Chapter Text
Seventeen-year-old Liam Dunbar was in the ship’s laundry room doing yet another round of laundry for his father’s crew.
“Dumbar! There’s a spill in the brig!” One of his father’s crew members shouted.
Liam sighed as he stopped what he was doing to grab the bucket and mop he kept in the corner. As he walked down the steps to the brig, a walk he’d done several times before, he wondered what he could have done to deserve this treatment from his father and the crew. As he descended the last steps to the brig, another crew member’s voice called out to him.
“Better hurry up down there, Meat Sack. Captain wants the brig in ship-shape before we make it to Port in Barataria Bay!”
Liam sighed once more as he saw the spill they were referring to. One of their bags of rice was ripped open and spilled all over the floor. Upon further inspection, Liam noticed a perfect slice through the bottom of the bag, which only meant the spill was deliberate.
“That’s just great,” Liam muttered, grabbing the broom that they keep down there for emergency spills.
He began sweeping the rice into a pile, since less than half of it was spilled on the floor. It won’t be used for cooking, but it won’t go to waste. After he stored the spilled rice in a basin, they had one for any food that had gone bad or accidentally spilled. Liam then took the mop and bucket filled with water to start cleaning the floor. After an hour, the brig was all clean, so he made his way back up to the laundry room to finish the clothes he was washing. After putting his mop and bucket back in the corner, he turned to find there were more clothes in his pile than he had left.
“Great,” Liam muttered to himself as he got started.
In the distance, he could hear his father shouting to his crew as they were nearing port. He had roughly an hour left of peace before he was called yet again to help with the cargo being loaded. In that hour, Liam managed to get the laundry pile down slightly. It was easier to wash the smaller items like socks. Shirts took the most time and space in the washing basin, and he was the only one who was washing them. Liam was snapped out of his thoughts by the sound of his father shouting for him to get back down to the brig for the incoming cargo.
Liam sighed as he dried his hands and begrudgingly made his way back down to the brig. Liam looked out the porthole to see they were relatively close to Barataria Bay now. There were a few ships docked, but he couldn’t make out their flags from how far they were. Liam helped the crew rearrange crates of food and supplies to fit the incoming ones. By the time they finished, the ship was pulling up to the dock. He and the crew then began preparing the ship’s gangplank to be lowered onto the dock once the anchor was dropped.
Once they heard the anchor was lowered, they began to drop the gangplank onto the dock. As sunlight filled the brig, Liam got a better view of the ships in the port. One of the ships, in particular, had emerald green flags with a pack of wolves on them. Liam was never taught about the flags of ships, as his father thought it was a waste of time for someone like him, who was nothing more than a mere deck-maid. When the crew in charge of retrieving the cargo left, Liam managed to sneak off the ship to explore. He was practically invisible unless he was needed for something. Liam had at least an hour to explore before having to return to the ship.
Given his unkempt appearance, some tend to mistake him for an orphan and give him spare gold coins. Over time, he’s saved up to hopefully find something for himself. Little did he know his life was about to change. Meanwhile, Theo Raeken, the most feared pirate captain in all the seven seas and the Captain of The Wolves, was on the deck of his ship with a commanding presence. Around him, his crew worked to prepare for their incoming cargo, when out of the corner of his eye, he saw a young boy, Liam, sneak off the ship beside his. Theo looked at the flag of the ship and recognized it immediately; it was the infamous Dunbar crest.
Jonathan Dunbar is a well-respected merchant in many ports. The family crest dates back many years, solidifying a rich history. There have been rumors that the Dunbars are of royal heritage, but nothing has been proven, and Jonathan never confirms or denies it when questioned. Theo didn’t recall Jonathan having any children, not that he would care to find out anyway. He’s got better things to focus on than some Merchant’s personal life. However, Theo has found himself intrigued by the young boy, whoever he is.
Just as Liam looked around the Merchant stalls, hoping to find something he could get for himself, he stumbled upon a Book Stall. He looked at the books with fascination; the books that caught his eye were all history-related. Liam chuckled when he spotted a book about ship flags. He picked it up to look through it; each flag was listed alphabetically by Captain. After the first few pages, he found his father’s crest flag; rolling his eyes, he kept looking, and by the time he got to the R’s, one Emerald Green flag with Wolves stood out to him.
“Captain Theodore Raeken, “The Wolves.”
To say Liam was intrigued would be an understatement; just as he was about to pull out his gold coins to purchase it, another book caught his attention; it was all about ancient texts, runes, and curses. He picked that one up as well. Just as he was about to pay, the stallkeeper, who was a sweet old lady, stopped him.
“No need, son.” She smiled sweetly, “It looks like you need them more than I do.”
“But I have-” Liam tried, holding out ten gold coins.
“Nonsense.” She insisted, “Keep them.”
Liam was about to pull out his signature ‘puppy eyes,’ the ones his mom could never say no to, but he didn’t want to come off as too insistent, so he pocketed his gold coins before dropping two in the jar on the table without a second thought.
“Thank you. Truly.” Liam replied,
The Lady smiled, “You’re welcome. Have a great day.”
“You too,” Liam replied before heading back towards his father’s ship.
Theo stayed in the same spot on the Bow, watching people walk by while also keeping an eye on his crew. A few minutes later, Theo watched as Liam returned to the main port, now carrying two books. He watched as Liam carefully snuck back on board. Liam managed to make it to his relatively small room without anyone caring where he’d been or where the books came from. After hiding the books in his room, he headed back down to the brig just as the crew returned with the new cargo.
“Get a move on; these crates won’t load themselves!” another crew member shouted to him,
Liam sighed as he started loading each crate one by one without any help. Theo watched Liam the whole time; seeing no one helping made Theo angry. Meanwhile, his second in command, Brett, approached.
“Captain, our fresh cargo has been loaded, just waiting on the last few crates, and everything is on track to sail at sunrise.”
“Perfect,” Theo replied, pausing for a moment to look back at Liam before turning his attention back to Brett, “I just have one final request.”
“Of course.” Brett nodded,
“Send out our scouts - while they might be used to scouting the seas. This task is similar. I need them to gather information on that young man down there.” Theo replied, gesturing his head to Liam carrying cargo.
Brett followed his gaze before turning his attention back to his Captain with a questionable look. But he’s not one to judge his Captain’s request.
“It’s not a normal request for them, but I’m sure they will be willing to help nonetheless.”
Theo nodded as Brett walked off to inform the scouts. He then turned back to watching Liam, who was on his final crate when his father called from the main deck.
“Hurry up, boy! We don’t have it all day! I swear I wish your mother had taken you with her when she ran off with that doctor!”
Liam rolled his eyes as he mumbled to himself, “You say that every time.”
His father heard bits and pieces. Theo watched the whole scene unfold, Liam’s father not even noticing him watching from his ship.
“What was that?” Jonathan asked, his impatience and anger rising.
“Nothing, sir,” Liam replied out of habit,
“You'd better watch that mouth, or I’ll throw you in the brig tonight with no food!”
Liam shrank as he held the last crate, avoiding his father’s sharp glare. “Yes, Sir.” Before walking onto the ship to load the last box.
Theo waited and expected Liam to come out again, but he didn’t. Theo frowned before turning to watch his crew work when Stiles, his First mate, approached.
“Hey, Captain,” he smiled, leaning against the Bow next to Theo.
“Stiles.” Theo nodded. “Shouldn’t you be working?”
“I finished my docking tasks, plus Scott likes the hard work.”
Theo looked at Scott, his other first mate, who was so in his element helping the crew wait for the arrival of the last few crates.
“You’re not wrong about that,” Theo replied,
“So I hear you have the scouts doing research. Anything I can do to help?”
“You might. What do you know about the crew of Dunbar’s ship?” Theo asked, gesturing to the ship next to them.
Stiles followed his gaze. “Not much; most are poor souls Jonathan Dunbar found off the streets.”
“You know nothing about a young man being part of the crew?” Theo asked,
Stiles shook his head. “Not to my knowledge,” he paused. “I can keep watch for that young crew member for you if you need to do something.”
Theo contemplated the decision for a moment before answering Stiles.
“Yeah, that would be a big help. I want a full report on everything Captain Dunbar or the crew says to him.”
Stiles salutes. “Aye, aye, Captain.” Before calling to Mason, their historian, “Mason, get me some parchment, a quill, and some ink!”
“Right away, Stiles,” Mason replied and ran off below deck.
“I’ll be in my quarters if you need me,” Theo added before turning to leave the Bow.
A few minutes later, Mason returned with the writing instruments Stiles needed.
“Here you go,” Mason replied,
Stiles nodded as he crouched down enough so he wasn’t hunched over as he wrote, “Thank you. Stand by if I need anything else.”
Mason nodded; before he was about to leave Stiles alone but stay nearby, he noticed what Stiles was doing.
“What are you doing?” Mason asked,
“Captain asked me to watch this ship,” Stiles replied, crouching down.
Mason looked at the ship. “Captain Dunbar’s ship? But why?”
“He wants everything the crew and Captain say.” Stiles answered, “It’s something about a young man among the crew.”
A light gust of wind blew the parchment as he wrote down the details against the railing. Stiles jotted down the dialogue he could hear from across the deck, which sounded like it was about the young man among the crew, before watching the first mate approach the captain.
“If you treat him so badly, why don’t you just ditch him with his mother?”
“Like, I know where she is? She’s probably knocked up with that Doctor’s spawn for all I know; she wouldn’t want this worthless kid on top of that.”
“If you’re not gonna give him to his mother, then just ditch him at the next port.”
“And risk the word spreading that I abandoned my only heir. I’m not risking my reputation for some faggot….”
Stiles’s jaw dropped as Captain Dunbar continued. The choice words he used to describe his son were some that should not be repeated, but he wrote them down anyway before turning to Mason, acting like a pack mom.
“Let us swear that we do not repeat any of these words out loud for the rest of our lives.”
“Agreed.” Mason nodded,
His Captain’s colorful language didn’t faze the first mate on the other ship. After an hour, Mason went back to work in the cargo hold with the antiques, leaving Stiles to take notes. Every time there was an unintentional reference to the young boy, Stiles wrote it down; not all were nearly as bad as what his father had said earlier, but even Stiles agreed that the young boy shouldn’t have to face such treatment.
As Stiles took his time with the notes, he was able to decipher that the young boy was Captain Jonathan Dunbar’s Son, as Jonathan mentioned he was his Heir. Stiles made sure that was underlined boldly on his parchment. It was nearing lunchtime when the chatter on the main deck across from them settled, so Stiles took it upon himself to deliver his notes to Theo. Just as he did, Scott appeared beside him with the official report from the Scouts. After a few moments of silence, Scott broke it.
“I’ve never seen the Captain so focused on someone like this,” Scott told Stiles,
Stiles nodded. “He seems to be worried about the boy’s well-being.”
“I am too.” Scott admitted, “Why do I have a feeling he’s going to do something reckless?”
Stiles smirks, “He’s Theo Raeken; when doesn’t he do something reckless?”
“Fair point.” Scott admits, “We have to be prepared for anything at this point. Especially if it involves Jonathan Dunbar.”
“Agreed.” Stiles nodded. “The things I have heard from his mouth about his son would make a grandmother faint.”
Scott stopped in his tracks. “How bad are we talking about?”
Stiles reluctantly handed Scott the parchment, “See for yourself.”
Scott’s eyes widened, and he was speechless for a few moments before he broke the silence.
“This is very bad, Stiles. If he said this, he is capable of a lot more harm to his son than we thought.”
“We need to alert the captain right away!” Stiles ordered,
Scott and Stiles ran across the deck towards the Captain’s Quarters and knocked on the door. Scott entered when he heard Theo’s “Enter” from the other side of the door.
“Captain, the scouts have returned with their intel,” Scott spoke, handing Theo the parchment with their findings.
Stiles then approached with his parchment of notes he had taken on deck.
“Here is what I have overheard from the crew and its captain over the last hour.”
Theo overlooked their findings, and they watched their captain’s expression turn grim. As Theo continued reading, he became increasingly determined to do something about the boy's safety—the boy whom he could now refer to as Liam. After reading, Theo mulled over the information before making any rash decisions.
“Change of plans. We will leave mid afternoon, and instead we will hide out behind nearby rocks until Captain Dunbar leaves port, then we will follow.”
“What if they leave before us?” Scott asked,
“Then we still follow them without being caught,” Theo replied,
While Theo, Stiles, and Scott discussed the plan. Liam was in his small quarters on his father’s ship, looking through the books he had gotten at the market. He had a long while before he was needed again, so he could finally relax in peace. When Liam was called again by the crew back to the laundry room, he quickly hid the books in his secret hiding place, which was behind the loose board near the floor. He had found it a few years ago when his father locked him in his room for a few nights as punishment.
After stashing the books, Liam left his room and headed back to the laundry room. A sleazy man with a scar along his cheek was there waiting; Liam believed his name was Harold or, at the very least, was something with an H.
“Hurry up, runt. We need all the laundry done before sundown.”
“Yes, sir.”
Liam got started on the laundry right away; luckily, no more had piled up when he left to handle the cargo; so the amount stayed the same. It was a repetitive process: sort the clothes, fill the bucket, wash them, drain the bucket, dry the clothes, and then repeat. Liam has been doing this for so long that both his hands are cracked and dry, but he pushes through the sting as his hands hit the water to wash all the dirt, sweat, random kitchen stains, and on occasion, blood from the crew’s clothes. Sometimes Liam is the receiving end of the crew’s “pranks.”
Once the crew made an unknown substance from kitchen ingredients to stain their clothes, then told Liam in detail about how they had a good time with one of the local women in port and used their clothes to clean up the mess…Liam was only eight years old when that happened. Some crew members made a blatant show to try to have Liam catch them having sex in public areas of the ship. If anyone was in Liam's position, they’d be scarred for life. Liam wouldn’t admit it, but he was traumatized for a few years until he was thirteen.
It was one of the many days that Liam could sneak off the ship without anyone noticing. As he was walking through the stalls, he saw a younger man roughly three years older than him, hiding in a dark alley. When he got a closer look, he saw another young man kneeling in front, doing what Liam had recognized as a blowjob.
Liam blushed furiously as he quickly walked away. Later that evening, when he sat and processed what he witnessed, Liam realized he wasn’t uncomfortable with sex as a whole; he was just uncomfortable about doing it with the opposite gender. Realizing he was gay felt like a weight that was lifted off his shoulders. But what scared him the most was what if his dad found out, because being gay or any mention of liking the same gender was frowned upon in every port town. Officials treated it like you were the devil, and oftentimes it was punishable by death.
But Liam didn’t let that stop him. He experimented at times when he was truly alone, but of course with a secret like this it was bound for his father to find out, and when he did, he was locked in the brig for a few nights and then his room after and forced to write - in his father’s words “I am not a faggot” over and over and over again. Liam was lost in these thoughts; he didn't realize he was almost done with the laundry and the sun was almost setting. Once he finished, he went back to his room for the evening until it was time for the crew to eat. When the bell rang for supper, Liam waited a bit before making his way down.
His father made him be served last and only get what was left, so as usual, when he got his bowl of whatever the stew was for the day, it was barely filled. Liam couldn't sit with the crew at the tables; he tried for the three years, but he always ended up getting pushed to the floor, so he eventually gave up and sat in the corner of the galley on the floor. He was used to it at that point as he knew it wasn't going to change. After supper, Liam was tasked to clean all the bowls and pots before he could retire for the night. It was the one thing his father made sure of; he told Liam as such when he was seven.
"Even ship maids need their rest."
Liam made his way to his quaint cabin and closed the door behind him. After he turned on the oil lantern and got settled in his night clothes, he looked out his porthole at the neighboring ships, more importantly, the one next door to theirs. The Wolves.
Liam watched as the crew hung out on the deck; there were at least twenty of them, some chatting and laughing in a group, others playing music with what looked like instruments you'd find in a museum or off sunken ships. As he watched, Liam longed for the found family relationship between them.
After a few minutes, Liam noticed a young man was also on deck, but he was dressed differently than the rest of the crew; more put together. Liam noticed a green velvet coat, a black-and-gold tricorn hat, and several gold rings on both his hands. His breeches looked almost professionally tailored, and Liam was sure there was some kind of weapon attached, but he couldn't tell what. It was at that second Liam put the pieces together: that young man was the Captain and not just any Captain; he was Theo Raeken, the youngest Captain to have ever sailed.
Liam watched as Theo interacted with his crew, openly engaging in conversation with every single one, almost as if they were family rather than Captain and Crew. After a few moments, Mason looked up from chatting with Brett and Hayden and saw Liam. Mason waved and smiled. LIam didn't know who he was then and was slightly embarrassed at being caught, but waved back at Mason.
Theo looked up, having noticed Mason waving, and met Liam's gaze. After that, Liam's gaze was the most intense staring contest; Theo smirked and winked at him. Liam blushed as he tried to look away, but there was something about Theo that captivated him. He gave a shy wave to Theo, who waved in return before going back to engage with the crew some more.
Liam watched for a few more minutes before lying down for the evening. He grabbed his book on ancient texts and started looking through it; he also listened to Theo's crew on deck until they settled down for the night. Liam was deep in his book when a mini arrow entered and stuck in the paneling of his Quarters.
Liam instantly sat up and looked over at Theo's ship, but no one was on deck except for the night crew, and they were guarding the other side of the ship, so Liam knew it wasn't them. Liam got up and went towards the arrow and saw there was a note attached, but it was in code, and he didn't know how to decipher it, but that wasn't going to stop him from trying.