"Achmed! Wait for us!" Aaron shouted, when he spotted the dark haired boy he and Levy had been looking for, accompanied by a shady looking man. They sprinted to the pair, and were relieved to find the boy smiling at them. "Hey guys, this is captain Barbossa." Achmed told his friends, as he introduced them. He got a cold look in his eyes afterwards, as if he seemed to realise something.

"You came to get me back, didn't you?" he asked, but before Levy or Aaron had the chance to answer he snapped: "Well, I'm not coming with you, I can get home without their help!" Aaron looked at Levy, hoping the other boy would know how to react, because the blond didn't. To his surprise, the small boy did know."We're not taking you back." He said, his voice soothing. Aaron opened his mouth to protest, but Levy didn't let him. " We are coming with you, we can't leave you alone here."

Barbossa had been watching the three of them, and decided to interfere. "Well I can use some crew members for the Dauntless, you're welcome to join my crew if you want to." He said, and when the boys reacted positively, he led the way to his ship.

The three boys were rudely woken from their sleep the next morning. Two men had turned their hammocks upside down, causing them to crash on the wooden floor of the rocking ship. Aaron rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, and when he could see clearly, he backed up startled. In front of him were a plump man with the last bit of his hair combed across his bald head, and a slender one, who had a strange eye, it looked fake.

His suspicions were confirmed, when the plump man slapped the other on his shoulder, and it popped out of its socket. The small wooden ball rolled by Levy and Achmed, who managed to catch it. Achmed stood up, and handed it over to the thin man, who pushed it back in his socket with the same ease someone else would put in a contact lens. "Thank you boys." He stated, and with that he earned yet another slap, though this time his eye managed to stay in its socket.

"Don't be so nice to them Ragetti! We only have to fetch them for the captain!" the plump man said. The thin man, who apparently was called Ragetti, muttered an apology. "But you didn't have to slap Pintel." He murmured accusingly. Pintel just rolled his eyes. "Whatever. You heard it, to the captains quarters you three."

That was why they were standing in the captain's cabin, feeling uneasy, waiting for Barbossa to say something. Of course, the man took his time, grabbing a knife, and letting it sink into the skin of an apple, which only added to the uneasiness of the three boys. When Achmed saw the shimmering of the knife, his hand unconsciously went to his neck, a gesture which didn't go unnoticed by Barbossa, who gave them a toothy grin.

"Come on boys, no reason to be so nervous," he stated, cleaning the knife and putting it in a drawer. "I was just thinking how I should get you home, and I think I have an Idea." Barbossa said. Aaron's eyes got an excited glint in them immediately, and Levy and Achmed glanced at each other, wondering what would come.

"I've got a friend, living in the swamps, and she might be able to help you." Barbossa continued. Levy remembered Mary and Ann's plan, about visiting a swamp witch, and he started to wonder who she was if everybody would turn to her for help in difficult situations.

Confirming his suspicions, the captain said: "We are going to Tia Dalma."

~~~~~Linebreak~~~~~~~

Ann contently stared at the two thick straps of leather which were securely wrapped around her wrists. She was glad she and her friend had managed to find them, and the beads that were now pressing against her skin. She'd had motion sickness since she was a kid, and the solution wasn't that hard. She had special bracelets at home, which pressed against a certain part of her wrists, distracting her, and de-blocking her "Chi". She didn't really believe in that stuff, but it worked so she wasn't complaining.

The girl was snapped out of her thoughts when Mary entered the cabin. "Hey, feeling better already?" she asked her friend. Mary nodded. "Yeah, stargazing always make me feel good." She admitted. She took of her jacket, and slipped into the large bed. They had to share it, but neither of them minded, since it was really big. "I wasn't the only one who couldn't sleep though." She said, leaning on one elbow.

"you weren't?" Ann asked, one eyebrow raised. "No, Collin was awake too, he came a few minutes after I found the perfect spot to look at the stars."

She missed the mischievous smile her friend shot her. "So you two ended up stargazing together?" Ann asked. "Yeah, wh-" Ann started to laugh at her dense friend. Mary gasped when she realised what Ann was insinuating. She decided to act like she was offended. "I'm going to sleep." She said, turning her back to her friend, and trying to let her voice sound grumpy. "Whatever you say, Juliet." Was Ann's response, and despite herself Mary snickered softly. "just go to sleep."

The girls woke up because of a hard knock on their door. They quickly changed, and went outside, where Gibbs was waiting for them. "hurry up and get some breakfast. After that, come to me, and I will tell you your chores."

This was how the first day of their Journey started.

A/N: Well here's another chapter! I know it wasn't that special but I like it anyway, a writer shouldn't rush things too much, right? I want to thank the people who reviewed, and encourage everyone to do the same.

Love Piuletta