Mari cocked her head at him before humming. "Really? You were scared of him? I've seen you do some things that would have the devil himself quaking in his boots, Sage. I refuse to believe that my brother scared you," she mused. She then hummed thoughtfully, her lips still slightly curved upwards and in a bit of a pout from when he'd kissed her. She did think it was strange... Sage was the scariest guy she knew. Of course, he didn't scare her... but he could be scary all the same, could he not. She then chuckled at him. "I do think it's odd. The only time you've ever called me hot was when I punched somebody," she mused before rolling her eyes. "Is it some odd kink of yours? Would you like it if I just turned around and punched you in the stomach while we were getting to it?" She mocked him, shaking her head at the stupidity of the idea.

Sage chuckled lightly and shook his head in amusement at the girl's comment. "Like what," he asked with a cocked head. He was rather curious as to what came to mind. "Well he was scary," he yelped with a laugh. Then he pouted slightly. "That's different," he huffed. "I would, in fact, not want to get punched then. But at first, if you'd just sucker punched me when I annoyed you, that would be cool." Then he had an idea and chuckled. "And I called you hot while drunk. Though, I'm pretty sure I've called you plenty of other names like that when you're not punching people," he pointed out in amusement.

Mari hummed thoughtfully before shrugging. "Once, years ago, when the castle was first stormed, I saw you do some... not some great things to the intruders while we were trying to escort the queen. I'm not sure how I would have felt if I was told that brute would be my husband," she mused before shaking her head. "Anthony is nothing compared to you, my love," she chuckled lightly to him before pecking his nose. She then rolled her eyes. "How's it different?!" She mused to him. "So you're saying if we got in a fight when we first met, and I'd just punched you, you'd be rock hard?" She asked with a wrinkled nose. "Freak," she teased lightly. "Aaaand, you were drunk when I hit the woman," she added with a chuckle.

Sage hummed lightly and shrugged in response to her comment about the intruders. "Well, if someone had told me I'd be happily married in a few years at that point, I'd probably have killed them alongside the intruders," he chuckled. Then he cocked his head. "I never saw you before you were in the ward," he said. "Was that really the only time you'd seen me before?" He really was just curious about it. Then he snorted at her other comment. "I said I'd fall in love, not get hard," he chuckled. Then he nodded. "Exactly! Drunk! As in, everything you did was hot," he protested with a laugh.

Mari rolled her eyes at him. "You would have killed the person who said you'd be very, very happily married?" She joked to him before shaking her head at him. "I were so bitter," she huffed to him. She then cocked her head at him, looking thoughtful for a split second. "I was in the ward very briefly before you left. I saw you there, I can remember if I was seeing to you, though. Other than that, I was with the queen so only once or twice," she shrugged to him, biting the sides of her lips as she thought about it all. Yeah, she hadn't talked to him much other than that. She'd heard the queen talking about him - or, rather, complaining about him a few times, though. She then pouted at him. "Yeah, Sage, that's not what you said," she huffed, rolling her eyes at him. "That might be worse, though," she chuckled to him. She then cocked her head. "Mhm... sure," she mused lightly.

Sage hummed lightly and shrugged. "I guess so, but I had my reasons," he hummed lightly. He didn't really care one way or the other....he supposed his childhood had just hardened him in a certain way where he could definitely be quite bitter and scary, as she'd said previously. He hummed in thought while she talked and then nodded. "well, I mostly stayed to myself, in the room Anya had given me," he mused. "So I guess it makes sense. I stayed away from the queen as much as possible. She didn't like me at all and the feeling was quite mutual," he chuckled. Then he snorted and shrugged. "fine, think what you want," he huffed in a joking manner. "but I still say you're hot even when I'm not drunk," he added mischievously.

Mari nodded softly to him, pecking his nose for what had to be the hundredth time that day. "I know babe," she told him gently. She knew what his past was like... she knew he'd had everything tough, and that his family life was just as bad as it was in the tavern. She also knew none of that would ever leave him... he'd always have those things going on in his mind no matter what she said. She would just be proud of the person he'd turned into now. The brave, strong, loving person he'd become. "No, she really didn't like you," she mused gently to him. "She told me as much," she then added lightly. She pouted at him, tightening her grip around his sides. "I still can't believe you genuinely think some girl beating you up would have been attractive, though. Is that all it's gonna take for me to lose you?" She joked to him before pecking his lips. "Well, I think you're hot even when I'm drunk," she flipped with a happy giggle.

He hummed lightly and then grinned sheepishly when Mari mentioned the queen really not liking him. "I was definitely a pain in the ass," he chuckled lightly. "She had her reasons for hating me so much," he admitted. Then he hummed lightly and shrugged. "Some random girl beating me up may not seem so wonderful. Unless it's you and we're in bed," he giggled mischievously. Then he hummed lightly and nodded with a grin. "Oh good, I'd hate to get you drunk and have you all of a sudden think me ugly," he teased her lightly.

Mari laughed lightly to him before rolling her eyes. "Believe me, Sage, I know you were a pain," she told him lightly, a smile still spread across her face. "And I believe every word of what the queen tells me about you... and fully believe you were as much as a nuisance then as you are now," she joked lightly to him. "You did the same things to me when we first met, so don't think for a moment that I don't believe her about any of it," she added with a bit of an amused chortle before shaking her head. She felt a blush creep into her face as he made his comment, and could only really grin at him. "Oh, so you do want to be beaten up when we're doing it," she joked lightly, knowing that was surely it wasn't the case... right? She huffed out a breath to him. "Well it's better than having to be drunk to think you attractive, does it not?" She asked with a pout.

Sage snickered lightly at the girl's comment and shrugged. "Oh, I believe you," he chuckled. "I do enjoy having a bit of fun here and there," he mused, eyes glittering in a both happy and mischievous light. He did miss messing around with Luther ....a lot. They'd parted on good terms this last time, but they hadn't messed around since Luther had sent him away. And he did miss it. Miss him. Though, he grinned up at the girls next comment and chuckled. "That's for you to find out, not me to tell you," he mused lightly. "Though, maybe don't beat me up too much while you're at it," he giggled lightly. "At least, not if youre gonna want me to sire another kid." Then he nodded with another chuckle. "Finding me attractive while undrunk is generally a good thing," he mused happily.