"So," you say then, turning to the three girls. "Have you ladies enjoyed the tournament so far?"

"It's boring," Kokoa complains immediately. "I can fight better than most of these people." Her expression says louder than words that she's including you in that group.

"That goes without saying, my cute littlest sister," Kahlua agrees, ruffling the smaller girl's hair in a manner that provokes an adorable squirming pout. "But none of these people were born with our advantages, and even so, there are still a couple of them that I would have to think carefully about fighting." And again, it's clear that your name is on someone's list.

"And you, Miss Moka?"

"There are several participants who might make interesting opponents," the silver-haired girl admits. You're... not entirely certain if you merited her notice. "The Kurokami, those Chinese boys with the energy attacks, the English girl, that redhead..." She trails off momentarily, then adds, "Gorn," with a glance at her mother.

"You'd do just fine within the rules of the tournament, Moka," Akasha assures her, patting the girl's hand. "Outside of it, though, you'd need to be careful. Mohras favor the sword, and you absolutely do not want to get their blood into your system in any way."

You aren't the only one to frown at that. "Why not?" Kahlua asks.

"A Mohra's healing factor is communicable," Akasha explains. "On the face of it, that's a fantastic benefit, if one can survive fighting the demon long enough to take some of the blood, but the truth of the matter is that Mohra blood carries the demon's essence, and that essence will attempt to corrupt, weaken, and destroy whatever it encounters that is not Mohra, until one or the other is neutralized. Vampires and other creatures that draw power from blood are particularly vulnerable, especially if they deliberately fed on the Mohra, as opposed to getting its blood splashed on an open wound." The woman grimaces. "It can take quite some time for your own power to burn out the Mohra's influence, and you're weakened until it's gone. If you don't have enough power to eradicate the contamination on your own, you have to undergo a purification ritual to get rid of it."

The girls grimace.

"Is Tatsuki in any danger from that?" you ask, glancing off towards the Kurosaki family's seats.

"Mohras heal fast enough that you need to cut them open or tear them apart to get any blood out of them," Akasha assures you. "Even if Tatsuki were to be exposed somehow, her- ki is strong enough to get rid of it without any lasting consequences. It would take her a while, though, and she would be weaker until it was completely gone."

You nod, relieved. You also make a mental note to suggest a purification ritual if Tatsuki does get exposed to demon blood. Actually, thinking on it, you might want to make that suggestion to everybody you know, just out of principle.

"What about you, Alex?" Kahlua asks then. "What do you think of the tournament so far?"

"It's been eye-opening," you admit. "I've seen almost as much supernatural stuff in the last three days as I have for my entire life beforehand, and considering where I live, that's saying something."

The blonde girl blinks and tilts her head curiously. "How so?"

You look to Akasha, who sighs. "Sunnydale is the Hellmouth, girls."

Moka and Kokoa blink at this, while Kahlua's eyes sparkle. "Really, now? Is that why you're as strong as you are, Alex? Lots of practice fighting the local demon scum?"

"Actually, until I left town for this tournament, the only demon I'd ever seen was a skinny guy in a suit who worked for the Board of Education, handing out a special aptitude test to preschoolers," you reply. Then you think back to your seventh birthday, and add, "And possibly a clown."

Kahlua's face falls. Kokoa snickers. Moka... is giving you the Spock Look. Even Akasha looks amused.

"He was a really creepy clown," you defend yourself.

Kokoa snickers harder.

You frown, and consider using magic to introduce Kokoa to the Clown, to see if she still finds it funny when he's manically capering about, leering in her face with his bizarre makeup, and laughing that high, shrieking madman's laugh.