"...no they are not," Doc lets Malcolm down gently. "But they will grow on you," Doc promises quickly. He's... not equally sure that Malcolm would grow on them, but he would try and push for some middle ground where they can understand where everyone else is coming from and get along. Hopefully without incident.

"And I am certain they do not think of me as kind or lovable." In fact, Malcolm... might be the only one who does. "I must have gone soft on you." A terrible error in judgement, no doubt.