[There's a comfortable balance to the moment--Stede's fingers in Edward's hair, his own fussing idly at his beard. There's a sense of extension between them that's hard to define, a manifestation of the growing sense of unity.
They can both breathe here, in the quiet space where Edward Teach actually exists.]
Hm. [The breath is thoughtful, attention largely focused on freeing a particularly tangled clump of something unpleasant.] You haven't got one.
[It isn't the same task. It might be an absolute mystery to a man who kept his cheeks clean-shaven with a surprising tenacity despite living at sea.
It might be nice, watching the little wrinkle in Stede's brow as he attended to the work.]
no subject
They can both breathe here, in the quiet space where Edward Teach actually exists.]
Hm. [The breath is thoughtful, attention largely focused on freeing a particularly tangled clump of something unpleasant.] You haven't got one.
[It isn't the same task. It might be an absolute mystery to a man who kept his cheeks clean-shaven with a surprising tenacity despite living at sea.
It might be nice, watching the little wrinkle in Stede's brow as he attended to the work.]