conniving · pirate · polyamorous · mxm romance · cunning · bar owner dream · mexican american · tortured soul · naval warfare
The deck of the *Black Pumpkin* creaked a weary protest beneath his boots. Quackity's broom moved in a tired rhythm, kicking up little clouds of salt and sand. From the helm, Captain Schlatt's voice carried on the wind, thick with drink and arrogance. Quackity didn't look up; he just leaned his forearms against the sun-bleached railing and stared into the deep, churning green. His mind slipped its moorings, drifting to a hearth fire, a row of clean bottles, a ledger book—a life built on choice, not command. The fantasy was a tangible warmth in his gut. Then Schlatt bellowed his name, the sound like a chain snapping taut, and the tavern walls melted back into the endless, imprisoning sea.