Cedric and Emma were mid-bicker, utterly ignoring the third person present.
"You're seriously defending him?" Cedric growled.
"I'm defending myself," Emma snapped back. "From your inexplicable tantrum!"
"Inexplicable?! He's been stalking you with flowers!"
"I like flowers, Cedric!"
"Oh, well then, my mistake!" Cedric threw his hands dramatically. "Next time a masked assassin shows up with a daisy, I'll let him right in."
Elias, who had been silent as a statue through their exchange, finally turned to her. "I'm not a creep," he said solemnly.
Emma blinked, caught off guard. "Oh. Well. That's... good."
"Cedric said I am," Elias added, like he was reporting enemy movement on a battlefield.
Emma glanced at Cedric and then at Elias. "I think you might be a little… odd," she said carefully.
Elias took a moment to process that. "…Is that better than creep?"
"Yes."
"Okay."
