"Yeah! That explains a lot! You were helping and nobody saw you but everyone was dressed as cats! All sorts of cats. So why didn't they see you? You're not that short, even if you are a squirt."

But he's grinning at that--Xander tends to call all the younger Valkonans at the Lab "squirt", and it's an affectionate term. They're not that close, or Romeo would be getting a hair ruffle too, just like he gives the other kids.

"Man, you know, that'd be a great idea for something to do on the train. Get a face painting kit and just...paint faces for everyone who wanted them...I mean clearly it was fun for you and it'd be a new experience for me!"

Not that Xander didn't have a lot of things that weren't a new experience, but that one seemed like a good one. "What do you think?"