New anon here. I think another thing that throws people off about Ariel is that her enthusiasm makes it difficult for less enthusiastic characters to really build up a relationship with her. That might be why some characters might be offended by her or picking up on passive-aggressive vibes; she really is just that energetic, and with certain characters, that can be a little off-putting. I've seen threads in the past where characters have edged away from her in the middle of the conversation just because she's a lot to handle, and, Ariel being Ariel, she keeps coming up to those same people time and again because that's who she is. But while it makes me and my kids a little wary of pinging with her, I always picked up on that same relentless, just plain odd enthusiasm from canon!Ariel, too.