"And…sí!" Leo cheered when Festus' eyes started glowing red. Buford the Wonder Table scampered around Bunker Five like a five-year-old who had too many sweets, scattering the pieces of celestial bronze that Leo had stored in its drawer onto the floor.

Festus stood up from his lying position on the platform and roared, shooting a column of fire from his mouth. A piece of wood caught fire and Buford scuttled over to put it out. Leo really regretted not spraying some Anti-Crumble on his tables and stools. However, he was too happy to protest. The son of Hephaestus rushed forward and embraced the bronze dragon like it was an old friend. Well, to him, it was.

"Welcome back, pal!" Leo exclaimed, gesturing towards the large banner that hung from Bunker Five's ceiling. It displayed the sentence,

WELCOME BACK, FESTUS!

and was supplemented with a huge smiley face. Festus's jaw creaked as it looked down at Leo.

Leo grinned and patted its celestial bronze hide. "Yeah, buddy, I love you too. Long time no see, huh?"

Ring!

"Hello? Leo, are you in?" Piper's voice spoke from the other side of the giant stone door.

"Hello, kids!" Leo said as he opened the door, revealing Piper and Jason. "You're just in time to see-"

"Is that…Festus?" Piper interrupted him and stepped in, her words laced with wonder. Jason entered after her, gaping at the bronze creature in awe.

Leo faced his dragon and crossed his arms, pouting like a child deprived of candy. "Festus," he whined, "it was supposed to be a surprise!"

The bronze dragon merely whirred its teeth and grinned. Piper rushed forward and circled her arms around it. "Oh my gods, Leo! You built him!"

Watching the happy reunion, Leo used his elbow to nudge Jason. He whispered into the son of Zeus' ear, "Bet you're feeling kinda jealous now, Lightning Boy. Happy the dragon is stealing your limelight!"

Jason laughed and replied, "Well, it's good to have Festus back."

Leo turned back towards Piper and Festus' direction, a smile playing on his lips. "Yes, it sure is."

"Chiron?"

"Yes, Mr Valdez?"

"I'm planning on bringing Festus along for my quest."

"Festus…the celestial bronze dragon? Oh, yes, of course you may. Anything else?" Chiron asked, turning around so that Leo would see his face instead of his horse butt.

Take a deep breath, Valdez. "I'm going alone."

"Alone?"

"Yes, Chiron. Alone," Leo replied. He knew that Chiron would object. Well, he hadn't spent the past half an hour rehearsing this conversation for nothing. Leo had to make sure that the words 'Ogygia' or 'Calypso' wouldn't slip from his tongue. It would take a lot to cover it up.

The centaur frowned down at him. "But surely, Mr Valdez, you are aware that it is very dangerous to travel alone?"

Leo swallowed a comment about how he had already been on the run long before he came to Camp Half-blood. When he saw Chiron fold his arms, Leo knew that it was the same old lecture again. The son of Hephaestus showed his palms and made pushing motions. "Yes, yes, I am aware of that. And I know that it is best to travel in threes, because there are three eldest gods, three Furies, three Fates, blah blah blah... but I have to travel alone. It's my quest. And I can't stand to let everyone know about-"

Leo bit his tongue before he could say more. That was close. Too close. But the sentence piqued Chiron's curiosity. "Know about what?"

"Oh-erm-nothing," Leo gave a lame excuse. He didn't dare look at Chiron for he had heard somewhere that eyes were 'windows to the souls'. However, Leo was pretty sure that the centaur already knew that something was amiss.

He was surprised when Chiron merely said, "Very well." He would never know what made the guy (fine, horse guy) tick. Leo had to say, Chiron was probably weird enough to qualify for the Party Ponies. Man, it would be awesome if he did. Leo had always wondered what the camp would be like with a Party Pony as a director.

Okay, back to the main topic. No matter how dangerous the quest would be, Leo couldn't risk letting more people know about Calypso. He trusted Jason. Superman could keep a secret, right?

Suddenly, a wail reverberated through the camp. Chiron chuckled and told Leo, "That'll be the Apollo's sing-along. Come on, we're late."

Nah, no thanks. Leo didn't want to burst his eardrums, but before he could protest, the centaur had already broke into a canter, forcing him to follow.

"Are you sure that you know where to go, Leo?" Piper asked him for the umpteenth time as the strolled along the borders of the forest with Jason.

Leo sighed, "Piper, I appreciate the concern, but I know what I'm doing, alright? You have to focuse on your quest. I heard that Circe is a really bad witch."

"Apparently, Percy had Hermes' help when he went to Aeaea with Annabeth…" Piper trailed off and gulped. The boys nodded for her to continue. She said, "Since we don't have Hermes' help this time, Percy wants to ask Reyna to lend him her ring."

Leo had learnt that Reyna's ring wasn't just a fancy accessory. It could protect the wearer from evil magic, and was given to Reyna by her mother when she went to work for Circe. What was the name again? Oh, yes, Bellona, not bologna. Some Roman goddess of war.

"How? He isn't going to go back to Camp Jupiter again, is he? Octavian may be planning another teddy bear assault," Jason stated.

Leo suggested, "What about the video-recording scroll that I sent to Camp Jupiter last time? The one that told the Romans we were arriving at their camp."

The other two nodded in agreement, and they went to look for Percy.

"Are you really, really sure where to go?"

"Geez, Piper, do you know how many times you asked that already?" Leo groaned.

Piper blushed and looked apologetic. "Sorry, Leo, I just didn't want you to get lost."

"Seriously, with all your worrying, I think that Jason is starting to feel that you're no longer attracted to him."

"Leo!" Piper protested, punching him in the shoulder. Leo merely laughed, then acted like he was in pain. "Ouch, Beauty Queen, that hurt."

"Like real."

Leo was tinkering at some pieces of celestial bronze at the mess hall, neglecting the delicious food on his plate. He was so engrossed in his activity that he didn't even realize that Piper was standing directly behind him.

"Hey, Leo."

"Ahhh!" The son of Hephaestus jumped, causing the other campers to stare at him. "What is it with you women? Can't you just approach me from the front and not scare the wits out of me? First it was-"

Leo bit back the word. Uh-uh, taboo. The word 'Calypso' is currently not in Leo Valdez's vocabulary. "Never mind," he said, taking a bite of his sandwich.

Piper observed him with a raised eyebrow. "Huh. I wasn't aware that Leo Valdez had wits."

Nearby, Danny Foster scooted towards them and said, "Oooh, BURN."

"Shut up, Danny. Go eat your eggs," Leo snapped, scowling at his half-brother. The latter meekly started poking at his eggs with a fork. Leo turned back to Piper and acted as though Danny had never spoken. "Love you too."

He was about to take another bite of his sandwich when Piper put her hand on his shoulder. "Listen, Leo. I just want to make sure that you know what you're doing."

"What am I doing? Of course I know that I'm trying to eat my sandwich!"

"You know what I mean."

"Holy Hephaestus, woman," Leo muttered, "can't you just leave me alone? This is, like, the gazillionth time you've asked that question. I'm not sure that the word 'gazillionth' even exists. Well, congratulations, you broke a world record."

"Argh, fine, I'll tell you. I heard you talking to Jason."

Uh-oh. Bomb alert.