Billa immediately took a liking to Gíldri, for many reasons.
He was the first dwarf to seemingly make an attempt to befriend her. What they had couldn't really be classified as a friendship, but it was something.
They talked. Or more, he would ask her questions, and she would answer. The questions weren't even terribly invasive, just curious. She had certainly had much more embarrassing conversations before. He simply asked the questions that everyone else wanted to.
He also reminded her of Nori.
She had become quite close with Nori during their quest. He had taken it upon himself to teach her how to be a proper burglar, and it is in part due to his teaching that she caught Gíldri stealing her pipe in the first place.
She had come to think of Nori as something akin to an elder brother. They had a comfortable relationship. He ever respected her a little, mainly due to the fact that she was able to sneak up on him.
And that she caught him trying to steal her silver.
If she were anybody else, he probably would have gotten away with it too.
But, no, not Billa Baggins. She had a bit too much experience with a she-hobbit named Lobelia Sackville-Baggins.
So, yes, she had a rather odd relationship with Nori. But it was a comfortable one.
And that is part of the reason why she was able to find such comfort with Gíldri. They shared several mannerisms. Though, she supposed that is due to the trade. He was often found twiddling something in his hands, be it a piece of string or one of his several daggers.
It seemed that thieves had a fondness for daggers and throwing knives.
She did as well, but that wasn't something that many knew about.
Nori had quickly discovered her knack for long distance weapons, the one that she shared with all hobbit. He had promptly put a small knife in her hand and told her to aim at a nearby tree.
She hit it.
From that moment on, she would occasionally find knives hiding in her pockets or stowed away in her pack. She knew for a fact that she didn't place them there herself, but she also knew that they were hers.
For on every knife that she mysteriously found, there was a piece of string tied on the handle and knotted in the most peculiar fashion.
It was the same knot that she found on every piece of clothing acquired for her by the dwarves.
When she questioned Thorin about it, she was told that it was her personal crest of sorts. While it was far from official, it was a mark that she was far closer to the dwarves than she had initially thought.
Along with the shared mannerism, Gíldri's hair even reminded her of Nori's.
It was a very bright ginger color, it reminded her of some of her cousins on her mother's side. Instead of being split into three peaks, he had three braids. He also had outrageously thick hair. The braids somehow merged on the back of his head, for he had a multi-strand braid that ran about halfway down his back. In contrast to Nori's thick and intricately braided beard, Gíldri's scruff reminded more of Fíli or Kíli than anyone else.
Billa knew much less of him than he knew of her. She would have to pester him to get him to talk about himself at all. She had found out that he was 93 years old, passed his maturity, but not by much more than a decade or two.
Many of the dwarfs had trouble viewing him as much more than a lad. He reminded her of Ori in that manner.
She had found out that his father had been a locksmith in Erebor, before the dragon came. His mother had worked in a restaurant. She'd been a cook that specialized in desserts. He was born during their wandering years, a few short months before they had settled in Ered Luin.
He had grown up happy, if poor.
His father had taken the role of a miner, and his mother had been unable to find work. But he had been treated well. While unable to afford a tutor, they made it their mission to educate him to the best of their ability. He grew up knowing what it meant to be a dwarf, a proper dwarf.
When his mother was with child once more, he made it his mission to make sure that they were to be spoiled beyond belief.
And that is when he first turned to thievery.
At first it was very petty. Even if her were caught, the guards would have done nothing more than slap his hand and send him on his way.
But then his mother started to insists that he was going to have a little sister.
Children were considered a blessing to dwarves, daughters especially.
The thievery became more and more serious.
His mother never knew, but he was fairly sure she suspected something. He would always go out with the excuse that he was meeting friends, but they both knew that wasn't quite
There were very few children near his age, and none that he actually knew.
He was close in age to Ori, but quite a bit older than Fíli and Kíli. Younger still than the princes was their cousin of sorts. Glóin's son, Gimli. Supposedly he had fought valiantly to join his father on the quest to Erebor, but had ultimately failed.
When Billa brought them up to Gíldri, he had not been surprised.
He told her that he knew not of Ori, but he did know of the princes.
Everyone knew of the princes.
And that was when he asked her how she knew of the princes.
So she told him.
And it was from that moment on that he looked at her with a newfound respect. He started to act as her bodyguard of sorts. They had started to become closer, and it was him that had finally asked which dwarf had won over her heart.
She had told him, and he had practically fallen off the log he was sitting on.
"But, that, that means you're Queen."
She nodded.
When he had left her, she had not stopped him. She supposes it was a bit much to take in. She, the queer little hobbit that had tagged along with a group of dwarves. The stranger who had pretty much taken a thief in under her wing, after catching him trying to steal her pipe no less.
The little halfling that they dwarves of the caravan paid little to no attention to normally, was the one that was going to be their queen.
Apparently.
This was something that Billa Baggins wasn't actually aware of until this moment.
This was something that she was going to have to talk to Thorin about.