The girl squinted her eyes at him with a groan, "Ahw but I have you," She teased as she sat back. It was a good idea. There would be times when he wouldn't be about, so it would be handy to be able to look after herself - or have the ability to at least. She gave Sage a nod, "I suppose it's not a bad idea. And who better to learn from than 'the best fighter around'?" She asked with a chuckle. She looked up again before starting to stand up. She was really cutting it close, and the castle would start to stir soon. "But... That's a job for another day. I need to get going."

He nodded and glanced up at the sky. "You've got a little less than an hour to get back home at this point." He chuckled and nodded in the direction of the path. "I'll walk back to the tavern and then you can find your way back from there I would assume."

"Alright then," She smiled, offering her hands to help him up. It was strange how she could feel more comfortable walking through the woods in the dark than through a village filled with people. She would be alright going from the tavern though. It wasn't overly far from the woodlands so she should be fine. She looked toward Lizzie and gave a smile before starting to wander down the path.

Sage grabbed her hand after a moment of surprised silence and followed her out of the woods. He told Lizzie to go back home, and she skipped off in the direction of their little shack. She would be fine...she never got caught. Once they got to the tavern, he reached for the door handle and opened it. "I'll see you soon, then. When should I expect you next?"

The girl looked thoughtful for a moment. She could be out the next night or weeks from now. "Most likely tomorrow. Perhaps the night after but I'll come find you." She shrugged. The fact was that she might not even be out then. Not for the whole night at least. Even so, she made sure to give him enough money to keep himself and Lizzie at least fed for a few days. She turned to walk a few steps down the path before turning back with a grin, "See you, tavern boy!" She jabbed before continuing down towards the little tunnel.

Sage grunted and waved bye as she walked away and then slipped into the cabin with a sigh. He looked around for a moment before sitting down at one of the tables and closing his eye. He woke up with a start a few hours later and groaned, rubbing his eyes. He started to get the tavern ready for customers, hiding the money Anya had given him where he knew no one would find it.

By the time she had gotten back, the castle had started to stir - gardeners were out and the guards were swapping their shifts. She really had only just made it back in time. She slipped around the corridors and back to her room, which was set out as always. Schedule, outfits, and a few snacks in the corner. She had always wondered who did it; they must have known she left during the night. Everything was set out by the time she had gotten back, so they must have gone in and noticed she wasn't where she was meant to be. She was just grateful that whoever it was hadn't ratted her out. She took a glance at the schedule, which was usually empty. Well, today it seemed she had a whole day of 'planning.' She remembered her mother mentioning something about a ball, but she didn't expect to be at all involved. A few hours of sleep were all she got before she was rudely awakened by her mother whining at her to get up. That in itself was strange. Much as her planner said, she was bound to a whole day of party planning. Colors, dates, guests, music, the whole shebang. She only found a moment to relax towards the end of the day when she was released from her mother's overbearing grasp.

Sage sat down after setting up and closed his eyes again until the first customer came into the tavern. That started his day off again, bustling around serving people. It wasn't as busy that day, since everyone was sleeping after the festival activities, so it was a somewhat quiet day, thankfully.

Anya found herself sitting out on her balcony, mindlessly staring out at the village below. It looked so peaceful from above. Serene. Maybe that's what it actually felt like when it wasn't so busy. The girl must have zoned out at some point - or maybe she fell asleep - because when she came back it must have been about one in the morning. She let out a soft groan before waddling across her room, picking up an envelope and a wad of money before slipping her way out of the castle. She knew it was a long shot going to find Sage so late and granted she was tired but she would have felt awful if she hadn't at least tried to find him. This was the only thing she really had to do and she refused to mess it up.