Sage grinned dumbly when she started talking again. He knew she loved him, she said it all the time...but it was still nice to hear, and his heart still jumped around each time she said it. He pressed his face into her neck slightly, her hands definitely soothing on his back. "I love you too," he whispered, wishing they could stay like this forever...curled up in front of the fire happily, warm and cozy and just the two of them holding eachother comfortably. He could feel her gaze, though by now she should have every inch of his body memorized...and he didn't really mind that. It was quite the opposite in fact...to have someone love him in a way that even the parts he hated about himself seemed perfect to them was...not something he was at all used to.... but it was very nice all the same.

Anya felt her heart bounce a little when he murmured it back, only holding him a little tighter. She wanted to make him feel safe, wanted, and although they both knew she's never be any help if it really came to it, she also knew he was comfortable with her, that he could relax a little. Or, at least, it seemed that way. She wasn't at all tired, but the crackling of the warm fire was soothing, lulling even. It made it seem like they were the only people on earth, that everything else was so... still. The girl let out a gentle breath before running her hand back up his back one more time and kind of burying it in his head of hair. The other slid just under his shirt so that it was resting on his back as she got comfortable. Her eyes eventually peeled away from him and instead closed, just enjoying... well, him while he was still here.

Sage smiled wider when she pulled him closer to her. It wasn't much, but it told him what she was feeling, what she was thinking. He was content to close his eyes and just cuddle for a while, especially when her hand rested in his hair and on his back ...the small touches were just as soothing as everything else and he knew resting here with eachother was the way to go. He had a few hours of this until he had to leave, and he wished it was more. Though, he was sure when he got back Anya would fuss over him and want to be with him more than ever then, too. He sighed softly, glad to be able to relax around the girl. Even if she wouldn't be much help in a fight, he still knew she did protect him...from the streets as much as she could, from injuries or sickness, even from himself when it came to it. She was always there for him ...and really, that's what he needed, not a fighter but just someone who would do their best to stand by his side no matter what happened.

Anya sat there for a while, more than content holding him. Out of everything they'd done, whether it'd been their little adventures, or just messing around in the castle, she enjoyed this the most. Being able to chill out, without any interruptions or any worry, not in the world... her worries about the rebellion and Sage leaving, it all melted away... and now she was content with him. She knew he struggled with emotions - both with his own and a little bit with trying to understand hers. That had become a little more apparent when she had asked him to leave her be just a few days prior. He had tried to help, she knew that, but he had, unfortunately, hadn't done an amazing job. It didn't bother her all too much... she knew well enough that he was trying, and when it mattered he always managed to do something. But she didn't need him to be any good with her emotions - she could handle that for the both of them.

Sage was content to lay there, not talking, just being there with Anya for quite some time. The hours went by much too quickly....he found himself lingering with Anya even when he knew he should be going. Eventually, he knew if he didn't leave now he wouldn't have time before the sun rose, so he sighed and kissed Anyas shoulder from where he was laying. "I should probably get going," he sighed, not at all wanting to leave but knowing he needed to in order to find out the information they needed. And the information was helping to protect Anya, which was really the only reason he was doing it. If it weren't for Anya and Luther, he'd most likely be on the opposite side, trying to throw down the crown. Though, while he hated the crown, a kingdom with the rebels in charge would be quite literal hell ...the scums would spread. So maybe not.

Anya eventually found herself dozing off... which was odd, considering she wasn't tired at all. When she felt him shift ever so slightly, she let out the softest groan, barely even taking what he said in. It slowly came back to her that she should probably let go of him so that he could leave, but she still couldn't bring herself to do it. "What?" She whispered, rolling onto her side and shuffling a little so that she was looking at him again. Her hands gently slipped away from him before slowly sleepily opening her eyes. As much as she didn't want him to go, she knew he needed to get out there, and if he stayed any longer then he'd probably be seen, that or she'd be reluctant to let him go. Anya sighed slightly before pressing a slight kiss to his lips, lingering for a moment before pulling away gently and resting her head mere centimeters away from his. "You should probably get going," she murmured, still oblivious to what he had just said.

Sage couldn't help but chuckle at the girl's obvious sleepiness and pecked her on the nose. "I know. That's why I woke you up," he whispered gently, though somewhat amused. "Let's get you back to your room and then I'll head out," he murmured, sitting up slowly. He stretched and then scooped the still half asleep (and dozing off) Anya in a sort of bridal style hold, her head lolling on his chest lightly. He carried her back to her room and set her down on the bed gently, pressing a light kiss to her lips. "I'll be back soon," he murmured in her ear before sliding away and out the door, closing it softly behind him. He hoped she would go back to sleep, get some rest ...not stay up all night worrying about him. She couldn't stress herself out by his time down in the slums. He slipped out of the castle, whispering a goodbye to Luther, though he knew the guy was asleep and couldn't hear him....but it seemed right all the same. He cast one last look at the window he now knew to be to Anyas room before slipping out of the tunnel, unnoticed by anyone....castle folk or otherwise.

Anya let out a slight whimper of protest when he picked her up, but soon settled in his arms... well, she didn't settle, but more so fell asleep again. Once back in bed, the girl slipped away into a slightly deeper sleep, though was nowhere near as comfortable as she was in the lounge, then again, she didn't exactly think she could get any more comfortable than that. The morning had come a bit too quickly for Anya's liking, with light shining through her balcony window and straight into her face. She let out a tiny groan as she hid under the covers, her hand feeling around for something, or rather someone. She opened her eyes a little bit before realizing he simply wasn't there. She could barely remember him saying goodbye to her, but then again, she couldn't for the life of her remember walking back to her room, so assumed it had happened whenever she had ended up back there again. He's probably left a few hours ago now. She sighed slightly before gaining the courage to get up and get changed again, then wandered over to the balcony, where she could oversee the village. Sage was probably down there somewhere. She'd have to try not to think about it too much, or she'd just end up worrying about the boy. Though, it did take her a little while to peel herself away from the view and wandered towards one of the lounges. It was a weekend... so the whole family would probably be down there, attempting to have a civil breakfast.

Sage was back in the tavern before the sun rose, though he still had a bit of time to wander around a bit, get the feel of the place he'd grown up in again. Being in the castle for so long was nice, but it was great to be back out in the fresh air again, where you never knew what was around the bend. Ok, so maybe he was a bit of an adrenaline junkie....he quite enjoyed the adventure of the streets...the mysteries they held. But it was over too soon...he wound back up at the tavern, as he always did, to work. The hours flew by...it was much busier than he remembered. Though, the environment was much different than the business of the castle environment. A bit more...natural, he supposed. He couldn't say he didn't like either of them, though he was definitely more used to the tavern. Once the customers had all left he sank down in a chair, wondering how Anya was holding up. He really shouldn't be thinking of the girl....he'd only drive himself crazy. But really, he couldn't help but dream as to what she was doing.

Anya went through the day as she had in the months prior... before she had met Sage. A lowly walk around the castle, dinner with her parents instead of alone, and then she went to annoy Luther a little, though he had seemed to do more of the annoying. Though, one thing out of the ordinary was that she had run into her father. She kind of followed him around like a lost puppy for a while, asking questions about the rebellion and trying to start a conversation with him, though he kind of blew her off, giving quick and short answers. None of which were answering any of her questions. She kind of gave up after a little while, knowing full well she wasn't going to get anything out of him... she had kind of thought he would have been happy to see her, especially since she hadn't caught a glimpse of him since she had gotten out of the cell... come to think of it, she didn't remember him even dropping in to make sure she was alright. She tried not to let it bother her and instead went back to her room as it started to get a little darker out, grabbed a few blankets off her bed, and went to sit back out on her little balcony, watching as lights started to flicker on in the village. She wondered briefly if Sage was busy in the tavern. If he was, then she supposed it was a good thing... it meant that he was more likely to hear about this whole rebellion thing. Though, if he was overly busy the chances were that he'd be in a room... and she couldn't help her heart ache a little at that thought. Well, she was wandering about that and about how he was doing out there... if he was settled already, or if he was safe. Man, it had barely been twenty-four hours and she was already worrying about whether he was still alive or not... she really should try and push any negative thoughts away... try not to worry about him the best she possibly could.