October 1692

Outskirts of Salem Town,

Massachusetts

Now . . .

The Lifeboat suddenly appeared out of thin air coming to an abrupt halt in a clearing in the middle of a forest. Inside the occupants were dealing with the unpleasant effects of the time jump.

"Oh God, why isn't this getting any easier?" Lucy groaned, leaning her head back against her seat as she felt nauseous, her stomach rolling.

"I've been in planes that were being shot at that had less turbulence than this damn machine." Wyatt grumbled as Rufus turned around in his seat to face them.

"Unfortunately it's not going to get any better. The Lifeboat wasn't designed to handle turbulence. It wasn't designed to handle a lot of things actually. As Mason stated earlier the Lifeboat was only intended to be used in emergencies, like rescuing the occupants of the Mothership if it broke down. Since we figured we'd rarely be using it, we put all of our efforts into designing the Mothership and making it as effective and comfortable as possible. The Lifeboat's like a base model vehicle with zero features while the Mothership's fully loaded with all the useful features." Rufus explained.

"So Flynn's got himself a nice cushy time machine while we're stuck with this piece of junk that makes us sick every time we go out? Fantastic." Wyatt said sarcastically as he worked to unbuckle his seatbelt.

"As crappy as it is, I'm just glad you guys had the foresight to create it. I don't even want to think about what would have happened if Flynn had gone unchecked." Lucy replied.

"I hear you on that. I'll open the door and then we can get going." Rufus said, turning around in his seat as he flipped a switch above his head.

The door slowly slid open as the three of them looked outside to see a wooded forest in front of them as there was no one in sight.

"Doesn't look like anyone's around but I'll jump out first, do a quick walk around the Lifeboat to make sure." Wyatt said, looking over at Lucy and Rufus as they nodded in agreement.

"Be careful." Lucy found herself blurting out as she watched the corner of Wyatt's mouth tug up in a smile.

She knew immediately what the next few words out his mouth were going to be and she opened her mouth to try and stop him.

"Don't. . ." She began.

"Yes ma'm." Wyatt replied, his blue eyes twinkling mischievously as she rolled her eyes.

"Just go." She said, gesturing at the door as Wyatt stood up and walked over to it.

He carefully lowered himself out before disappearing from view as Lucy leaned back in her seat looking over at Rufus.

"Walked straight into that one." She said giving him a small smile as Rufus smiled back.

"He really knows how to push your buttons, huh?" Rufus asked.

"The man is damn infuriating." Lucy replied, folding her arms across her chest.

A few seconds later Wyatt reappeared in front of them as he tucked his gun back into his coat pocket.

"It's safe, we're alone." He said, looking up at the two of them.

"Good. The sooner we get moving, the better." Lucy replied, standing up as she walked over to the door.

"Here, let me help you out." Wyatt said as he extended his arms up towards her.

"Just crouch down a bit and fall towards me. I'll catch you." He said as she narrowed her eyes at him.

"You better." She warned as he smiled at her.

"Come on." He said as she let out a deep breathe before allowing herself fall towards him, Wyatt grabbing her gently around the waist as he lifted her up and set her down gently beside him.

"There, that wasn't so bad was it?" He asked, his hands lingering slightly longer then they needed to around her waist.

"I. . .Thank you." Lucy replied, her face slightly flushed.

"Anytime." Wyatt said, giving her a small smile as he stared into her warm brown eyes.

Rufus watched the exchange from the Lifeboat as he couldn't help but roll his eyes. There was obviously something going on between the two of them, didn't take a genius to see that. The only problem was that he was losing a bet that he'd made earlier that day with Jiya. . .

Flashback to earlier that day. . .

"Hey Rufus, hold up a minute." Rufus turned around to see Jiya coming walking towards him as he was just getting ready to climb into the Lifeboat.

"Hey, what's up?" He asked, pausing for a moment as she stopped in front of him.

"So what's the deal with Wyatt and Lucy?" Jiya asked curiously as she folded her arms across her chest.

"What do you mean?" Rufus began as she rolled her eyes at him.

"Oh come on, you can't tell me you don't see it. They totally have a thing for each other." She said.

"Even if they did, I think it's a bit more complicated then that. Lucy's engaged to a man she doesn't know and Wyatt's still looking for his wife's killer. I don't think either one of them is ready for whatever's happening." Rufus replied.

"Meh, minor details. It won't stop them. Want to make a bet on how long it takes for this to become a thing?" She asked, her eyes sparkling as he couldn't help but laugh at how enthusiastic she was.

"Okay, you're on. I bet you this doesn't become a thing until all their issues get resolved. There's no way it's going to happen already, they barely know each other." Rufus argued.

"Well I think something's going to happen either during this mission or after it." Jiya replied.

"So what's the wager?" Rufus asked.

"The usual?" She said as Rufus grinned.

"You're on." He replied as she grinned back at him.

"Oh you are so going to lose." She said.

"Oh really? Pretty sure I've got the better track record. What am I? 13 for 15?" Rufus teased.

"Well not this time. I know these things Rufus and this is a sure thing." She replied.

"Whatever you say Jiya. Guess we'll find out one way or another when we get back. I should go though, I need to start checking over things before Wyatt and Lucy get here." Rufus said as she nodded her head.

"Okay. Just. . .come back in one piece? I'd hate to have to celebrate by myself." She said, giving him a warm smile as he nodded his head.

"I'll do my best. Wouldn't want to miss the look on your face when I win again." He said as she rolled her eyes, reaching her arm over as she shoved him playfully.

"Get out of here. See you when you get back." She replied as he nodded his head.

"See you soon." He replied before turning around and climbing into the time machine. . . .

Now. . .

Rufus snapped out of his train of thought as he looked down at Lucy and Wyatt who were still standing there.

"Hey Wyatt, you going to help me down like that?" He asked in amusement as Wyatt turned to look at him.

"Sure, trade outfits with Lucy and I'll lift you right out." Wyatt replied, a smirk on his face.

"I think I'll pass." Rufus said as he climbed out on his own.

"So, where are we and what's the plan?" He asked as Lucy took a look around.

"Ipswich Road should be five miles east from our position. Once we reach it we'll follow it five miles north and it should lead us to Salem Town." Lucy said as Rufus looked at her in disbelief.

"We have to walk ten miles?" Rufus asked.

"If we landed any closer we'd run the risk of exposing ourselves to the villagers. This. . ." She began as she gestured at the Lifeboat.

". . . . doesn't exactly blend in and seeing as how we're trying to avoid detection, I figured the further away the better." Lucy finished.

"You guys really should have invented a cloaking device or something. It would make this a hell of a lot. . ." Wyatt trailed off as he looked at Rufus who was rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"You did create one but only for the Mothership." Wyatt said accusingly.

"We didn't think the Lifeboat would need it!" Rufus replied defensively.

"When we get back we're having a little chat with Mason about getting us one of those." Wyatt said.

"Alright we've got a bit of a hike in front of us, we can talk about this on the way." Lucy said as she gathered up her skirts and began heading away from the Lifeboat.

"Hey Lucy?" Wyatt called out as she turned to face him.

"Yeah?" She replied.

"East is that way." He answered as he pointed in the opposite direction from which she was travelling.

"I. . .totally knew that." Lucy replied hastily as she headed towards them, a smirk on Wyatt's face.

"Sure you did." He replied as she glared at him before walking past him.

Wyatt chuckled softly as he headed off after her, Rufus following close behind him as the three of them began their long trek towards town. . .