to faze the man, which confused you. You were about to press the tip into his throat to get the point across when you heard footsteps behind you. That is when it clicked why this man wasn't phased. You quickly turned on your heels and that is when searing, hot white pain was felt in your lower left side. You glanced down and saw a dagger in your gut.

"Surprise." The person who stabbed you smirked.

"Careful of the coat, I want that." The man you previously were dueling spoke. The dagger was yanked out of you, tears fell from your eyes at the pain. Your grip tightened on your sword and you swung it at the man who stabbed you. He stepped back, only receiving a cut to his cheek. You take a step to get in reach with him but then your right thigh was slashed, the immediate pain almost made it unbearable to stand in that moment.

"You're one tough cookie."

"F-Fuck..." You hoarsely spoke. You attempted to try and get away but one of the men shoved you to the ground. Roughly your coat was taken from your body, your attempts to fight them off were futile. Your sword was then picked up off the ground while you tried to stand back up again. You were met with a fist straight to the nose and you were on your back. You rolled over onto your side as blood began leaking into your throat from your nose.

"Take their necklace too." The first one you dueled commanded.

"N-No..." You pleaded, voice stuffy from the blood leaking from your probably broken nose. A hand buried itself in your hair and lifted your head up while the other maneuvered your chain and ring over your head. The ring Izzy bought you to match his around his tie. After it was stolen the person dropped your head, which bounced against the dirty ground.

The two muggers simply cackled at the situation and took off the way you had just come from. You took a moment to catch your breath and pushed yourself off the ground. When you added more weight to your slashed leg you could barely contain the almost scream of pain. Your blood and tears were a mix on your face.

You started slowly limping back to the tavern. Like hell were you going to die alone on the streets... without apologizing and explaining yourself to Izzy...without telling him and your crew you loved them. Pure rage and determination filled your system as you trekked onwards. You could tell you were getting weaker by the second from loss of blood, but you hoped you were applying enough pressure to your side wound to keep the bleeding down.

It took you longer than you had wanted, but the tavern was in view.

"Just... Just a little bit more..." You mumbled, the taste and smell of coppery iron penetrated your taste and smell. Your vision was darkening along the corners and you struggled to keep your head up. You could tell you would collapse soon, before you could reach the door.

Thankfully, that door swung open and out came three people. You could barely tell who they were; Wee John, Frenchie, and Roach. You could feel numbness begin to take over your legs, so you took one final step in the light of a lantern nearby.

The three were laughing, telling the rest of the crew they will be right back before the door slammed shut. Their laughing stopped when their attention was on you.

"(Y/N)?!" Wee John shouted. You couldn't speak, you simply smiled and your legs gave out, hitting the ground with a painful thud. The three quickly rushed over and horror was on their faces at the amount of blood on your person.

"Shit!" Frenchie cursed. "Take them back to the ship to Captains quarters, Roach you get to sew up any wounds when you get there and I'll get everyone else."

"Got it." They both replied and sprung into action. Roach slipped off the apron he always wore and wrapped it as fast as he could around your thigh as that was bleeding more than your other wounds, telling you to keep pressure before you were lifted into John's arms. You cried out at the movement, John hushed you gently and the three of you took off towards the ship.

Frenchie slammed open the door, "Guys!" Only a few people turned their heads, he gritted his teeth in frustration. "GUYS!" The music and chatter died down as everyone stared at him.

"What is it?" Stede asked.

"It's (Y/N), they got attacked. John and Roach are getting them to the ship. It's pretty bad."

It was dead silent for a moment. The mug Izzy was holding clattered against the floor was the only thing heard in that moment.

Chaos then ensued. Everyone was pushing their way out the door while Stede threw some coins at the bar keep. Izzy shoved himself to the front of the group as they ran back to the ship. He felt cold dread in his system, tears threatening to spill.

'This couldn't be happening... Why them?' His mind raced. His heart ached. Guilt seeped into his system. The last thing he did to you was be a complete asshole. He didn't dance with you, he didn't take you out for a nice night out... he let his pride get the better of him and now you were hurt...

The crew got the ship in no time and Izzy was bounding up the ship. He felt his heart drop when he heard your screams from the captain's room. He wasted no time getting there and saw Roach attempting to hold your upper body with one arm while John was holding your kicking legs.

"Good! I need someone to hold them down." Roach commanded Izzy. "I'm trying to suture their wounds but they won't hold still. Someone help John with their legs!"

"Right..." Izzy blinked and rushed over. He felt his throat constrict at the sight of your shirt and pants basically cut open, and at the blood and wounds on your body. He wasted no time draping himself over your upper body/chest area, his back to Roach while he placed his hand on the top of your head, petting you softly.

"Izzy-?" You whispered out, your vision blurred from tears. You felt the needle Roach was using to pierce the tender flesh around your leg wound, causing you to yell.

"Yes, it's me." He hoarsely whispered.

"I-I'm sorry for earlier. I am sorry for e-embarrassing you..." Your eyes squeezed shut as Roach continued sewing the wound. "I'm so-sorry I got attacked-"

"Hush. Don't apologize my dear." He pressed a kiss to your forehead. Roach had him scoot up more so he could have better access to your other wound. When he started on it, you threw your head back from the pain. You were able to get your arms around Izzy and squeezed them around him from the jabbing needle sensation. You whimpered softly and Izzy didn't know if he could take much more of you in pain. He whispered comforting words to you and placed another kiss on your temple.

The crew was in shock watching the scene before them. They were all worried for you, of course, but they had never seen Israel Hands so affectionate and soft before. Even Edward has never seen him like this before.

"I just really love you and I want...want-" You screamed as Roach accidentally poked the needle he was using too close to the wound, your eyes rolling back before you passed out from pain and blood loss. Your arms around him

"(Y/N)?" His eyes searched your face for any sign of life, but you were still. The only thing he felt was your shallow breaths underneath him. Izzy quickly got off of your body and looked to Roach, who finished stitching the wounds. Oluwande, who helped John with your legs, handed him the bandages and Roach quickly wrapped up the wounds. Olu placed a blanket over your body and the three men stepped away, leaving Izzy the closest to you.

"Will...Will they make it?" Stede stepped forwards and asked.

"In my professional opinion, I'm not sure. They lost a lot of blood; they were stabbed in the gut and had a deep cut in their leg. With them walking to