At the mention of his shop, she managed a glance past Saluce. Maybe she'd noticed it without realizing, or maybe she'd ignored it in her self-pity, but there it stood. A humble shack, fit for a man and his work. Heavy eyelids parted slightly to get a better look, and she opened her mouth for a breath. He went on, saying that he had liquor. A fire does sound nice, she thought with a miserable shiver, rubbing her arms. She thought about it for a long moment, until Saluce insisted. A feeble smile crept across her lips; she could use the company, too, and she was grateful for his outreach, even if she could hardly recognize it. Eventually, she nodded quietly, mumbling, "Alright," before sliding down Lennon's side onto the ground. Brittle, dead leaves crunched beneath her feet, cold on her paw pads. Patting the horse on the rump and signaling him to graze, she followed Saluce inside.
"Thank you," she managed sadly once they were inside. Saluce's workshop was nothing she would get excited about, but it had a lived-in quality that she appreciated. Maybe it was just the warmth behind the walls, outside of the cold, but either way it was welcome. She spied tools strewn about a workbench, and noted bits of various metals lying around, half-finished. "Do you make armor?" she asked quietly, embarrassed for not knowing more about him.
The chill in her bones was subsiding, but her heart was still heavy. Her stomach was still in knots, and she still needed badly to eat and sleep. Maybe tonight, she could. Sage didn't think she would ever understand her father's disappearance, and she wasn't sure if she could even forgive him again. Like as not, though, if he showed his smiling face to her again, hugged her tight and called her princess or flower again, she'd melt. He was her daddy, after all, absent as he was.
.sage-field {margin:0 auto; width:475px; background-image:url(http://i.imgur.com/TydOF.png); background-position:bottom center; background-repeat:no-repeat; padding: 0px 0px 125px 0px; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size:12px; line-height:14px; text-align:justify;}
.sage-field p.ooc {font-style:italic; text-align:justify; text-indent:0px; padding:0px 5px;}
.sage-field p {text-indent: 25px; margin:0px; padding:5px 5px;}
.sage-field b {color:#919919; letter-spacing:-.2px; }
</style>