Blue Bottle Coffee Shop [Open to All]

[SageTavers]

She didn't know why but the fact that Alice was leaning forward and mimicking her had Sage's heart just about melt. She was nobodies role-model. She caused too much mayhem in her parents life, she was a bit of a bitch to anyone that she didn't like, which ... surmounted to everybody in her life aside from three people. She was mulling it around in her head and her conscience that when you stumbled upon an eight year old that either didn't have a home or lived in such a bad home that she wandered off her on her own for longer then most eight year olds would how the hell did you just let them walk out of your life and 'meet up with them' like they were an adult and you were making a lunch date.

Fuck Sage. What did you get yourself into now? When she gave her that look, it had question in it, and Sage just gave her a bit of a smile in response.

She was trying to figure out the best way to work it in her head, to make it more difficult for the girl to ouright lie to her.

"Do you have a bed to sleep in tonight?"

She'd dropped her voice so that the conversation could only really be heard between the two of them.

[Little Bit]

She got a little smile so she gave one back. It was a little stilted like she wasn't really used to smiling at people unless she was scamming them. The expression faded though at the question. Did she have a bed? Her lips puckered a little before she answered. "I got a place." It was definitely a place even if it wasn't a home. And it was a place where she wouldn't be found so it was a good place as far as the little girl was concerned.

"It's safe."

She didn't understand why she blurted that part out but she did and then gave a little grin as if that would assure Sage that the place was a good one.

[SageTavers]

No child could convince Sage that any place that didn't have an adult in it was safe. And this coming from the girl who had spent more time at other peoples houses, and possibly houses that she shouldn't have been staying at, just to avoid her own parents. She took a deep breath as the girl stated she had a place, because it didn't answer her question. A place could be anywhere. Under a bridge. In the subway station in an abandoned electrical closet. Who the hell knew.

It was safe. Yes. She would take the word of a kid? Damn it to hell, she couldn't be hypocritical. But she felt like there was a big different between her rebelling at the age she did and some eight year old living on the street and eating Bear Claws for her meal for the day. She thought a moment. Fuck.Fuck.Fuck.

She'd just have to deal with it. She didn't want to scare the girl away.

"Well. As long as it's safe."

She said it with a bit of a smile. She was going to have to just squash that back part of her brain that was telling her she couldn't just leave the kid. She was going to assume that since she hadn't been in school since they served cookies she'd been on her own for a little while but she wanted to ask, but didn't.

[Little Bit]

Yes, the kid had dodged the question about a bed and given the idea of a place instead. "Yeah. It's good." She shrugged as if to say 'it's a place' and then offered a little smile. "Where do you live?" It was an honest question from a little girl who often dreamed of a nice place where there was ice cream all the time and nobody to hurt her. "A house with a mom and dad?" That last part was asked with a little suspicion but only fueled by her own experience as a younger child.

"Do you have a puppy?"

There was a little longing in the young voice as if a puppy were the end all and be all of being rich and safe.

[SageTavers]

Sage wasn't really expecting to be questioned by the kid so when she asked where she lived Sage gave a bit of a shrug of her shoulders. "Here and there." It sounded wishy washy didn't it? She didn't live with her parents for the time being, and for the time being that was with their blessing because she was staying with an aunt. Though her first want hadn't been to stay with that aunt either, Jack and her had been talking about her just crashing at his place, and she'd been more then agreeable to it. It was easier to sleep with him there. She felt safer. More protected then she did anywhere else.

A house with a mom and a dad?

"I have a mom and a dad, and they have a house, but I don't like to stay there...so I'm staying a few different places right now."

Jacks wasn't safe, he said it himself. Then she asked about the puppy and Sage couldn't help but laugh.

"No puppy, but I've been looking for one. I think I want a big squishy puppy to keep me company."

[Little Bit]

She nodded with a wisdom beyond her years. "Just don't let them put you in a home." She didn't say who 'they' were but there was an inference of a higher power there. "If you gotta run, I'll give you some hints."

Her nod was slow but encouraging. As if she weren't the 8 year old and Sage the nearly adult. She rested her cheek on her fist and gave another shrug. "Because sometimes you just gotta, you know?" And she was hinting that there was no shame in running because well, it was just a fact of her young life that sometimes you had to run. Had to look out for yourself and all that.

"I don't have a puppy. They eat too much. I had a stuffed puppy but he got washed away in the rain. I'll get another one some day."

[SageTavers]

Put her in a home. Christ. The kid was breaking her heart, and Sage wasn't entirely sure she liked it. She just shook her head lightly. "I appreciate it, I don't think I'll have to run anytime soon though...but I agree with ya, sometimes you do. I disappear on them every now and then."

When she brought up not having a puppy, but that she had a stuffed puppy that had gotten washed in the rain Sage wasn't sure how she didn't just break down crying, scoop the kid up and just ... take her somewhere. But she figured that'd probably go over really poorly, freak the kid out, and then Sage would probably never see her again, which wasn't really ideal now was it?

"Fortunately though I'm getting old enough that ... they can't really do anything about that anymore. They tend to huff and puff and scream but.."

She just shrugged her shoulders lightly trying to give the girl a little information so she didn't seem like she was just grilling her.

[Little Bit]

"That's good. You gotta have a place to go." She dropped into another language as if explaining something about needing a haven. Hard to follow her though unless you were fluent with Mandarin Chinese. She ended with a shrug and then a little quirk of a smile.

"Getting old is okay but you gotta watch out too. I knew a few girls. They were old. They got pinched though. Word is they ended up sold out." She gave another shrug, this one a 'what can you do' sort of gesture. "Just watch it. Can't trust anyone." Little Bit said that as if it were wise advice and in a way it was.

But the serious talk ended with the girl giggling like the eight year old she was. "Huff and puff. Like the big bad wolf! Do they wear bonnets?" She put fingers to her head to indicate the brim of a bonnet, her little blue eyes all merry with the joke about the fairy tale about the three little pigs.

[SageTavers]

Sage was more a little baffled by everything the girl had to say. Only because words like that shouldn't have been able to come out of eight year old girls. It just ... seemed so very wrong. Can't trust anyone. Sage was of the same mind. Most of the time. Before Jack. God damn Jack. She rubbed lightly at her face just a bit and let out a bit of a huff of a breath. Why she trusted someone she'd only known a small period of time was beyond her, she really shouldn't, but she did. She was shaking her head lightly as she heard the girl giggle again and it had Sage smiling.

"Oh yeah. My parents? They love bonnets, dad wears a frilly pink one with flowers on i..." She was at least glad that the little girl knew about fairytale, she had referenced the three little pigs and that was a good one. She needed a second though, a quick breather so she leaned forward just a bit.

"I'll be right back okay." She pushed out of her seat, didn't seem to feel the need to pack up all her stuff. Most of it was replaceable, so she made her way in the direction of the bathroom, to take a deep breath, walk over to the sink and splash some water on her face. What the hell was she doing getting involved in anyway shape or form with a kid that ... from what she'd deduced lived on the streets. She couldn't just let that be could she?

"Christ Sage. What'd you do?"

[Little Bit]

She giggled a little more at the idea of a man with a bonnet on. She knew what they were because Mother Goose had one and she had learned about Mother Goose with the cookies. But then Sage had to go to the bathroom. Little Bit sat there for several more moments and looked around as if she had no care in the world. But blue eyes were taking it all in.

She didn't like the way one of the other customers looked at her and then reached for her cell phone. Little Bit waited for the woman to look away and then grabbed her bag of apple fritter left overs and flew.

She was out the door and gone before the woman with the phone looked back.