Mari rolled her eyes at him. Food was the root of fixing... well, everything. And, while the boy seemed happy enough, there was something that was just... off. She couldn't put her finger on it, though. It almost seemed like something was missing from him. She didn't know him very well, though, so he could be just fine. "It's good for you. And I quite like cooking, but when I make a nice meal and it goes to waste - when it could be feeding my family - it is... annoying. And by the sounds of things you've been wasting my cooking for a couple of days now," she told him in a more accusatory tone, though it was still in good nature.

Sage huffed out a breath and flopped back onto the bed. "Yeah, well, it makes my stomach hurt," he muttered. "Apparently my body doesn't like me much," he grumbled. He wrinkled his nose slightly, understanding what the girl meant. Food wasn't something to be wasted...and well, if he was just going to throw it up, she could put it to better use. "you don't have to make me stuff, you know. Whether I eat it or not, at least some of its gonna be wasted when I throw it back up," he muttered, rather annoyed that that's how it all worked. Besides, if her family needed more she should give it to them, not him. They could use it more anyway, at least that's what it seemed like.

The girl shook her head slightly and gave a slight smile at the thought of her family... they were good people, they really were. It was just unfortunate about the position they were in. In truth, they probably could have married further up into society, but her mother had loved her father very much... and, of course, that lead to them getting married. Her mother was always a little higher up than her father had been when he was alive, but they were happy and supposed that was all that mattered. It was just a shame that her mother couldn't go back to the life she had before her father. Not that Maria had ever lived like that, though. She just liked the idea of living a little... easier, she supposed. She then rolled her eyes again at the boy. "I don't think you like yourself very much," she hummed with a slight scoff. "You'd take better care if you did," the girl murmured after a short while. She then cocked her head. "I need to make a little extra for you - it's my job for the time being. And imagine the telling off from the doctor I'd get if I didn't make you anything?" She asked pursed lips. "Or what if you were hungry all of a sudden and there was nothing left for you? That'd be my fault, too," she eventually groaned. Then a slightly brighter look crossed her face, an almost teasing one. "If you don't like my cooking just say it," she teased lightly. It very well could be the case - she wasn't a chef or anything, but that didn't mean she was an awful cook. She was rather good at it, really.

Sage snorted and waved off the girl's comment. "I like myself just fine. Ok, maybe I wish I did some things or didn't do some things, or hadn't seen some things," he hummed. "But I only think about that on Mondays," he hummed, joking more than anything...he really thought about it quite a bit. "Tuesdays are survivors guilt, and Wednesdays are the thinking about nightmares through the day too days," he went on, sort of like he was listing off meal plans. He shrugged slightly and huffed out a breath. "The doctor doesn't have to know," he argued. "And I can cook too." Then he wrinkled his nose slightly and shook his head. "Your cooking is great. I'm just not used to eating three meals a day, let alone full ones," he explained. The he yawned again and shrugged, feeling himself start to drift off again. He tried to stay awake, he he really was trying, but he was...not doing very well.

The girl pursed her lips into a line when he started listing off his little meal plans. Really, she couldn't care less... she really just needed to do her job, and she couldn't afford to lose it because some boy refused to eat. Whatever - she could just make enough for him and give him a small bit. If he didn't eat it then he'd just have to go hungry. Her little comment about him not liking her food was a joke more than anything - but she had to admit it was a bit of a relief that it wasn't the case. She watched him yawn before grabbing the drawing of the doctor and giving him another little smile as she turned off to leave his little room... he could probably use a good bit of rest. It certainly looked that way. She skipped off into the doctor's office and gave him a bit of a grin. "Look at what S..." she trailed off as she thought as to what the boy's name was. She knew it, she did, but it just seemed to have left her for a moment. "Sage, he drew this," she chirped happily as she went to sit on a chair just next to the old man, crossed-legged on the seat. "How cool is that?"

Sage was pretty much asleep by the time the girl had left the room, which was kind of a relief, since he really was tired. He didn't bother with a blanket...if he got too cold he'd wake up. The doctor looked up at the girl and then glanced at the drawing with a thoughtful him. "I think my beard is a bit more flattering than that, don't you think," he hummed, stroking his beard thoughtfully, a light twinkle in his eyes. Then he nodded and picked it up to examine it closer. "he does a lot of these," he told the girl. "more than what's even in his room. Those are just the ones he couldn't fit to shove under the bed," he chuckled slightly. "He's good. We've been thinking, Anya and sage and I, about getting him to do commission art rather than work at that dreadful tavern." He practically spat the last bit...every bit as upset as Anya was about his work.

The girl grinned as the man complained about the beard Sage had drawn. She looked from the drawing then back to the old man and cocked her head. "I'd actually say it looks better," she teased lightly before nodding in agreement. She knew from experience that working in any tavern wasn't a... pleasant experience. "I take it he was in the lower village? I've heard horror stories about the tavern down there." She was lucky in that where she worked wasn't so bad, not compared to others, but she'd heard not-so-great things from friends who'd been working down in the lower villages. "I bet he's like a child. Trying to hide all of his drawings from you," she noted with a light chuckle. "I'd pay for these. Even if you started them off cheap, I think he would have orders coming in pretty fast," she added lightly.

The doctor snorted when the girl said his beard looked better in the picture, sitting back in his chair and rolling his eyes. He hummed in agreement when the girl guessed which tavern Sage worked in and looked out into the distance before slowly starting to talk, thinking through what all he was saying. He didn't want to burden the girl, nor tell her Sage's whole lifestory. Sage wouldn't want that, so neither did he. "The boy's had a rough time of it," he hummed. "Did everything he could for that little sister of his. I remember the girl...she was here when Anya first dragged his limp body through my doors. In the middle of the night, might I add." He shook his head slightly and sighed softly. "She was a bright thing...bouncing about and learning everything she could at every moment. Pretty one, too." He slid a glance at the girl next to him. "Looked a lot like you. I reckon that's why Sage hasn't been too unfriendly to you," he mused. He nodded at her last comment and sighed again. "It would be mmuch better for the boy to draw...he enjoys it anyway. He's much...better...when he draws." He shook his head slightly and looked over in the direction of Sage's room softly. "He's certainly not here because his body needs healing," he hummed. He looked over at the girl then, and after a moment spoke back up. "Be patient with the lad. He's like a rescued horse...skittish and nervous. If you treat him well, he'll accept you in time, and open up more. But make a wrong move...hurt him or scare him too much, and with one turn he could very well kill you. The boy hasn't survived the slum's streets alone for all these years by giving people the benefit of a doubt," he warned the girl. Really, he wanted Sage to get to know her...he needed some more friends.

Mari sat quietly for once as the man started to talk... well, she supposed she was a little interested in what he had to say about Sage. She wasn't sure what she'd expected him to say... but her previous light smile turned into a bit of a straight-faced frown. The doctor seemed to talk of the boy's sister in a type of remorseful way... and she couldn't help the sense of dread than ran through her as he went on. She knew what went on down in the slums - she'd lived through it, but she also knew what it was like to lose someone you cared about. And, by the sounds of things, the boy had lost a lot, even if it was in a sibling. "Poor boy, she hummed quietly after a moment before looking back up towards the doctor. She opened her mouth to say something but soon closed it again. She'd never planned on being particularly horrible to the boy - or anyone, really, but she'd normally just treat people the way they treated her... well, she was probably a lot nicer to most people than they generally deserved. Still, she'd make a bit more of an effort with him. It seemed like the doctor wanted that, and if befriending the boy would make him feel a bit better then she'd give it a go. She bit the inside of her lip for a moment before nodding slowly. "He's in the right place, then. It sounds like he has the right people around him... like you, and our princess," she hummed gently and gave a small smile, though it was weak, and clearly quite forced. "I'll be patient with him like you say," she promised lightly before looking around with a soft sigh. "Is there anything you need doing while I'm here?" She asked as she started to stand up again.

The doctor nodded in thanks when the girl promised she'd be patient with Sage and then shook his head. "You've done enough for now," he hummed. "You don't need to do anything here until the evening carts start going around. Have some free time. You've earned it." The girl had been working hard, and he wanted her to go have some fun at some point too. She was still young, and messing around a bit was important. He waved the girl off, giving her a small smile. "And don't worry....I don't think he'll hurt you. But never forget that a survivor has done things that may not be the best to you, but it was all they could do at the time." He knew a lot of people would be shocked at the things the boy had done to get money, or to protect Lizzie or himself. He didn't want the boy to get comfortable enough to to tell the girl something and have her throw it back in his face. She could be horrified, but if she understood why he'd done what he'd done, she may be forgiving enough for it not to matter too much. At least, that was if sage could manage to let himself make another friend, that was.