"You're not dead," Cal pointed out. "So you're doing good." Hey, 'not dead' was a good result in his book, after all.

Christine growled but got to her feet. "There's a shower in there. I'm going to go wash the worst of this gunk off. Then I'm going to go home and shower again and go to bed."

Cal made a show of rolling his eyes, but even he couldn't deny that a shower sounded like a good idea. He had demon-crud on him, too.

Christine marched into the building to go find a shower, turned on the water to let it get hot, and got in clothes and all. She might as well, at this point.

She didn't emerge for several minutes, still toweling herself off, her jeans wet and clinging. She tossed another few towels at Cal.

"You can sit on those for the ride back to the house."

"I could just shower now," Cal pointed out. "You did, so why can't I?"

"You've got seven minutes before I leave," Christine said. "Down the hall, third door on your left." She draped the towel over her shoulders for the moment.

Harry really couldn't help but snicker at them. Really. It was impossible not to.

Not that Cal couldn't find his way back to the house on his own, but it was the principle of the thing. And he knew Nik wouldn't bother waiting for him if he took too long. Grumbling under his breath, Cal took the towel and headed towards the shower.

Christine waited exactly seven minutes before fishing out her keys. Nik looked amused. Knowing Cal, he'd show up at almost the last possible moment before Christine drove away.

And indeed he did, coming back out looking a bit cleaner than before, although his clothes were still pretty much a mess. He wasn't grumbling anymore, but he was still a bit annoyed-looking.

Christine got in her car silently, letting Niko take the passenger seat, and drove back to the house silently. She turned on the oven again before heading upstairs to shower and change.

Once inside, Kali took over for her sister again, and Bahiti retreated to get some rest. Kali promptly began making more tea.

Harry hung around downstairs, looking amused as he watched Cal and Niko head back to the other room. And then he moved into the kitchen.

"Is it just me or were those two practically flirting earlier?"

"It's not just you," Kali said, nodding and handing him a mug of sweet tea. This time, though, it was chilled rather than hot. "They were. It's kind of cute, actually."

"And they had no idea," Harry said, grinning. That was practically the best part. They were both oblivious. And it was hysterical.

"None," Kali agreed, grinning as well. "So this should be fun to watch." She pressed her lips shut just as a faint buzzing made it past her teeth. "Tam doesn't approve of finding amusement in the situation," she said after a moment. "But whatever, she's the killjoy-big-sister."

Harry shook his head and grinned before taking a sip of his tea. He considered it for a moment.

"Well, not as good as Mac's dark brew, but nothing is, so this is pretty good."

"One thing I'm glad I learned from our mothers," Kali said, beaming. "Sweet tea. Well, tea in general, but sweet tea is a childhood favorite."

"It's tastier than I would have expected." He grinned. "Apparently tea is one of those things that can be enjoyed hot or cold."

"You have no idea," Kali said. She paused. "Okay, things like chai are better hot, teas with warm spices like cinnamon should be hot, sweeter dessert teas should be cold, but technically anything goes." She grinned. "This is one area where I know more than my sisters. I love tea."

"I can tell." Harry grinned. "Well, nothing wrong with that. There are worse things to enjoy."

"This is true," Kali said, nodding. "Tea's good for you, anyways."

"Yes it is. So is beer." Harry grinned briefly, taking another sip of his tea.

"Tea is better than beer and you can't convince me otherwise," Kali said. She grinned. "Bahiti, on the other hand, might be more sympathetic to your cause."

Harry just snorted. "Nothing can beat Mac's dark beer," he said. "Nothing I've tasted yet."

"Nothing will convince me that there is something better than tea," Kali said stubbornly. She grinned. "You want my sister if you want someone to agree with you."