Sam normally would have written her report on her laptop in her workshop. It was just as comfortable in there, and there was less chance of her being interrupted by Jack – who seldom went into her workroom, because he knew she was usually doing something important there. However, the workshop was now semi-officially Ian's bedroom, and Sam would never have invaded his privacy to do her report – even though he wasn't in the room and undoubtedly wouldn't have minded. She simply took her laptop into the bedroom, leaving the guys the run of the house and giving herself the far more comfortable bed to sprawl on while she did her typing.

Since she wasn't interrupted once – unusual in itself – she managed to get the report written in far less time than she'd expected, and she walked out of the bedroom less than an hour later, stretching and ready to do something more exciting. Figuring by now the guys would be done with their snack, she figured she could convince them they should all go get some fresh air – maybe take Jaffer for a walk, or go for a drive and show Ian the neighborhood. When she walked into the dining room, though, she stopped short, realizing that they weren't going to go walking any time soon – or do anything else, for that matter.

"Oh, good Lord..."

Jack looked up first, and Sam had to bite her lower lip to keep from grinning. His face was smeared with purple juices, and his hands and part of one forearm was equally smeared. Little pieces of seeds were stuck to his fingers and the side of his mouth, and his shirt – which had been a brand new khaki colored sweatshirt – was ruined. It, too, was liberally stained with juice, and Sam was certain it wasn't going to come clean.

Ian was in worse shape; Sam saw when he looked up only a second later. His brilliantly white t-shirt was now splattered with juice as well, and he; too, had the stuff smeared all over his face and arms. There were seeds sticking to his forearms, and he had one on his cheek right below his right eye. Even worse, he seemed to have managed to cut himself, because she was pretty sure that the towel that he was holding against his wrist was bloodstained and not juicy.

The table was covered with bits and pieces of purple and white and even Jaffer had seeds stuck to his glossy black fur. They looked like Barney had thrown up on them.

"All this from one piece of fruit?" Sam asked as she walked into the room to get a better look at the damage.

Jack shook his head, "We ate all three of them."

"Are you serious?"

"Well, most of them," Ian said. "We had a bit of trouble with the second one..."

"A bit...?"

"We thought we'd cut it in half and see if we could get the seeds out faster."

"And did you?"

He shook his head, "It just made more of a mess..."

"And he cut himself."

"The knife slipped."

She could believe that; the knife was just as smeared as they were.

"Are you alright?"

He nodded, scooping a small line of the seeds out of the fruit he was holding, and smearing himself further.

"It's nothing."

Sam moved over behind Jack.

"Lift up your arms."

Scowling, he did what he was told and she pulled his sweatshirt off him, leaving him with a dark t – shirt that didn't show any juice stains – although Sam knew she wouldn't be able to see them if they were there. Ian snickered, amused at seeing him being treated like an errant child, and Jack flipped a couple of seeds at him – which stuck to his neck.

"That's enough of that, Jack," Sam told him, smiling despite herself.

"Yeah, Jack," Ian said, still snickering.

Sam walked over to stand behind Ian.

"Lift up your arms."

"What?"

"Better do it," Jack told him, grinning now to see the tables turned on the cadet.

Ian lifted his arms, and Sam pulled his shirt off him, leaving him bare-chested. Which wasn't such a bad thing, she decided privately. He was certainly well-muscled, and hardly an eye sore. She caught his arm, taking a quick look at the cut on his wrist, but she wasn't sure what was blood and what was juice.

"Go get in the shower, Ian," Sam told him, resisting the urge to start picking the seeds out of his hair that she hadn't noticed until just then. "Try not to touch anything you don't have to."

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Be lucky you didn't get it in your lap," Jack told him as Ian stood up. "She'd have you standing in your shorts."

Ian believed it. He also knew better than to argue with Sam – at least in her own house and when she was obviously trying to keep a mess at a minimum – so he did as he was told and headed for the bathroom.

"You can clean this up," Sam told Jack with a smile as she headed for the washing machine with the two shirts in her hand. "And get the seeds out of Jaffer's fur before they dry there and become permanent."

"Yes, Ma'am."

Sam put the shirts in the washer – although she wouldn't actually start it until Ian (and then Jack) had finished showering – and smiled to herself. This was going to be so much fun.