She was running as fast as she could. Her long brown hair waved behind her, as she dodged and jumped over obstacles in the way, not caring if they were dogs, cats or humans. All she knew was that she had to get as far away as possible, preferably hiding in the forest behind the town. She could hear her persuader, but they weren't even close to get her. In her heart she thanked her grandfather for making her live in the forest. It had helped her to get faster and avoid getting caught, because that meant she would get eaten.

This was not the case here, but getting caught here was even worse than getting eaten. She would prefer getting caught by the animals on her home island than by those who chased her here. She was tired, having not having a decent meal for a few weeks, but she couldn't give up. No she would keep on going, even if she was tired.

As she came to the forest, she ran through it for a while, before looking for a spot to hide. She found a tree, in which she could easily hide and she jumped up and climbed as fast as possible. With a racing heart and a tired body, she listened and looked down, to see if her persuaders would corner her. She couldn't hear them and she wondered if she truly had lost them.

She didn't know how long she had waited, but the dawn that came closer, told her she had waited for some time now and there had been no sign of her persuaders. Sighing, she relaxed a little, but kept her guards up. Maybe they wanted to make her feel safe to get moving again, but that wouldn't happen. She would never let her guard down again. Her stomach growled and she picked the fruits that was in this tree and ate. It wasn't much, but she got something to eat and something to still her thirst.

-x-

The island was different from the one she had escaped from two weeks ago. She had seen the Jolly Roger and wondered why an island had a Jolly Roger, but then she was reminded that some pirates took over some island and called them theirs. Shortly she wondered which crew this Jolly Roger belonged too, but she was too hungry and exhausted to think. She had been a stowaway for two weeks and now she snuck from the ship. Those two weeks had been exhausted and she had barely gotten something to eat, since she didn't want them to find her.

With a lot of cautious, she walked to the edge of the town, where there was a forest. She couldn't trust anyone, so she hid herself in the forest. After finding a place where she could camp, she hid her face in her palms and started to cry. She hadn't been able to let her emotions flow at all, ever since she had been captured. How long had it been? A month? Two? She didn't know, but it had been some time. Her brothers and foster mother must be worried about her. She missed them so much.

After she had let out her tears, she decided to live. She was on an island somewhere and she would grow stronger. It was not that she wasn't used to live in a forest, though it was the first time she was alone. She had always had her brothers around her and now … Now they were somewhere else, but she would get stronger and set sail. She would meet her brothers again.

-x-

It was harder than she thought. For some reason the animals on this island was so much stronger and all she got to eat was fruit and smaller animals, which didn't match her huge appetite. So she went to town and started to steal. It was how she got a reputation of being the witch of the forest. How, she wasn't sure, but then again she didn't care.

After a few weeks she knew she had to do something, because instead of getting stronger, she got weaker and more tired. Being only almost 10 years old, she didn't understand at all. She did everything she used to, train like she always had, but she didn't get enough food and it tore on her body's resources.

As she was picking some fruits, she suddenly heard people below her. She stopped up and looked down. It was the first time someone had entered the forest. When she had been in town, she had heard that the people were scared of the huge and strong animals in here and mostly lived from fish or animals from the other side of the island. They sailed to that place, so they could hunt them.

"Are you sure it's a witch, commander?"

Her whole body was on alert, hearing the title of one of the men below her.

"It's not a witch. Don't believe in the rumors. It's probably just some lost soul."

She gazed down and frowned. The men below weren't clothed as marines, as she first had thought, they looked more like pirates. Still she wouldn't take the risk of them trying to fool her, though she had thought that marines wouldn't come onto an island with a Jolly Roger, unless it was to challenge the bearer of that mark.

"We're being watched," a third voice said.

"I know. Could be the animals," the commander said.

"Or the 'witch'."

"Spread out."

The men divided themselves into four groups. Three groups were pairs, while the commander was alone. She followed him with her eyes, until she couldn't see him from her spot. She moved, tracking him, until he came to her camp. She froze, as he studied it.

"I won't hurt you. Just want to talk," he said, his eyes gazing into the tree she was sitting in.

She didn't respond at first, but after some thoughts, she asked him. "Are you a marine?"

He noticed the small voice. It belonged to a girl, which surprised him slightly. If it was a girl, she must be strong for her age. Not even grown up men from the town would dare go into this forest alone. Hell, even his men felt uneasy to go in here by themselves. So this was why the town's people called her a witch.

"No, I'm a pirate," he said lightly offended.

"What crew?" she asked.

"I'm commander of the fourth division of the Whitebeard Pirate. This Island is under our protection," he said.

She gasped, but didn't jump down. If this was an island under Whitebeard's protection, then she was on the Grand Line. That couldn't be true. She couldn't be here. Then again, it did explain why the animals were so much stronger. A sob escaped her lips, as she started to tear up by the thought of where she was.

Thatch picked up the gasp and then after a while the sob. He started to worry about the girl, so he tried to see if he could see her.

"Hey, why don't you come down and we can talk? I'm truly not going to harm you," he said.

She sniffed and crawled down the tree. Slowly she walked towards the man, eyeing him. If he made a wrong move, she would hurry away.

He kept looking relax and calm, though what he saw made his blood boil. She was scrawny and most likely malnourished, but if she had lived her for some weeks, he wasn't that surprised. The poor girl needed proper nutrition and that fast. Her body was at its limits. He better bring her back to the ship fast, but first he had to win a little of her trust.

"I'm Thatch," he introduced himself.

"I'm Casey."

"Hey Casey. So what does such a lovely girl as you do out here all alone?" he asked.

She sobbed, but tried not to cry. "I … Can you bring me to Shanks?" she asked.

Thatch's eyes widened slightly. Bring her to Shanks? How did she know him? Had she met him? Had she hid on a ship to find him? Thatch had to know before they planned to seek out the other Yonkou.

"It depends on how you and he are connected and why," Thatch said.

Her eyes dropped and she looked at her feet. "He … he and Benn are like dads to me. I … can't go back to my brothers, so … Maybe he can bring me somewhere safe. Where the bad people can't find me and where I can get stronger … When my brothers become pirates, I can search for them … Letting them know I'm fine," she stuttered.

Thatch didn't like the beat up voice she had. Who were those bad people and what had they done to such a little girl? And why couldn't she go back to her brothers, whom she clearly missed a lot? And did her brothers dream of becoming pirates? What kid dreamed of being a pirate? Was it because of Shanks? Probably.

He squatted down and lifted her chin, so she looked at him. "What about I bring you to Oyaji and you can ask him if he can arrange something with Shanks? I'll then go make you some food. You look like you could need a decent meal. Also new clothes, but we'll figure that out later. Maybe Izo will go shopping with you," he said.

She blinked a few times. "Why?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why help me? I'm asking you to bring me to your enemy and you say that your captain might want to help me. Why?" she asked.

He blinked. "First, Shanks is our rival, not enemy. Second, how did you know Oyaji was the captain?"

"Benn told me about your crew and how you all call your captain Oyaji. He said you were like a family," she said.

Thatch smiled. "He's right. So want to come?"

She bit her lips, but nodded hesitating. Thatch stood up and held his hand towards her. She grabbed it and they walked together. He used the mini den den mushi to call his men back, saying that he had found their 'witch'. She gazed at him, but he explained that it was what the town's people called her, because she lived in this forest, which was filled with strong animals that even the grown up men in town feared.