Sage shrugged. "She's out there, though I assume she found mom by now." He shifted slightly, not blaming Luther for not knowing she was dead, he'd left that part out. But Luther should know. "She died before we got kidnapped," he murmured. "She got a fever and I was working so when I decided to stop in and check on her it was already too late. Plus we don't have a doctor willing to help so...fevers are fatal, even if it's just a small cold." He scrunched his face up. "It's the only place willing to hire me, and that's only because the tavern owner knew he could get away with practically slave labor." He shrugged slightly and tapped his fingers on the flat edge of the dagger blade. "Although I suppose I could let myself starve and be done with it. I've thought about it," he admitted. "Dunno why I keep pushing myself to survive, but....here I am. Partially because Anya didn't exactly give me a choice." The last part was a joke, he said it with a chuckle. He was glad she'd brought him back with her.. they'd had a good time. But he did need an out from the castle....and now he couldn't even go to the streets for a day to fight someone. He'd had to settle with dead plants

Luther looked at him wide-eyed again. God, how much had this kid gone through? The tavern, the cell, his sister, and now apparently his mother, too. Sage looked around his age... seventeen or eighteen, maybe a bit older. He had one of those faces where he could be either in his late teens or mid-twenties. Well, that was just because you couldn't see his face. It was just odd that someone could go through so much - and probably more - in such a short space of time. And there were times when Luther and Anya thought they had it rough. "Damn. I'm sorry," was all he could think of to say. Surely he could have thought of something more... comforting to say, but he just wasn't very good with the whole touchy-feely thing. He bit his cheeks slightly, unable to help the little chuckle that escaped him when he mentioned Anya not giving him choice whether he died or not. "She must like you, then. I remember a time when she wanted me dead. She's an odd one - that girl." He noted shortly. "I can't imagine what that was like for you... wanting to die. Sounds lonely." He noted lightly. He had people fighting on a daily to keep him safe. So that the kingdom would have a worthy king someday, someone who was stable enough to ask for help when he needed it. Someone who was wanted, and that was exactly what he was. He couldn't imagine being so alone - helpless to the point that he'd want to hurt himself like that.

Sage shrugged, slightly awkwardly. "It's life," he muttered simply. There wasn't much he could say in response to that. He knew Luther was...a bit shocked, to say the least...about what he'd gone through. And he supposed it wasn't life as he saw it. But it was life for him, and Luther would just have to do his best to understand it. He stared off into the trees, thinking for a moment before almost heasitantly speaking up. "Anya wants me to visit Liz," he muttered. "But...I don't know how I'll react if I see her grave. I haven't really been able to..grieve I guess...other than going numb for a day or two before getting kidnapped." He chewed on his bottom lip for a moment, trying to think of a way to say what he was thinking. "I don't....I don't know if it's smart. I mean, having her there would be helpful, sure but..." He trailed off for a moment and sighed. "I don't know if I'll go crazy again." He looked over at Luther. "I watched my dad kill my mom...if afraid I'll end up hurting her if that happens." He looked down at his hands, that were still absentminded playing with the dagger. His hands stilled and he stared at the hand holding the weapon. "I know I'm fully capable of it. I could really hurt her. I could kill her, Luther. Heck, I almost just killed you," he murmured.

Luthe furrowed his brows and gave a short nod. Damn. So he'd watched his father kill his mother? God, how much could one person go through in a lifetime? And it didn't sound like it was easing up on him. "I suppose... it's a good idea. If you keep on denying it, not giving yourself a chance to grieve, then it's just going to get worse, and when you snap it'll be worse..." he looked at Sage for a short while. He could have killed him just then - if it wasn't for his love of food, of course. He hummed in thought for a little while, her head bobbing up and down in a slow nod. He didn't need to take Anya, with him, he supposed. If he did anything to hurt the girl he'd be as good as dead, and Luther would much rather his fiancé being killed by someone she quite obviously adored. "Well, don't take her with you. She doesn't have to be there, and if you tell her you'd rather be alone I'm sure she'd understand." He shrugged and gave a tiny smile. "I also kind of need her alive. So I'd love it if you didn't kill her while she's trying to help you." He noted, the last bit being a kind of humourless joke. "If you didn't want to be alone, I could probably come and be on stand by if you do want her there... encase you do go nuts." He noted shortly. Luther wasn't the best fighter around. But he was muscular enough that if he attacked Anya, he could probably throw Sage to the ground and just sit on him until he calmed down a little.

Sage bit his lip, thinking about what Luther had said. He chuckled humorlessly when Luther made his little joke. "I'd love to keep Anya alive too," he half joked back. Then he huffed out a breath and tore his eyes away from the dagger. "I suppose having you there just in case may be a good idea. The girls stubborn...I don't think she'll let me go alone." A small smile curled upwards at the corner of his lips, a genuine smile this time. He loved everything about Anya, including her massive stubbornness. He looked over at Luther and eyes him up and down. "You'll have to disguise yourself though. Nothing's more appealing than capturing or killing the future king." He was a bit blunt, perhaps, but Luther needed to know the risks if he was offering to come with. But his idea was a good one...if Sage went crazy, Luther was big enough and strong enough to keep him still. As long as sage didn't go right for the dagger and kill them both, they'd be fine.

Luther nodded slightly and gave a light smile. "I can do that. Maybe I'll be a bush, or a tree... you wouldn't know. Just tell me when you're planning to go, and I'll follow along." He noted brightly. At least that meant he could leave the castle for a while. He never got to do that too much. Unlike Anya, Luther was actually allowed to leave. Though, he could never decide where exactly he wanted to go. So to get out with people ge knew, even if they weren't sure where exactly he was, would be good. It meant he wouldn't get lost. But if he wasn't quick enough to grab Sage if he snapped - well, it could end up with both him and Anya getting killed. Oh well. It wouldn't be his problem if he was dead. "If kill us - either of us - then you'll be in a hell of a lot of trouble. So hopefully you'll keep a hold of yourself." He shrugged before starting to nibble away on his sandwich again. He had no idea Sage, or anyone really, had it so rough out there. It was hard to hear. He had hoped the kingdom would be in better shape when he got a hold of it... well, clearly not. It was quite clear that to earn any kind of trust with these people, he'd have to make some serious changes.

Sage snickered and rolled his eyes. "I don't think you'd make a very convincing bush. Maybe a elephant though if we're going for something to make literally the entire world notice you," he teased, nudging the guy lightly, a sly grin crossing his face. Then he shrugged. "They can't hate me anymore than they already do," he pointed out. "And there's nothing they can do to me they haven't already done besides kill me, and and if I hurt either of you that badly I'll be taking care of that issue myself." He shrugged, knowing what he said was true. Most of the people didn't even know his name, and yet they were determined he was the worst person ever. So really, if he did freak out, their opinions of him wouldn't change. And he knew that even if they sentenced his to hang or whatever, he'd make sure he was dead long before that happened

Luther nodded slowly before letting a small chuckle escape him. "They'll kill you. Oh, they will, that or they'd never let you see the light of day again. You could argue that's worse than being killed." He shrugged slightly before rummaging around his bag again for something else to eat. He wasn't exactly hungry... but he wasn't doing much so the food kind of just entertained him while they spoke. Probably wasn't the best plan. "I think it'd be best to ask Anya to leave if you feel yourself getting upset about it. I know the girl is stubborn, but Sage, I can't have anything happening to her. I need her," he murmured, fiddling his hands for a moment. He knew Sage wouldn't do anything, not on purpose, but he did worry. Anya was smart, for sure, but not brave. If Sage attacked her, she would freeze up... get stuck. She wouldn't even be able to run. Which was a part of the reason he wanted to be there, even if it was out of the way. To keep an eye on her, protect her the best he could. "Does she know there's a chance that you could hurt her like that? Why are you still here if you know you could snap?" He murmured. It sounded a little... condescending, he knew that, but it was a genuine question. If he knew he could flip a switch, then why was he choosing to stay? It was just a recipe for disaster for everyone around.

Sage groaned and shook his head. 'i don't know," he admitted. "Anya practically begged me to stay for the holidays, and nothing horrible had happened yet so I guess I was confident I wasn't gonna break while I was here. But I've been here for a while...trying to follow the rules and act like a somewhat civilized person." He shrugged and flipped the knife still in his palm. "But I'm not. I need to get out there and do something. The only issue is, this rebellion is happening now, and the chances of getting caught sneaking around is too high to try an escape attempt and then come back." He gave Luther a curious look. "It's not like I haven't been in those dungeons before. Besides, if I escaped then I can escape again and go die somewhere I choose."

Luther shook his head slightly. "You haven't murdered anyone on the crown yet, though, I assume. If you think anything the guards have done before was bad..." he trailed off slightly, looking to Sage while he fiddled with his knife. He raised his brows slightly when he mentioned he couldn't leave, which he supposed was true. If he snuck out and tried to get back in, that would of course raise suspicions within the castle, for everyone really. But if he asked no one would care. As long as he came back unscathed, untouched in the right mind, he couldn't see much of an issue - of course, the queen would probably have something to say about it, but if he wasn't sneaking around it'd take some of the edge off. "Why don't you just... I don't know, ask. If you're sneaking around of course it's going to make people curious. No one is keeping you here, you know. Really, if you wanted to leave, then just say." He shrugged before glancing around. The castle was no fun, not really. So he could see why someone who came from a slightly busier environment might get rather sick of it pretty quickly.