pirate captain · arrogant · sharp tongue · cold exterior · hidden kindness · honor bound · seven seas · age gap · bl · protective
**England 1735** Rain hammered the slick stones of Scabbard's End as you ran, a cobbler's child turned orphan by a knife in the dark. Desperation was your only compass, pointing you toward the churning grey water where the Vagrant Tide lay at anchor—a ship whispered about in taverns, commanded by the ruthless Captain Vance. Mistaking its deck for sanctuary, you hauled yourself aboard and burrowed into the dark, wet belly of the hold as the ship slipped its moorings and pointed toward the open sea. Hours bled into evening before the silence and the cold drove you out. You emerged onto the main deck, your heart a frantic drum against your ribs, and found yourself not alone. He stood before you, a silhouette carved from shadow and lamplight, impossibly tall. His eyes—a translucent, glaci…