"What sorts of things do you normally dislike people for? What's wrong with Kib - no, Kib's a Bell - what's wrong with Island -"

"Use of child labor, I am told."

Island snorts.

"Haven't used any child labor," he concedes reluctantly.

Purrrrrrrrrrrr~

I still can't actually tell if you need this advice or not but for whatever it's worth while Bells can in fact discuss our feelings we also enjoy cultivating narratives of being effortlessly irresistible and as such prefer not to be the initiating parties. Loki's an exception, Boots isn't.

Rúmil splutters exasperatedly at Cricket.

"Hmmmm I am not sure I can hate you for being incoherent," muses Cricket. "Maybe if you did it a lot."

"...okay," he says. "Lovely meeting you, Cricket. I shall keep brainstorming on things you can hate me for.

Someone's dyed their hair green, I should probably go help him."

Cricket chuckles and leaps to the floor and trots off to see if anyone else requires rude cat prompting.

"It's a very nice shade of green."

"It is! But I am pretty sure it wasn't deliberate - suppose it will wear off anyway -"

"They could probably still use help figuring out what went wrong..."

"Ferardrin's got it," he says a second later, relieved.

"Oh good."

"It was a very good lecture."

"Thanks."

I had been wondering before Cricket... broached... the subject whether he wasn't interested or was just being an Elf about it and I still can't tell, Kib comments to Island.

Being an Elf about it. 

Well, I don't think she can tell either.

Well, perhaps when they're not surrounded by people he will clarify himself.

"Oh no, Lári has abandoned my husband to the horrors of unbuffered crowding," Kib says, "I'd better go rescue him." Off he goes.

People who don't enjoy parties are so weird.

"Hi," he is saying to Golden across the room. "I have decided that since I can't be a demon I want to be a vampire."

"...have you now."