Anya nodded, still marching forward. She didn't know where they were going, but eventually, they would end up somewhere. She felt her heart ache for him as he spoke, though didn't utter a word until he had finished. So in the seventeen years he'd been alive, there had only been a handful of times he 'wasn't hurting.' No wonder he was finished fighting. It seemed like losing Lizzie was the last straw for him, which was plausible. It only made her more inclined to have a good time with him tonight. Though, now she was struggling to look at him. It was a wonder that he had made it so far in the first place. She eventually just resorted to trying to make a little joke, though, it most definitely wasn't appropriate for that moment. "You're a death trap for anyone, whether you like them or not." She gave the slightest smile at that. She was almost talking about herself now. She finally looked back at him, "And yet, I'm still with you now." She murmured quietly.

Sage looked over at her and nodded slowly. "For tonight. And then you'll go back to your life up at the castle. You might as well be dead to me...you're gone. You're still alive, yes, but that doesn't make it any less of a loss," he pointed out gently. He wasn't trying to make her feel bad, but this would hurt so much either way. It seemed like there was no outing for him. Even in death, if there was something after that, he'd be sent down wherever the bad people go, which wasn't exactly a nice break. He wanted to just fade away completely...no conscious, no brain, no heart. Nothing. But he wished this wasn't making Anya so upset. Why couldn't she let him go? She had left, so why did she come back? She had clearly stated it wasn't for him, and he didn't expect it to be for him, but now she was saying these things, and Sage didn't know what to do or say. She had taken a break...was she just trying to keep him alive so she could escape out here? Or did she actually care about him? All the crazy thoughts spinning in his head made his head hurt, though, so he closed his eyes briefly, trying to still the chaos at least a little bit.

The girl frowned slightly. She would only be up in the castle, and if he needed anything she would always be there at his beck and call. But that wouldn't be the same as running around and causing trouble together. The reason she had left was to get over Sage and look towards the future, one with Luther. And it had nearly worked... but she probably gave her into her boredom a little sooner than she maybe should have. When she saw Sage again, she tried to fight everything off, but it didn't take long for what she left behind to come flooding back. Her brain had told her to leave, that she was a royal and he was a tavern boy and nothing could ever happen. But a part of her heart - and probably some hormones - said to stay for a little while, and she had listened to that. "I'll always be here for you though. Even if it's just to find someone to scream at. You'll know where to find me." She murmured softly. She wasn't going to have that option open to him at first... but now, after finding out about how he felt, the least she could do was be around.

Sage was silent for a moment before sighing. "I know." He looked over at Anya. "You've done so much for us. For me. And I really do appreciate it. But I still don't know why you like me. All ive done is walk you around town and almost get you killed or kidnapped. And joked around a little bit when you treated me like I was something more than I am." He never understood that. It still confused him. She could say that he was nice, or whatever, but why did he seem nice even? He joked around with her. He'd kept her alive. But she'd seem him kill multiple people, most of whom were just trying to survive, as he had been doing. Why couldn't he have fallen for some girl down here? They could have toughed it out together. But Anya? She'd always be out of his reach. Even if he snuck into the castle, he still couldn't really have her.

Anya tilted her head slightly in thought. In truth, she didn't know why she liked him so much. She could have said it was because he was brave, both emotionally and mentally, but that would be the same for anyone down in the slums. The one thing that stood out about Sage though, was that she could have a genuine conversation with him. No ranks or hierarchy, they could just talk... be friends. He was never worried to say something out of line, and if he was, then Anya couldn't tell. He would tell her when she said or did something stupid. The only time they had ever had an issue with ranks was when they were trying to keep each other at a distance. But that just wasn't enough. Did she like Sage? Or was it just the idea of him? No, she definitely did have a thing for him. She glanced at him, a thoughtful glint in her eye. "I'm not sure why I like you either... I just do. It's not just because you're a good person, and in all honesty, I don't think you actually are a good person," she murmured, thinking about all the other nights they had spent together. He had never done anything to her, but she had seen him hurt or kill a bunch of people... people in the same boat as him. "But you've been good to me. And I can be myself with you... there are people I've known my whole life that I can't be so relaxed around." She murmured, just letting her thoughts spill out into words. "Though I've caused you more trouble than I'm worth, so you probably should have gotten rid of me by now." She chuckled slightly in a more teasing tone.

Sage raised an eyebrow at her. "You? Cause trouble? I think I'm leading you on if anything," he chuckled. He really did like Anya, and he wished he could have a life with her. Why was it her? These damn hormones never showed up before hand. Why now? Why with Anya? He'd never even crushed in anyone before, and now he was absolutely smitten with a gilr he could never even kiss. Jeez, now he was thinking of kissing? What the heck, his brain needed to be replaced. He noticed he was staring and tore his eyes away ahead of them again, a soft smile still on his face.

Anya let a smile land on her face when she saw a little smile on Sages. She wasn't sure why, but it made her feel a little lighter. This wasn't what she needed. The girl gave him a slight chuckle. "Hm, I suppose the biggest danger of being with me is either kidnappers or flushing up." She teased lightly as she picked up her speed a little. She did feel bad for Sage. She had everything ready for her up in the castle... a whole other life. Yet for some reason, she was leaning towards the tavern boy rather than that life. God, she was stupid... but she could afford to be stupid, just for a little while longer.

Sage snorted, amused. "I'd say flushing up is the more dangerous of the two, as much as you like to tease me," he giggled. He nudged her with his hip lightly, in a teasing way. She was being bolder with him tonight, maybe they could have a bit more fun before she went back. He knew he could come to her anytime he needed, but it would probably be best if he stayed away. He'd get caught sneaking into the castle eventually, after all, and she needed to go figure out how to love Luther. She didn't need him sneaking around to find her. God, how he was jealous Luther. And he didn't even know the man. But if he made Anya happy, he couldn't hate the guy.

The girl gave him a sly grin. "Oh, teasing you is great fun... you get all flustered so easily. I just have to look at you a certain way and you go all red." she chuckled lightly before wrinkling her nose in a teasing manner. "Though, I imagine it's far more fun for me than it is for you." She murmured lightly, gently poking his side again, aware that he was a little ticklish here. She thought about what she had just said for a moment before rolling her eyes, almost to herself. Her teasing him had almost always ended up with her being a little flustered too... so she supposed it went two ways. "You know, you've had me once or twice now. I'm not even sure how you do it." She noted thoughtfully.

Sage jumped away from her prodding hands with a giggle. So she figured out he was ticklish. Wonderful, there was something else she could tease him with. Though, he quite enjoyed it - not that he would admit it to anyone. He smirked over at her in way he knew would most likely cause a blush to appear on the girl's face. "Hmmm, maybe it's all my handsome ruggedness that's making you all gushy," he purred in a teasingly flirty tone. He couldn't actually flirt with Anya, but this was as good as it would get.