Lectures of the Heart

"Give it a try and tell me, perhaps I may surprise you." Nemain stood in front of a very nervous and blushing young elf named Cammen and tried to find out which problem bothered him, surely a very grave and life-threatening one as Zevran expected in amusement.

"There is a girl named Gheyna. She is in my heart and I would do anything to persuade her to be my wife. But I'm not a hunter yet and she refuses me."

Zevran tried really hard to suppress a smile. Asking Nemain about problems of the heart was a very daring idea. But perhaps she surprised him too.

"I see. No hunter, no real man, no family feeding. Is that her line of reason?" With Cammen agreeing in silent despair, Nemain escalated her involvement. "Have you tried to woo her? No? Made gift? Made compliments? Kissed her?"

Cammen answered question for question with shaking his head, gaining deep sighs from Nemain and deep smiles from Zevran.

"All right. Training is incoming. Zevran?"

Zevran snapped back to attention. What now? With a puzzled look he watched as Nemain grabbed a casket and ordered him to stand beside it. Could it be? With a sudden heavy pounding heart he followed her order.

"You must know, Cammen, women really like compliments. Surely Zevran can give you some advices about pretty romantic lines. Myself I can only say something sounding simply: Hear to your heart. Close your eyes and imagine her. Think about what you like about Gheyna. Her eye, her hair, her stance, how she speaks, dances, moves, the lines of her figure. And express that in your words. They don't have to be the words of a poet, but it is important that she feels you're honest."

Zevran gulped. Yes, he could make up some lines like that. And he could make them sound honest. But now he was following Nemain's words only to think about what he liked about her. Her character, her compassion even with this elf she hadn't known an hour before, her temperament. He even liked her regret when she was trembling from thinking about what she had to decide in Ozrammar and Redcliffe. The lines of her figure, yes, that too. So feminine and muscular at the same time, a mix only dwarven women could accomplish. How would it be to touch her?

"But woman like another thing too and that is a good kisser. And this is something we can train."

Nemain boarded the casket and ordered a very blushing Cammen to kiss her. Step by step he went nearer, his blushing more deepening and barely able to look at the dwarven lady. The following kiss was very short and remembered Zevran of a time long past. Nemain rolled her eyes and was hard pressed not to grab Cammen and response with a more forceful kiss. The image of frightening the young boy with her female temperament caused Zevran to hide his smile behind his hand.

"You think this to be amusing, Zevran?" Now it was time for Zevran to be frightened, facing her angered look. "You think you could do better? Show us some of your splendid kissing abilities you're so proud of. Cammen watch and remember."

This was false. Surely he had dreamed of kissing her for weeks, but not so. But he had no way to evade this and so Zevran leaned in and placed a kiss on Nemain's lips. They were large and surprisingly soft. Somehow he had anticipated her lips to be harsher.

Seemingly Nemain was not impressed. "That's all? Zevran, I'm disappointed. Can't you do this any better? Perhaps … we should ask Leliana. Do you mean kissing her would improve your performance?"

His suntan hid Zevran's blush.

It had been a very long time since anyone had been dashed from his kisses. The words nagged at his heart and the elf shook his head. "I'll try to hone my kissing." With much more energy he embraced Nemain and kissed her long and hard, his heart pounding anew and disappointment crawling thru his veins as Nemain reacted in no way to his kiss.

"Err, yes, better, but not really good. Forceful kiss is nice sometimes, but any Shem could do that. Cammen needs an elven kiss. You know, Zevran, with feeling. A kiss that Gheyna can't think anymore, a kiss that Gheyna dreams to be in a type of heaven, feeling Cammen's love. Perhaps it was a stupid idea …"

Zevran interrupted Nemain, gently grasping her cheeks, wandering about her face with his looks. His palm touched her ear feather-light, placing a single strand of hair behind it. With a warm smile he traced the lines of her face, the eyebrows, the nose, the powerful yet soft jaw. Slowly Zevran pulled Nemain nearer, took another look in her eyes before melting his lips with hers, first very light, feeling butterflies in his stomach, deepening his kiss slowly, changing his stance so that he could embrace her stronger, sensing her large bosom against his breast.

One hand went up behind her head, entangling in her thick hair, the other reaching down her back, halting above her ass as he felt her body stiffening. Lengthening the kiss Zevran's tongue entered Nemain's mouth, the elf not thinking about this surely not being visible for Cammen. Nemain reacted in kind, her body feeling so soft and strong to Zevran's grasp.

At last they ended the kiss reluctantly, parting only a small way. A soft smile showed on Nemain's face. "That was better, more elven like. I knew you could be a good teacher." Zevran only nodded, struck silent by his feelings and watching emotions in Nemain's eyes he had not expected to see there.

Clearing her throat Nemain turned away from Zevran and faced Cammen. "Have you seen enough or have we to repeat the lecture?" Zevran heard the wish in Nemain's voice for a reenactment or was it only his own desire to feel these soft lips anew? A deep sigh escaped his lips as Cammen ascertained that he had seen enough.

"Good. Then think about what I said about compliments and try your new knowledge on Gheyna. I wish you luck." With a hint of a smile to Zevran his marvelous grey warden walked away.