To Heir is Human

Chapter 1

Author's note: This contains a very powerful almost-rape scene that is the bulk of this chapter. If sex and violent sex at that are not your thing, I apologize. If Sebastian, who is at a point in his life where everything seems to just suck for him, appears out of character, again, I apologize. He and Dee had a very heated relationship and this kind of passion ruled everything they did together. It defined their relationship. If you stay with this story, I promise you will be rewarded with a good story and an engaging plot-line that forms part of a request by Ryoko Metallium. Now, granted this is probably not entirely what Ryoko had in mind but I'm not very good at mushy family drama. Over at Adult Fan Fiction dot Net, there's a much naughtier version of this story. If anyone wants the, er, details, feel free to send me a note. I'll be happy to link you.

There's the usual sex, violence, (yawn) the near-rape and a LOT of swearing. Dee has a filthy mouth. Oh and Bioware owns everything. I'm just playing in the sandbox with their toys. Enjoy!


Sebastian Vael's handsome face was turned down in deep concentration. His intense blue eyes were focused on the treasury reports before him and had he not seen the treasury itself, he would not have believed the documents. He had prepared the documents so he knew they were accurate. Until recently, he'd been Starkhaven's prince, her treasurer and her seneschal. He was still her Prince and treasurer but at least now he had a sensechal. The man he hired had been loyal to his family once so he hoped he would remain loyal. As for the treasury... That was something else. Right now, he trusted no-one.

It didn't help that the day he took back his birthright, the fool cousin he replaced tried to abscond with as much gold as he could. Once he was caught, Sebastian thought that would be the end of it but he was wrong. The men who caught him were loyal only to themselves and fled with what the loyal men could not recover. On top of that, Starkhaven had several outstanding loans, both given and received, that had yet to be paid on. One he thought he could simply cancel out since the two city-states had each given and accepted loans from one another but his neighbor refused. They wanted their gold back and then and when they were ready, they would pay what they owed to Starkhaven. Furious, Sebastian told them there would be a ten percent penalty applied for every month the loan was delayed. He hadn't heard from them since. Nor had he paid them.

"Maker give me strength..." he murmured as he buried his head in his hands. On top of everything else, his attempts to locate Anders, the demon-possessed mage who murdered the only woman in Kirkwall he could honestly say he ever truly loved, had come to a frustrating dead-end. Once the magic-user fled Kirkwall, his whereabouts had become obscure and the search expensive so Sebastian dropped it. He'd vowed to take it back up once Starkhaven was in better financial straights but for now, Anders would remain at large.

A soft rap on the door caused him to lift his gaze from his palms. "Sire? The Viscount—Viscount-TESS-is here to see you. Shall I escort her in?" Sebastian pushed himself away from the desk and tugged his clean, white jerkin down over his black breeches. After a cursory attempt to smooth back his thick, reddish-brown hair with his fingers, he nodded.

He was unsure what to do about Kirkwall. The Viscountess's visit had not been what you could describe as "planned". Oh, he knew she was coming but who the Templars had chosen to replace Meredith's boots could be anyone's guess.

He didn't stick around for the end of that particular war.

The Champion had sided with the mages as far as Sebastian knew, being one herself. To make matters worse, he'd very nearly fallen in love with her. He couldn't say for certain that he hadn't, to be brutally honest. Her kisses had driven him mad with guilt back when she did her best to doom his soul back then.

But now, when he needed a princess and an heir, Kirkwall seemed like a reliable ally. If she was as beautiful and smart as he'd heard, it might be worth it to offer her his hand during the course of her stay. He was still furious with Deandra Hawke over the Anders thing but he could forgive the city, if not her Champion, in the spirit of doing the right thing for his Principality.

The moment she walked in, his eyes widened and the world dropped out from under his feet. He sat on his desk heavily and blinked wild blue eyes at the striking pale violet ones that danced above him. "Dee? Dee? What in Andraste's name are you of all people doing in Starkhaven?" he shouted, his voice on the edge of hysteria.

She casually leaned her body against the wall of his office after closing -and locking- it behind her. She crossed her arms and he could see the tattoos she'd acquired during her stay in Kirkwall. When he first met her, she had the strange face tattoo under her right eye and on her right cheek but she'd added more. Wearing black leather (cut low across her chest and revealing a tattoo that teased her right breast) that clung to her fit, curvy body, she looked less like a mage and more like some dangerous assassin. Her staff was almost a sword, the bladed point as deadly as that of any broadsword.

Her dangerous, sexy look and disregard for more traditional mage-weaponry set her apart from most mages. Since he first met her, though a powerful mage, she identified more with being a fighter, a warrior than anything else. She smiled at him and he almost shrank into the desk. Maker, she was beautiful. The thick blue-black hair that framed her sensual face was longer than he remembered and he wondered what it would feel like to run his fingers through it.

"Why Sebastian Alexander Vael, I do believe you've missed me!" she teased as he winced. Only his mother, and on certain rare occasions, Elthina had ever called him by his full name. She drew close to him, her kohl-lined eyes glittering like the gems they seemed. From the state of your breeches, I see you've missed me in the worst possible way..." she purred as he lips teased his cheek.

He came to his senses at that moment and thrust her back with his hands. "What do you want, Dee?"

Grinning, she resumed her position against the wall. "An audience with the Prince of Starkhaven, of course. There is mutual benefit in aligning ourselves to one another, especially in these dark times. I understand that your treasury is in dire straights and ours is not much better off but together we might improve things, don't you agree?"

"Wait... You became Viscount? How did you become Viscount? The Templars would never have supported a mage as the city's leader!" he sputtered as he climbed back to his feet.

She shrugged, her arms crossed and her legs crossed as she leaned against the wall. "I supported the Templars in the end as I'd always planned to. Cullen chose to support my bid as Viscount based on me as a person and not me as a mage. It was a wise choice. So far, the people adore me and even though I have had to raise taxes on everything, including accepting a tax from the operation of the Blooming Rose, I've heard very little grumbling. We do need a Chantry, however. The fool architect the White Divine sent had no clue what he was doing so I thought I would come to you, since you were a Brother."

That was enough. He was finished with her. He walked over to her and gripped her arms tightly. "No, Dee. I am not helping you. Since you are Kirkwall's leader and the woman who betrayed me, I cannot, will not. Ally myself to you or Kirkwall. By rights, I should come at you with an army!"

She rolled her eyes and pressed her hands against Sebastian's chest. Was there more muscle there than she recalled? "Please, Sebastian. You can't afford the troops and Kirkwall wouldn't survive the attack in her present state besides. You're still pissed off over Anders? I thought you would grow out of that! It's been almost a year."

"Yes I am pissed about Anders! He should have died!"

"Yes, I won't argue with you there. And he almost did. When I supported the Templars, he was aghast and fled to their side. When we faced each other on the field of battle, he realized that I was about to kill him. Self-preservation took over and he fled the field of battle before finally disappearing," she sighed.

Suddenly filled with rage and something else he could not describe, Sebastian gripped her shoulders and slammed her heard against the wall. "How could you let that bastard live, you bitch?" he screamed.

"Ow, you shit-head! That hurt! How could I let him live? You try being judge and executioner throughout your life and see how it feels each time you kill someone because they screwed up in some way or broke a law. I had too much blood on my hands as it was. I was loathe to add more. I let Anders live so that he could face me on the field of battle and meet me face to face. Now, if you don't stop slamming my head against this wall, I will burn you!" her hands glowed ominously with fire-magic.

Sebastian grabbed them and pinned her wrists to the wall, his body pressed against hers. Her shirt had slid to the side, revealing the full swell of her right breast and hard, dark nipple that was pierced with a small silver hoop. His mouth grew moist and his pants became tight. He pressed himself against her, his thighs straddling her so that his groin ground into hers. "You are a monster for allowing him to escape! I don't care why you let him go! I hate you!" he cried, tears streaming down his face. Dee lifted her chin, tears coursing down her own pale cheeks. She parted her red lips and then, without thinking, he covered her mouth with his.

The kiss was brutal, bordering on painful and Deandra fought to keep herself from biting him. As it was, when he pulled away, there was blood on his lips. "Fuck you!" she hissed at him. "I once loved you and you let something stupid, Anders, become the reason for everything bad between us! I hate that! So fuck you!" she couldn't tell if she was baiting him or inviting him but either way, if he was as consumed by raw need as she was, his chastity would not last much longer.

He shoved his hips against hers and pounded her wrists against the cold, stone wall. He lowered his face to hers and once again he kissed her hard. Then his hands tore at her shirt, needlessly ripping the cloth and the laces of her breeches. She struggled against him and made a strangled cry. She wanted him badly but not like this. He had her pinned against the wall and unless she used magic against him, he was going to take her. She was in exquisite pain that exploded behind her eyes each time he shoved her against the wall.

"Sebastian, you might want to rethink this..." she started as his hand gripped her lower face, shoving her brutally against the wall. He leaned forward and bit her lips as he violently kissed her.

"Shut up, you whore! This is is what you wanted all the time I was in Kirkwall so now, you're getting it!" he shouted, his face on fire with hot tears. He spread her legs and tore the leather, ruining it for future wear. Sebastian's hot hands expertly explored her body and his mouth teased her breasts. She struggled one last time just to give him a final chance to back away but he was too consumed by his lust to do anything less than follow through.

He forced her as if possessed. It wasn't in him to take a woman by force, was it? But then, he wasn't exactly raping her. She was quite willing, in fact though she would have enjoyed a more gentle approach. This was far different than she had ever imagined her first time with him would be like. The power of it was so raw, so intense that it destroyed her mental and magic barriers. Deandra felt that she was unprotected and bare before him in a way that left her feeling very vulnerable. She tried to appeal to him one last time. ""Sebastian, this isn't like you...! You're a man of the cloth, remember?" she pressed, unsure that she actually wanted him to stop.

He spread her legs and pushed his breeches down. His hands curled around her buttocks, pulling her against him. When she fought against him, he slammed her into the wall again, all but knocking the wind out of her. "You changed that. You made me abandon my vows. They mean nothing anymore! You ruined the man I once was...why? To save yourself from more blood-shed?" That was his choice! How could he blame that decision on her? He entered her with a final, terrible thrust of his hips, causing her to cry out with a strange bled of pain and pleasure.

That was the final straw. She shoved him to the floor and they landed with a mutual explosion of air onto the thick carpet. Refusing to allow her any advantage, he grappled with her so that her back was pressed against the floor. Sebastian then thrust himself back between her legs and Dee, a sinister smile on her tear and kohl-streaked face, ripped away his shirt.

She was pissed! How dare he take her like this? Like he owned her or had a right to her? Granted she was loving every minute of it but it was the principle of the thing. Her nails, sharp like talons, pulled along his back, leaving four bloody tears in his skin, which she healed even as she caused them. Blood wept from the closing wounds and dripped onto the floor. It was such a pity that the thick carpet was white; there would be questions later, if his staff wasn't asking them now concerning the noises emanating from the office. He cried out in pain but his thrusting, bucking hips did not stop.

He slapped her with the back of his hand, causing her hair to go everywhere. She slapped him back and then he forced his mouth against hers. She made a good show of fighting him but everything she did now was to inspire his rage further in the hopes of inspiring more of this violent passion. Then something happened that was as much a shock to her as to him: she suddenly immolated,the fire consuming them both. At first, it frightened him but when all he felt was heat, in spite of the fact that his clothes were completely burned and swiftly turning into ashes around him, he relaxed.

That was the turning point. The fire that burned around them seemed to cool them and Dee pushed him onto his back. Her spit seared his skin as it became steam in the fire surrounding them. She sucked her way down his chest, making it clear that she was in charge now. She then used her mouth on him in most pleasurable ways, her fingers giving added pleasure. He gasped and arched his back. It had been years since a woman took him in this way. A part of him wanted to flee but the rest of him insisted he lay back and enjoy.

Maker's breath, she was talented! Sebastian's fingers curled around the fibers of the carpet and he moaned. She then threw herself onto him and rolled their bodies so that she was now pressed back against the carpet. "Finish..." she moaned.

He shook his head as he moved his way down her body. The prince of Starkhaven gripped her breasts with his hands as he wrapped his mouth around each hardened nipple, sucking and biting them. It was painful but exotically thrilling. He then bit down and sucked her breast right against the aureola next to her hard, pierced nipple. The action drew blood, which he licked away as he moved down her body.

Sebastian may have been a chaste Brother these last several years but before that, he had been an active participant in many activities his parents frowned upon. The more they frowned, the more he participated and the more pleasure he gave and received. It was his way of attracting their notice, which they did though the outcome was not to his liking at first. Even though he had left that life behind, it did not mean he'd forgotten what he'd learned! Or stopped enjoying it for that matter. Since he'd come this far, he wasn't about to back down.

He Gently spread her thighs and leaned forward until he heard her gasp. He used his mouth to thrill her until she could no longer contain herself. She arched her back, crying out with every arosuing lick and tease of his skilled tongue. Before her orgasm finished, he covered his body with hers and entered her. Within moments he came, exhausting his own passion with his arms around her body and his mouth embracing hers. They held one another in this way, kissing and grinding hips until the magic flames went out and they laid back on the carpet drenched in sweat and breathing heavily.

"Well... That was pretty fucking awesome..." Dee muttered softly.

"The carpet is scorched..."Sebastian murmured as he struggled for breath.

"...Yea..." she replied with a grin at him. "Doe this mean we've made up and we can start rounds two, three and four? In a bed? You're pretty brutal."

"This...will never happen again," he sighed, looking away.

Dee sat up, furious. "What does that mean? Because I spared Anders? You're not over that shit? I thought smacking my head against the wall was your way of getting back at me?"

Sebastian rose from the floor, aware that Deandra's eyes were glued to him. He really was beautiful. He hadn't a lot of hair on his body save for a few light hairs on his chest and a scattering of dark brown around his groin. His muscles were long and lean, making for a graceful man who was not bulky at all. He was poetic and sexy with a surprising grace. She wanted him again. "Dee, this, what we did, was an accident. I have to marry eventually and I cannot marry you. It would be wrong for us to become lovers when we can't even be friends. You...need to leave. Now."

She shot to her feet and shoved him hard against the wall. "You jackass! What, because I'm a mage? You started this shit and now you're going to back off with the whole, 'I fucked up and now you get to pay for it' shit? And do you really want me walking around your quarters looking like this?" She spread her arms wide and smiled when his cheeks flushed. "Really? I have no problems showing off my body but your people are going to wag their tongues. I know I have a nice ass and I have the balls to put it on display, unlike you. Asshole." With a final shove, she walked over to the heavy curtain covering the window of his office and hauled it down. That left his office on full display to anyone walking through the second-tier courtyard. She wrapped it around herself haphazardly, well aware that her breasts were showing considerably.

"Dee, wait."

Her hand was on the door but she stopped and turned. "What?"

"If you find Anders to bring him to justice and for me to ask him why he did what he did, I will reconsider becoming your partner. I might even marry you if I am allowed to court you the way a lady should be courted. But not unless I have Anders. I cannot begin to forgive you until I have him," he said softly as he sat behind his desk. Fortunately, his bedroom was attached to the room so fetching clothes would not be an issue.

She pulled the curtain higher around her and leaned against the door, a black eyebrow raised above one amethyst eye. "Your shitting me. Really? After that sewage you just spewed about wanting a proper betrothed? Fuck you!"

"You're the only one who can do it! I've tried! You have...resources I don't have."

She laughed darkly. "You mean I have Varric!"

"Him and more. Please...find him and I will reconsider."

She opened the door and stepped out into the hall. "Fuck you!" she shouted. "Find Anders on your own or not, I don't care! There isn't a thing in this world that will convince me that I need you in any way, shape or form. I hate Anders but I really do hate you more, especially now. If you want a relationship with Kirkwall, speak to Braun. Good BYE, your highness." She threw the door closed with a massive slam that shook the walls and sent people scrambling out of her way. There were whispers of war with Kirkwall after that episode. Sebastian, meanwhile, dressed himself and sat back in his office with tears in his eyes. He doubted he would ever see her again and so he decided to make plans for his future. Even though she was a mage, he was willing to take a chance with her, a chance he'd easily blown.

She would be back in Kirkwall by dawn.