At first, Billie's body stiffened. The concept of a hug was so foreign to her that her mind wrongly thought that she was being attacked. It was with panic that she looked up at Gideon, and it took a great deal of self-restraint not to kick him away. Her mother and the myriad of religious 'experts' had ensured that anything more than a handshake would dredge up an overall feeling of revulsion and dread. In fact, it was usually then that her accidental magic would rear its head, landing Billie in a worse situation than she started with.

But Gideon had never given her cause to fear for her safety.

He had always met her antics with kindness, and he was one of the few people she never wanted to disappoint. Even when she'd been at her most crabby, he still hadn't raised a hand to her or blamed her for things that were out of her control. He was what a parent should be.

Maybe it was his soothing words. Maybe it was the fact she was too exhausted to allow anxiety to fully take the reigns, but Billie found her arms rising of their own volition. Instead of returning the embrace, her grubby paws clutched at the front of his shirt like a small child would a blanket and continued to weep.

Only as Gideon drew to the end of his reassurances did her tears begin to slow. Her breath hitched in a hiccuping sort of way every so often as she tried to banish them and tuck her emotions back behind a smile. Though, it didn't seem to be working.

"I promise."