She shook her head slightly to him and gave a small smile. "No, the boy found it first. He started putting flowers out once I'd told him what it said," she hummed gently. "I don't think he wanted it to be forgotten," she then added as she stretched her arms forward the relaxed against the couch. "Have you been down there recently? A bunch of wildflowers have grown around her grave... it's really pretty," she told him with a very small smile. It might make him feel better to know the place hadn't been completely abandoned. Well, maybe. She shrugged when he mentioned never seeing her... she only really went down in the summer and when she wasn't working so that Xander could mess around. He'd normally drag some friends along, so it was quite a racket. She then cocked her head at the thought. "I saw someone there once... god, they were running around like idiots. I had to take my brother and his friends back because I wasn't sure who they were," she shrugged with a bit of a chuckle. She didn't think it could have been the boy, he didn't seem like the type to run around splashing somebody, but it was an amusing memory anyway.

Sage chuckled slightly and nodded. "He's observant," he hummed. "And smart." He found he could believe that the boy had found the small headstone. He shook his head at her next comment and sighed. "I've only been down there once, since she...died... and that was years ago, with Anya. She said it would be good to let myself grieve or whatever so we went and had lunch nearby." He shook his head then and pursed his lips. "I never could work up the courage to go alone. I never trusted myself not to try something...stupid," he admitted softly "especially after a long day of work at the tavern, and dad...sometimes I just couldn't trust myself. Still can't I suppose," he mused. He'd pretty much finished the painting by then, and leaned back to examine it, to see what small details he still needed to add in.

Mari nodded at the kind words Sage had for her brother... she did think the world of that boy, and she truly believed he was going to do so much more than she ever could... more than what the rest of her family could, too. It was nice to hear something nice about the boy come from someone else, though... it filled her with a type of pride about the boy. "You should tell him that. He'd love you for it," she hummed with a bit of a giggle before shaking her head. The girl then gave an understanding nod to the boy as he explained why he hadn't been down there. She did feel awful for him... he deserved so much more than to feel that way. To feel like he couldn't be alone without doing something to themselves. "Well... if you'd like it then we can go down there. I'm not sure if it'd do anything for you, but it's something to do," she murmured. She saw him sit back a little from the painting, so she scooched over towards him and kind of curled up next to him as she looked at the paint-covered canvass. She couldn't help the silly smile on her face as she looked at it and actually had to fight with tears for a moment or so before biting her cheeks and shaking her head. "Sage, this is wonderful!" The girl squeaked lightly as she looked over to him, a big smile on her face as she glanced back to the painting.

Sage chuckled at the girl's first comment, nodding. "You might have to deal with an ego for a while," he joked lightly, knowing boys at that age tended to take compliments a bit far. But whatever. He nodded slowly and shrugged. "Might be nice," he admitted. "I just...I put it off with Anya for so long because I knew I wasn't the most stable person, and I didn't want to end up hurting her. It's the same situation with you," he murmured. He was surprised when the girl scooted over and curled up into him, though her compliment made him feel rather giddy. He gave the girl a grin and then wrinkled his nose slightly. "Something's off," he complained in a huff. "And I can't tell whether it's part of the background or the lighting on the bushes." He stared at it for another moment before adding a few more small, almost unseen brush strokes to the bushes, and they admittedly looked a hundred times better. "Now it's done," he declared, sitting back on the couch and leaning against the girl.

Mari chuckled and gave a bit of a shrug. "I'd rather have him with a bit of an ego than no self-esteem," she hummed quietly as she thought about the boy. He was a quiet kid anyway, unless he was comfortable he didn't tend to speak much. He didn't think as much of himself as she thought of him, and she knew that. "We need to talk the boy up the best we can," she mused lightly before shaking her head. "I'll bring Xander and he can have a runaround and a swim. He rather enjoys it," she hummed lightly. "It'll be nice. It's not like we have anything else to do," she noted with a bit of a chuckle. She watched him change something in the picture, and to be honest, those little bits made it so much better. When he leaned against her she gave a bit of a smile and half a chuckle before curling up a little bit more. It was so good... and it was nice to see her father again, even if it was just a painting... and her mother looked so young... so happy. She wanted to actually see the woman like that again... maybe this would bring her a little bit of joy. She almost wanted to cry at the sight... but it wasn't in a bad way. It was more like it was so overwhelming to think about, and there were so many random feelings at the sight... and she couldn't quite explain it, so she just kind of bit her lip and blinked back any tears that were trying to fight their way down her cheeks, determined to not let them fall from her eyes.

Sage chuckled and nodded. "I suppose that is true," he hummed lightly. He nodded at the girl's suggestion and tilted his head thoughtfully. "Do you know where he's at? He took off a while ago," he noted with amusement. "Just leave the painting here...it has to dry and it's a good way for your mom to see it anyway," he hummed, reaching over to pat the girls leg gently. He did hope that their mother would regain some of the joy he saw in this woman in the painting. She looked like him, a bit, which...well, quite frankly wasn't good. She'd been joyless for so long...he knew what that was like, a bit. And while he had mountains of other things she didn't have, grief for that long couldn't be good. So, really, he just hoped it would help...even a little bit.

Mari gave a bit of a shrug. "He's probably throwing sticks around," she mused lightly. "It's almost lunch time... he'll be back for something to eat soon," she told him lightly as she watched him set the painting on the table. She then wrapped her arms around his arm, kind of in a odd side hug type thing. She really was grateful for this... it didn't seem like much, but it would mean so much to her mother... and it meant Xander would get to see what he looked like. She still couldn't believe that Sage remembered what he looked like... she barely could. And even though it was just a painting, it really did resemble the man. "I really love it," she murmured quietly, her eyes still on the painting.

Sage chuckled and nodded when she told him what the boy was most likely doing. "That can be fun," he hummed in a rather amused tone. "Though lunch is generally a good motivater for young boys," he chuckled. He leaned into the girl then, glad she liked it so much. It definitely reassured him it wouldn't seem weird to them that he'd seen them and had somehow remembered the moment. "I'm glad," he hummed. "If I'm going to do something with art, I may as well do something useful," he mused lightly.

The girl chuckled and shook her head. "They literally Just throw them to see how far they can get it... I really don't see the appeal, she mused lightly before rolling her eyes at his next comment. "I wish it was such a good motivator for you," she chuckled lightly. "I'll make him a sandwich or something when he comes back and then we can go. It's better than doing nothing all day," she giggled quietly. She poked his side after a moment and cocked her head. "So you can draw, and apparently you paint, you're good with animals and you can fight according to the doctor. Is there anything you can't do?" She asked in an amused tone. "Other than read and write, of course."

Sage chuckled and shrugged. "Kids can find entertainment in pretty much anything," he hummed in a rather amused manner. He nodded at the girl's next comment and then shrugged. He gave the girl a dry grin when she asked what he couldn't do. "Keep the people I love with me and alive, apparently," he snorted. "And sleep at night, and eat decently, and stay out of trouble. Anything else you want me to list," he asked, nudging the girl slightly playfully. "The things you listed are about all I can do," he admitted sheepishly.