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So, she waited as Bette sheathing her sword, smiling at the blonde with a apologetic raise of her eyebrow.
“Jodie… Honey…” Tina said softly.
“Jodie.” Bette repeated, the name like nails in her mouth. “This conversation would go much better if you took your shirt off…it’s been awhile…”
Tina smiled but her eyes told Bette the conversation was happening. “You said you understood why I did what I did, that I could not show mercy…what changed?”
“I did say that, Honey… and I agree, nothing’s changed. But it’s past time it ends. Showing mercy once a punishment has lost it’s effectiveness is just as important as meting it out to begin with.
Take her out to sea if you must…” she stopped, seeing a flash of anger in her girlfriend’s eyes.
“What is it, Bette? Talk to me, please.”
“Jodie is hanging on by a thread, I agree. But I feel like I am the one in a cage. Yesterday I buried my father, watched as Lord Bates set sail to receive punishment from our boy king. And yet still I sit, the map useless, my next step unclear. We are no closer to a decision, Tee and that occupies my thoughts, keeps me up at night. The weather turns, we may be here all winter. When the snow comes it will come fast and furious.”
Tina could see the frustration coming off her girlfriend in waves, shimmering in the very air around her, screaming in her body language and in the tone of her voice. She took a step closer, her voice soft, soothing, Bette’s eyes on her.
“Your next step is clear, Baby. Take it one at a time. Today is the only day promised to you.”
Bette exhaled deeply, her body itching to get to the sparring yard, wanting to sweat and hit and hear the song of steel, but she saw the wisdom in Tina’s words. Patience was not her strongest attribute, she wanted a plan, action.
“I wish it were that easy, Tee.”
Whispered words but true all the same and Bette waited for Tina’s response, leaning back on the table behind her, her long legs crossed comfortably. Tina appreciated this about Bette, that she listened, heard her.
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Hey BK,
Never apologize for a extra long chapter!
I loved it, the incredible love and deep connection between Bette and her healer Tina, it is such a pleasure to read about it.
I will read this chapter again and try to post a longer comment. My brain is tired, i am preparing for my night shifts this weekend and i am really tired now but couldn’t help myself to read it when i got the notification. I will be back before my night shifts or after them.
I wish you a good week, take care my friend!
Tina really is a true healer. She is healing Bette isn’t she?
Billy, Yes! Exactly that. Perfect comment.
AGREE 100percent
Hey BiBi
Thank you for you lovely reply! I get having a tired brain, I feel the same way lately. I am so glad you liked this chapter, it is such a different story and takes these characters on a completely new journey. Rest up my friend!
This is most definitely a pivotal chapter in your story. In so many ways. And a turning point for our dear stubborn impatient Bette and her relationship with Tina. Things could have gone off the rails for our couple but we are all so blessed with Tina’s quiet wisdom and strength and resolve and love. What a superb Tina! Combine this with Bette missing Tina beyond measure and her willingness to listen which ultimately makes Bette stop and think and determine to never leave her again. The writing is so lyrical and exquisite.
“It starts here, my Sweet Love, my Strength. My Everything. It starts with a connection so deep you can’t shake it even when you look the other way….” Words that were whispers, whispers that became beacons of truth, truth that Bette would ponder over in the days to come, turning them over like puzzle pieces to complete a picture.”
We have to remember that the Bette Tina met is not Robin Hood with a band of merry men. Captain Bette has a well earned reputation of being tough as nails. Unyielding. Cautious to the extreme. Arrogant. Used to getting her own way. Her crew respects her. Loves her actually. I would not call her ruthless but certainly steadfast because in her world weakness results in death. She may never be able to transition 100 percent into a tranquil life. She will probably always need to pick up a blade and prove her skills. Perhaps even sail. After all. She is “The Black Captain. Bringer of Death, Destroyer of Ships, Rider of the Sea, Cursed Commander and Widow Maker.” Reconciling that individual with the loving, soft, even vulnerable woman Tina sees and intimately knows is going to take time. A rough and tumble pirates life is all Bette knows. Yes, she is weary. But she cannot outwardly show that. She also has responsibilities and puts her entire crew at risk if she displays anything but strength and determination. The contrast between the individual capable of doing what she does to Jodi – which is extreme – and the woman who is so devoted to Tina is vast. Is the final Bette somewhere in the middle? It’s a tricky path.
Thank goodness for Tina’s quiet strength and determination because their biggest challenge is imminent. In Bette’s mind orphaned children go to the orphanage and she can throw enough money their way to help. We know this is the polar opposite of Tina’s thinking. And an infant born early? This will most certainly test Bette’s mindset and capability to listen and think and hopefully change. I suspect three small children may factor in. “Rowan age four, Peter almost three and little Gracie, not yet two” and a newborn? Still, Bette is back with Helena and closer than ever to solving the mystery. Patience is not her strong suit. But in another very real way she not only has Tina but four new sets of eyes looking to her. How will Bette ultimately respond? A quiet life with Tina is one thing. But Tina promised Lily. So four children as well? We already know that “Bette always kept her promise, they were never apart again as long as they lived” so while I know it won’t be easy, I have faith in Bette.
Tina is one amazing woman. She is the Healer in more ways than one. You write her so beautifully: “You’re not lost, Bette. Listen to me. You’re not lost, my Sweet Sweet Love. You are found. You have me. And Shane. And your crew. We all want the same things; it is within your grasp. Patience, Honey. Take this time to be patient. And be present. We have all we need right here while we wait for the puzzle of the map to be revealed, you are missing out on the beauty of this castle while your eyes look over at the horizon.” Tina is wise beyond her years: “Embrace the life around you Bette. You are no longer answering to your father. You are mine. You belong to your crew… you are deeply loved, without restraint or end.” Listen to her, Bette. I suspect you belong to four more important little souls after this chapter.
So many other narrative treasures including the kids responding immediately to Bette. Of course they did. There is a side of Bette that the children sense. It’s more that feeling safe. A side that Shane knows. Perhaps Carmen. Certainly Tina. Like I said, this is a pivotal chapter. Excellent, BK.
Thank-you for another chapter in this wonderful Bette and Tina story. Enjoyed reading it.
I agree with Billy…. this is not Robin Hood. And this is a very strong and compassionate Tina who gives all to those in need. Bette on the other hand is a bit too self absorb and violent. She needs a bet of introspection as to where her life is and where it is heading. She has selected a very violent profession to be in and it is by skill and luck that she has survived until now. Bette needs to determine if she really wants to continue to be “The Black Captain. Bringer of Death, Destroyer of Ships, Rider of the Sea, Cursed Commander and Widow Maker” or if she desires another type of life. And the key is Tina. She has proclaimed she wants a life with Tina indicating she wants to leave this pirate captain persona behind. But does she really? Has the life of the Black Beauty’s Captain been who she truly wanted to be? In reality, I hope not. I hope that she would get tired of the constant threat of battle and life and death situations. I would hope that she would grow weary of trying to show strength by torturing her enemies and fighting abilities with a sword and worrying about appearances of strength and gallantry.. I would think that she would want to give up her position as “king of the hill” and being a target for those who wish to replace her and take from her that which she has accumulated. What drove her to this life was the desire to accumulate wealth to impress her father. She now has the wealth and her father is dead. She now has Tina. What will motivate her future? Surely not the life she has been living.
Patience not being her strong suit is a vast understatement. She has little patience at all except for maybe with Tina. In the end she does begin to show that she can be compassionate by cleaning Tina up, getting her to bed to rest and assuming some of the managerial task of getting the children cared for and to bed. She goes to Lily when summoned and tries to cool her fever when she finds she is in need of Tina’s assistance. Bette is no stranger to death and knows that it is eminent for Lily. And she steps forward to assist Tina get through the process. Tina is no stranger to death either, but this one is personal. She now has a personal bond with Lily which she did not have with the crew who died on the ship from food poisoning. This is a clear and distinct step toward a new life for Bette.
In many ways I find Bette to be somewhat immature for her age and life experiences. She only trust Tina and Shane. She’s learning to trust others with some of her secrets and goals. She is definitely in a period of transition in her life but I am not sure she know what her new life is going to look like. She feels confined yet as Tina points out, she is free to come and go as she pleases. She believes she is in a race with the weather, but she was trapped by the weather the moment she set out on the journey to come to Porter castle. It took the better part of a month to get from where they were to the island Porter castle is on. She has been on the island now for eight to ten days before she sets out to find Helena in the port at the end of the island. She states that the winter weather is only a couple of weeks away; not enough time to get to warmer climates even if they left that moment and abandoning their search for Helena. However, Bette and her crew pursues Helena at the nearby port thinking they would be back in less than a week. They have now found her and I wonder if she has more clues as to where to find the hidden castle and Bette and Tina’s potential home?
Tina is truly a wonderful person. She can see things in Bette that no one else can. She is ideal for the Captain. I am anxious to see if Bette begins to see what she sees.
Excellent imagery and character building, especially for Tina. Look forward to how this story develops….
Thanks for the chapter….
What a day yesterday was. Jennifer posted a selfie with Laurel and BK posting another chapter of this great story.
So many wonderful passages – Carmen and Tina working together to help Lily…Lady Jaffe! BK, you’re brilliant…And Helena’s introduction to the story – so very Helena… The hawk bringing Tina a message from Bette
The song of steel – just a great line, I love how you describe Bette and her sword, and the swordplay
And of course so many touching Bette & Tina moments. Their lovemaking and after sex cuddling. How I love these moments –
“Around and around the room they went Bette leading them in a dance that captured the movements from earlier on the practice yard” – I can just picture them
“It was hard to leave. It was hard to be left” – I was about done for after reading that
“Come home to me Baby she whispered” – I was completely done for
“It was Tina always Just Tina Here in the middle of everything and Bette understood what Tina had been trying to tell her before she left that life was all around that her home was possibly a lot closer than she thought” Yes, this chapter built to a turning point for Bette. Thank you for taking us on this journey with her. This is a superb story.
Never, never apologise for a long chapter in this truly superb story!
I have been away in an area where I could not access the internet. Imagine then my absolute joy, on returning home at seeing you had posted.
My talent with words, if indeed I have any, is not sufficient to say how much I enjoy this really different Bette and Tina story. I am happy though to say a resounding ‘Ditto’ to Billy’s comment and thank you again for this lovely Bette and this super Tina plus a great Shane, Carmen and Alice.
So thanks again for a great homecoming, look forward to the next Chapter – the longer the better – my supremely talented friend.
Never apologize for chapter length. This story keeps getting better. Thank you.