Leo didn't trust Octavius.

Simple and painful.

There was something in the eyes of the boy- clearly, he couldn't be older than 20, which made him a boy under his eyes, even if he was younger than him -that made him untrustworthy. Maybe it was the way his eyes gleamed when he looked at the machines and asked for details on how they worked. Or the way he was staring at Rachel when she wasn't looking.

Plus, the idea of dragging him inside the machine wasn't from any of them. The situation just happened and while Rachel wanted to point herself as the guilty party- no one allowed it, who would know that having red hair would bring this mess? -, no one had predicted it. Not even Reyna, who relented and just hoped they hadn't changed anything important.

The good thing about driving a time machine is that it doesn't need a driver. You just write the time coordinates and it drives alone. That left plenty of time for Leo to stare at Octavius and get an opinion from him.

"You're suppose to get along with him." He heard from the side. He glanced and saw Calypso sitting next to him. Leo said nothing, just went back to stare at Octavius.

"I don't trust him." He admitted to her. It wasn't easy being sarcastic when you were slightly angry.

"Maybe you would if you knew him..?" Now Leo did see Calypso with his patented 'are you nuts, woman?' look. It would make him open his eyes big while one eyebrow would reach the hair line, almost disappearing. Sometimes, it would be accompany with lifting his upper lip a little, but that if he was insulted. Like now. Instead of feeling the awkwardness that came with it, Calypso hid a laugh.

"You think is funny, woman?"

"Your face is funny." Leo flushed and looked away, but Calypso was still smiling. They watched Octavius in silence for a few minutes before she spoke again. "Talk to him. Who knows, maybe he only looks deceiving..." With that, Calypso got up and left, leaving Leo to ponder. He decided she was slightly right, knowing him would give him more insight if he was trustworthy or not. So, he got up and walked to him.

"Octavius." He called him, making him look at whoever was speaking at him. "Walk with me." Octavius frowned, obviously not understanding. Leo just rolled his eyes. "Just come with me, would you!" He grabbed his arm and took him to a different part of the machine. Now, the first engineers had designed the machine to be bigger inside that outside, so Leo took Octavius to his room. "Sit."

"What do you want from me?" Octavius wondered, but sounded like a defensive attack to Leo and he smirked a bit. It was time for a little psychology.

"From you? Nothing." Leo saw Octavius blinking in surprise. "Octavius, you are here because of a bad situation, you have nothing I want... and if we weren't on a schedule, I would had already dropped you near the beginning of Rome, so you could use your talents on who deserves it." Of course, Leo didn't mentioned who were those deserving.

"That girl..." It was obvious to Leo he was referring to Rachel. "...she can't see the future, right?"

"No. And I don't remember we gave any indication that she can." Leo noticed how Octavius' shoulders slumped down and he kept his anger in check. "Now that I ruined your plan to kidnap her, here's another little secret..." Octavius' face paled, specially when Leo walked closer to him. "I'm the only one in this crew that can drive this machine. No one else. So think about that when you plan a mutiny or even consider betray us."

In retrospective, Leo probably wasn't doing what Calypso had suggested him, but flaunting to Octavius that he knew his plans and leaving him pale and a little scare was good in his book. He returned back to where everyone was relaxing and saw Rachel looking slightly better. He smiled at her and kissed her cheek in reassurement. He couldn't help but to smirk when Octavius glared at him.

"So, when are we heading next?" Will asked, totally oblivious to the exchange. Like everyone else.

"We set our time to the beginning of the Ming Dynasty." Reyna explained. As the historian of the group, Reyna was the more adequate person to explain and to scold about 'butterfly effects'. "Which gives us a small problem..."

"Which is...?" Piper tried to get a complete answer from Reyna. She sighed and looked at the people around her.

"Of all of us, only Percy and maybe Calypso could pass as foreigners in their lands." Everyone looked at each other and Leo could see what she was meaning. Rachel's red hair was a problem again, but Piper, Reyna and his darker skin would made them stand out. Not to mention Will and Octavius' blonde hair. Looked like this time they had no choice.

"Looks like Aquaman and Sunshine here would be our explorers..." Percy groaned but Calypso blinked in confusion.

"Who is Aquaman?"

"Long story for another time." Percy intervened before Leo could launch into an explanation. "The point is that we should dress up and find someone that could help us... According to the history books, the sons of the first Ming Emperor were trained to be a type of feudal princes... soldiers with power over people and very sharp minds..."

"Are you suggesting we take one of the Emperor's sons?" Piper repeated, almost gasping. Percy simply shrugged before Leo asked.

"How many sons did that Emperor had?" Reyna grabbed a book and checked before answering.

"He had approximately twenty-five sons and sixteen daughters with twenty-one different women." She read, her eyebrows almost disappearing in her hair. Everyone looked around, shocked and slightly impressed.

"Twenty-five sons?!" Rachel finally found her voice, and she was expressing her disbelief. "Seriously, would he even realize one of them is missing?" It was Leo who replied to her.

"One way to find out."

~oOo~ ~oOo~

Calypso found more comfortable wearing Ming outfits than the Roman togas.

"I love the flowers on this clothes!" She praised them, smiling and twirling. Piper smiled while trying to get her still. Her measures were slightly smaller and alterations had to be made. However, the covered shoulders and the belt around her waist would keep it in place. Calypso simply love it.

"Colors represent status." Rachel explained to her, sitting with them. "While you and Percy obviously would pass as foreigners, the colors implying he's either part of the Shi, the noble class, mainly general armies, or the Gon, the farmers. We're aiming you two look like a general and you, his wife."

"Concubine would be the right word." Calypso glanced at Reyna, clearly not understanding what was being explained. "It just means you have to stay by Percy's side saying nothing... That gives you a great advantage of looking and not being annoyed."

"Oh, does Perseus know this?" The girls giggled at Calypso's innocent question.

"Oh, he does..." Piper supplied, fixing the back of the dress. "He said and I quote 'I won't walk around pretending I neither control or paid for a woman! My mother taught me better than that!'." Calypso opened her eyes in surprise and scolded herself for being naïve about everything. She vowed to fix it once this mission was over.

"You sure you don't wanna marry him, Piper?" Rachel's voice pulled Calypso from her mental world. "Sounds like he's the perfect gentleman..."

"Marrying my brother in everything but blood? What kind of novels have you been reading, woman?" Piper argued back, but it was obvious that it was all in good fun. Even Reyna laughed at their banter.

"But, why won't you?" Calypso wanted to know and all the girls got serious. "For what you've been saying, you could do worst..." Piper sighed and stopped fixing the dress.

"Yes, that's true, but I don't wanna be in a loveless marriage..." The girls nodded, apparently agreeing with her. "I don't feel the butterflies in my stomach or I don't giggle for every little thing he does to make me laugh... I don't feel like a puddle when he surprises me and I seriously don't cry whenever he says I won't see him for weeks! And Percy actually feels slightly guilty to keep me around while he's feeling exactly like me, so... I'm doing him a favor."

"Wait, that's what love is about?" Calypso blinked in shock. "What about someone who keeps you safe, or is able to provide for you or- or-"

"Calypso." Reyna placed a hand on her shoulder to stop her gently. "You forget that we come from a different time. In our time, women are as capable as men and they can do the same things, sometimes even better, than men. We keep ourselves safe and we provide for ourselves. Sure, having a man helps with the burden, but women in our time don't want to share it..."

"Your society seems to be much different than you're implying..." Calypso acknowledged. Rachel nodded while making her hair.

"We're not expecting to understand it..." She smiled through the mirror. "Actually, that you ask those questions makes us realize we're doing a good thing..." Calypso looked at the girls and everyone nodded.

"So, Piper, if you liked one of the others, say... Leonidas-" The girls chuckled but let her continue. "What would happen?"

"Well, we wouldn't be able to marry... not that I want to marry Leo, mind you!" Piper looked thoughtful. "Escaping is not an option, as the entire world sees this as normal... However, we could present each other as 'second matches'- that's when your first match is sadly dead or in prison. That's more accepted..."

"I wouldn't want to be second choice of anyone..." Calypso mumbled, thinking about her own love story. She hadn't thought in Odysseus in a while- since this trip started, actually -and she doubted he was worried out of his mind for her.

"Which is why we don't blame neither of the boys..." Piper comforted her, smiling.

"Speaking of boys..." Rachel smirked and looked around. "What you guys think of our latest recruit, Octavius?" Reyna and Piper looked at each other and spoke together, speaking one word.

"Creepy."

"C'mon, girls!" Rachel argued back, frowning. "He's not that bad-"

"I never thought Rachel Dare would fall for looks and no for brains!" Reyna gasped, hiding her mouth behind her hand. Rachel flushed and Calypso grabbed his hand in comfort. "Accept it, Rach, the guy is slightly creepy... I wouldn't be surprised if he betray us in the long run..."

"Did you see the face he did when we told him we had no weapons?" Piper added, unaware that it was upsetting Rachel. Calypso could see it and decided to intervene.

"I'm sure we're all judging too fast based on apperances..." Calypso gave them a look that said 'please, no more'. "I could have easily asked the same questions, making me as much as a threat." Both Reyna and Piper understood her statement and decided not to speak more of it. Rachel squeezed her shoulder in gratitude and that was all that was said.

The chat made Calypso realize something.

These girls, these young women, were so used to being independent, strong and compete side by side with men they had forgotten how to bond or even to interact with other women. To keep their status of independent they had to be competitive and that was creating bad a bad relationship between the female side.

That was her goal. She would learn about this new world, this future they were planning on saving while she would teach them camaraderie and healthy friendship relationships. In comparison, they seemed to be losing, but Calypso concluded that they would be winning too much to put on scales.

Now, she needed to think with who would be her first test.

~oOo~ ~oOo~

Time passed too slow for Leo's like.

He was sitting next to a small fire- the engine, to be exact -watching how Reyna, Rachel, Piper and Will were making numbers and calculations for the next trip. He realized he should be there making those numbers with them but he knew they got annoyed pretty quick with his sense of humor. Everyone but Rachel, of course. She was the only one who could stand him.

His eyes shifted to where Octavius was sitting, not far away from him. He was staring at the fire as if it was some kind of morbid show you can't take your eyes of. He was serious, very serious. Leo feared he could be planning something after the warning he gave him, so he decided to do something drastic, crazy and totally Leo. He got up and went to the supply cabinet, coming back with glasses and some bottles, placing them on the table.

"What the Hell, Valdez?" Reyna was the first one asking. Leo rolled his eyes and smirked at her.

"What does it seemed like, Rey-Rey?" Reyna literally growled at him and would have launched if he didn't keep talking. "We're too stiff, so we will drink and forget our problems while Aquaman and Sunshine are away..."

"Does it have to be whiskey- hold on, where did you get the whiskey from?" Will questioned him, raising an eyebrow. As the medical expert of the group, he was bound to make such questions. That didn't mean Leo liked it.

"Is either this or vodka... which leads to another set of questions." Leo tapped his chin making everyone shudder upon the realization someone else was drinking while time-travelling. At least they were parked. "Come on! Let's lift the spirit!"

"Just a couple of drinks..." Rachel agreed. Leo nodded, knowing a drunk Rachel was a depress Rachel. He didn't want her to reach that state. "Octavius, come join us..." Octavius glanced at them and nodded, almost robotically. Leo smirked, hoping to see how much tolerance this 'pretty boy' had.

"What is this made of?" Octavius said after sniffing it, which made the other chuckle. Piper grabbed the bottle and read the back.

"Barley." She announced while everyone took a sip of it. Octavius seemed happy with that answer but spit the whole drink as soon as he tried it, making everyone laugh.

"Have you gone insane?! That's not a drink, that's- that's-"

"I'm sure Lord Bacchus would have loved it." Leo raised his glass as toast, smirking. Octavius took another look at the glass in his hand and drank the whole thing in one sip, impressing everyone. "Brave of you-" He stopped talking when he saw him shaking his head. "-maybe not..."

"Octavius, you alright?" Rachel wondered, placing a hand on his shoulder which he immediately shove away while pointing at her.

"You..." Leo immediately got up and got ready to act. He placed a hand on Octavius shoulder, a little forceful.

"You need to lay down, you have no resistance to it." Which is a great thing to know... Octavius shook his head again, as if to get rid of something before looking at Leo.

"You..."

"Yes, me... Handsome, intelligent and sexy driver..." Leo used the opportunity to laugh about it but that only confused Octavius. "Anything else?"

"I- I-" Octavius say no more before rolling his eyes in and collapsing on Leo's arms, scaring everyone. Will looked very concern, as Rachel, but the girls didn't look annoyed.

"Not what I had in mind when I wanted to part ways with you, sweetheart..." Leo broke the silence talking to Rachel who snorted friendly. Smirking, Leo dragged- he didn't even bother to lift him -Octavius to a bunkbed to let him sleep. To Leo's utter amusement, he began snoring the minute he touched the pillow. The opportunity was too good to pass. "That was Lord Bacchus setting you straight..." He whispered in his ear before leaving.

"Maybe we should keep this away..." Piper suggested, placing the tap on the bottle. Leo pouted but said nothing.

"How was he knocked out so fast?" Will kept asking. It was obvious he was concern.

"What are you thinking?" Reyna encouraged him to keep talking, earning everyone's attention, even Leo's.

"Could the drink be spiked?" Everyone shared a look and began Leo scolding himself- very loudly and Leo style -for not checking. However, he stopped mid rant, serious. "What, Leo?"

"Will, we all drank it..." The evidence was there, meaning the spike theory was debunk. "I think Octavius is just really sensitive to subtances... Too bad we can't go back-"

"What do you mean?" Rachel stood up, frowning serious. Leo wrapped an arm around her, comforting.

"Reyna, is your area of expertise." Reyna glared at Leo for passing the duty but explained nonetheless.

"Ancient Augurs and Oracles were 'effective'-" Here, she used quotation marks. "-because the land of the temples used to be filled with toxic gases and substances... not to mention the rumor about them consuming substances to predict the future seems plausible."

"So, did we just-"

"-picked up a drug-addict and forced him into abstinence for our mission? Yes." Leo received a half-hearted punch from Rachel, who looked very worried. "Is not your fault, you know... We can still help him, but there's one important detail we must not forget."

"What's that?"

"That he must wanted as well, otherwise we cannot force him. And we cannot help him."

Despite the numerous reasons Octavius was giving Leo not to trust him, he didn't want him to die. He wasn't that heartless about it. He knew the story about his great-grandfather, how he had lost his mind because of medicine, how he refused to be helped and how he was lost because of it. He may not like the dude, but he would help.

Yeah, time passed too slow for Leo's like.

~oOo~ ~oOo~

Calypso, for once, thought the Fates were on her and her friends side.

The moment she had walked into the nearby village, the people were respectful and bowed to them. Perseus bowed back and she followed suit. He explained to her, when the people left, that it was their way to greet each other, but that they should wait for the other person to bow first. Calypso nodded in understanding and followed his lead.

The mission gave her the time to know the real Perseus. He was serious when the situation required it- like now -, but he was also funny and considerated. She knew half of his treatment to her was acting but she could see that he was genuine in his mood. She kept thinking about Piper's words about what it was to fall in love.

"I don't feel the butterflies in my stomach or I don't giggle for every little thing he does to make me laugh... I don't feel like a puddle when he surprises me and I seriously don't cry whenever he says I won't see him for weeks! And Percy actually feels slightly guilty to keep me around while he's feeling exactly like me, so... I'm doing him a favor."

She was about to ask Perseus what he thought about that when some men got closer. They were riding horses and the most strange sets of armors she had ever seen. As soon as Perseus saw them, he bowed to them. Calypso soon followed his lead.

"Greetings, General." Perseus spoke, still bowed. Taking a small glance, Calypso saw someone getting down the horse and immediately looked down. She hadn't taken a good look at the men on the horses, so she couldn't say if they looked hostile or not. "We're simply on our way, we won't disturb your morning."

"It is my honor and pleasure to greet such polite passing guests." The General replied. His voice sounded gentle and when she was finally allowed to look up, Calypso found herself face to face with a tall man that, in some part of his youth, was chubby. His facial expressions showed that he smiled and, despite the war armor, his hands had calluses. Proof of constant use. "I must have this distinguish guests join me for