"I [i]did[/i] appreciate the offer, though!" Spinel called as Bloodstone walked off.  She felt weirdly bad about his seemingly unanimous rejection.  

"I never considered looking at it that way, thank you Sodalite.  I suppose this makes us comrades now."  Spinel considered what she'd said.  Maybe harboring emotions she couldn't deal with appropriately yet [i]could[/i] prove to be a strength someday, but she was only hypothesizing.