I realized something dumb of about my fic just earlier, that it didn't actually have any characters posted with the summary, the slots blank. I've corrected the problem but I find it odd because I could have sworn I had that done when I posted the first chapter. Oh well. Maybe now it will come up in the filters search, which I couldn't help but notice it was sadly absent from when I was doing a search for other Loghain stories. Just glad I did eventually notice.

That little bit of stupidity on my part aside, nothing much to say. Just enjoy the fic, and remember Dragon Age belongs to Bioware.

Chapter 4: When Temptation Comes Knocking

The days until the festival passed quickly for Loghain, mostly spent in Solona's company. He was her guest after all, so it only made sense, not to mention she had a tendency to get back to work the second he went elsewhere without her and he'd decided firmly to make her relax and take some time off even if he had to force her. Was she even capable of relaxing? He never would have thought she worked this hard. When he'd told her in a letter to focus on her work instead of letting herself worry about her personal life, he hadn't meant her to take it so to heart.

Luckily he never had to put much effort into dragging her away from it. She seemed all too willing to spend time with him, mostly sitting in one of the usable rooms in the manor with a bottle of wine talking and reminiscing over the past or playing a game of some kind. She was utterly awful at Wicked Grace, so even though he was only passable at it, she often lost to him. Chess she was better at, but he had played the game his entire life and was a master at it. She'd never won once, and the mage had a tendency to puff her cheeks out the second she thought she had him, only for him to pull a checkmate on her from some part of the board she hadn't even been looking at.

He found himself letting her get close to victory more and more often just to see that look. It was oddly... enticing the way she would chew on her lip, sucking it into her mouth and hold it with her teeth while she concentrated, only to sulk when she lost. Loghain probably shouldn't tease her as much as he did, but the way she would weakly glare at him, only to meet his grin in response, making her flush and pout, her cheeks a delicate pink while she did so... Well, it sort of added to the fun of the game.

Solona had grown up into a very attractive woman, not that she hadn't been before. She'd always been graceful and pretty, but it was in a very young sort of way. Seeing her and knowing she had so much growing yet to her, she could have only attracted those her own age who would not have seen it or minded. He, on the other hand, had always envisioned her that way when he'd written the letters to her. He had known she would grow up, and yet never had imagined it would be into such a lovely creature. It had been such a stark contrast that he wished he had seen it for himself. Maybe if he had been there while it had happened, watched her change too gradually to notice, it wouldn't have been such a shock to him when he first saw it, and he wouldn't catch himself noticing her so much.

She couldn't be aware of it herself, how she acted around him. She seemed so comfortable with him around, she didn't have any sense of defense about her. Her hands were almost constantly on him, tracing his hair out of his eyes or lingeringly touching while they talked. It had been easier to ignore at first, but he could swear she was doing it more now. He found himself hoping she didn't act like this around other men, so clueless about how she was presenting herself. If he were a weaker man he might have done something about it.

Nothing... particular of course. Just something.

It was better to distract himself when thoughts like that occurred to him, because it wasn't at all proper. Solona was a sweet woman, and clearly an innocent if she thought nothing of getting so close to him in such ways. She was, what, twenty? He would have thought that would be old enough to know just how such things could be taken, but she'd been sheltered most of her life, and thrust into a job that took all her attention afterward. Maybe she just wasn't as grown as she looked.
It gave him an odd need to protect her, especially when she went out. After all, he was her friend and if she was really so clueless about how to talk to men and keep a bit of distance about herself, who was to say someone wouldn't try to take advantage? Not that she wasn't capable of handling herself with her magic but the thought of someone even trying to touch her made his blood boil.

All around, it was just better he keep close to her at all times before she worked herself to death or ended up stringing some man along unknowingly with her charm... and tight dresses. Maker, how did she breath sometimes? Half the time it looked like the clothing she wore was a good size too small.

It had been particularly bad when she'd gone out dress shopping. According to the schedule of Anora's, there was to be a masquerade at the end of the first week, just on the eve of a full moon. He'd found it utterly Orlesian and wondered just what his daughter was thinking, considering not going at all because even the thought of everyone in masks seemed utterly foolish to him. What if some assassin came in at that time, disguised? When he'd mentioned it to the mage however, she'd immediately declared she had no mask, and how silly of her to forget, and dragged him out to go buy a couple and since they were out she'd have to get a gown to match it.

Despite the dresses Solona had gathered so far, none of them had seemed fancy enough, apparently. They'd all looked fine to him but she'd grabbed him and pulled him out with her before he could even ask just when had she gotten so girly as to be worried about things like if her dress was fancy enough amongst the nobles.

Then she'd started to model for him.

He'd hated every single one, or actually loved them.

Every one she picked was cut too low for her breasts, or too tight around her waist. They showed too much of her smooth shoulders and back, or pushed her backside out too much. These were proper dresses, yet it seemed like every one she wore was an invitation to do something untoward to her. Maker, was she really so clueless?!

"I'm telling you, it doesn't look right," he insisted at the tenth dress. Tenth! They'd been here for hours now!

"How in the world does it not look right?" she asked, hands on her hips and leaning in. He wished she'd stop that, clearly not knowing just what she was doing. Her curves were practically spilling out of it, the material a deep blue silk, cinched around her waist in several layers so it billowed out around her hips, looking larger than her frame actually was because of the petticoats underneath. Silver bows were on several spots on her skirt, with a rather large one right at her chest from the ribbon holding the front of the dress closed. It was so big and bouncy the way it was tied, it just had to be designed to grab the attention of anyone who looked at her, a silent invitation to ogle her breasts. It was actually his favorite on her so far, which of course meant she couldn't possibly wear it out in public.

"Just... don't wear this one," he demanded as he determinedly looked elsewhere. "Try something else."

"Oh for Andraste's ass, Loghain. I'm not trying on another blighted dress!" she proclaimed, her enthusiasm with the shopping clearly dead and gone by now. "If you don't like any of them, I'll pick one myself."

"I liked the one with the green sleeves," he mentioned. That one had been proper. A collar right up to the neck and barely showing any skin except her face. She'd only tried it on to humor him when he'd suggested it, but she'd loathed the color, or so she claimed when she pulled it off and tossed it back to the sale's girl.

"I'm buying this one," she said firmly, her arms crossed and glaring at him. She was daring him to protest, he just knew it.

He only sighed and gave a shrug, turning away when she pressed close to him. What the hell was she doing? Comparing the fabric of his uniform to see if they matched? Of course she had to go for something blue and silver in the long run, nearly identical to his armor.

She gave a groan when he gently pushed her away for her own sake and stomped away to change back into her own clothing again. She picked two masks afterward, a matching set with painted silver feathers attached and blue paint intricately decorating the white masks. He was glad it was finally over, though he didn't relish in her purchase. If he'd had known she would have gone for the dress she'd picked just of of frustration he would have just told her the first one she'd liked was fine.

#-#

Solona was going to kill him. Just how dense could a man be?!

She sat in front of her vanity mirror and tried to calm herself down. Keeping her breathing steady, she repeated a mantra in her head. Control. She needed control. She'd tried to be patient, but he was only here for a short time.

Chewing on her lips and rubbing her legs together, she sighed before her head hit the little desk.

"What am I doing?" she groaned out. This was so utterly stupid. She had been flirting like crazy with him for days now, and he could not get it. How had this man been married before? Was he really so poor at reading women? Did he not get it? She'd thought for sure when she'd begun to wear the dresses for him, he would at least react a little, but he'd been so damn disinterested! She could have gone out there naked and he probably would have had something more interesting to look at!

Clearly she was doing something wrong, but she honestly had no idea what it could be. Wasn't she attractive enough? Didn't she look pretty to him? She was getting to the point where she could have held up a sign that said, "Take me like an Antivan whore, you sex god!" and he'd probably make inquiries about what she wanted for lunch.

It would be easier if he weren't so attractive. It had occurred to her already perhaps this fantasy she had of him was not healthy. Wouldn't it be wise to forget it? There were so many issues that could come up, like him being so much older than her, and the fact that he was Anora's father. She barely had a working relationship with that woman, and this could make things very, very uncomfortable.

Yet every time he smiled at her, her knees went weak. The little grin of his drove her wild, slightly mocking and so very confident. It made her want to kiss him until the world itself ended. It was even better when he was irritated, the scowl that could make her melt. He could smolder like no one else she knew, her underclothes becoming damp whenever he looked at her like that.

Maker save her, but did she want him. She wanted him to touch her in any way she could imagine, bending her over this very vanity and fucking her with her face and breasts pressed into the mirror. Her juices covering his cock as he pushed her to the floor and ordered her to suck him off. All while giving her that horribly attractive glare of his.

"Damn it," she muttered softly to herself. She couldn't do this. If he was not getting her hints, she would just tell him flat out what she wanted. This was not a time to be timid and if he really didn't get what she wanted by now, maybe she would just have to strip him naked and ride him herself until he got the damn hint.
She stood up and made her way out, determined to give it another try. It wasn't very late, but they'd already had dinner and said good night to one another. The first day of the celebrations started tomorrow and they'd decided it was best to get to bed early since it would no doubt be a full day. It was the perfect opportunity. Slip into his bed, kissing him softly just as he asked her what she needed.

"You, Loghain. I need you. I have for so long. Please... take me?"

Yes, that would work. No man could resist that. She'd whimper a little, bat her eyelashes as she confessed her need for him, press close as he tried to protest about how improper this was and mewl wantonly as she slipped the covers away and touched his naked chest and pleaded for him to take mercy on her and give her what she'd been dreaming of since he'd left.

If after all that, her advances didn't work, then she would kill him. Fair to give him at least one more chance.

She reached his room but she realized he wasn't there. His door was open and she looked inside, but he wasn't in bed or anywhere else. Curious about where he could have gotten off to, she left to go look for him.

The search did not take long, seeing him sitting in the living room on the couch, dressed only in his sleeping pants and tunic. She peeked at him from around the corner, wondering what he was doing out here before she spied a bottle of wine next to him. Drinking? Really?

Her ears caught a little tune, something he was humming, but she didn't recognize it. His voice sounded awfully good though, in the quiet of the dark. It seemed a shame to break it, but she couldn't back down now.

"Loghain?" she asked as she approached him. "Couldn't you sleep?"

He looked up at her and smiled lightly.

"Evening, Solona," he said pleasantly. She couldn't help but notice the bottle was already mostly empty. What had brought this on? "Sit with me?"

She would have anyway, but it was nice to be invited. Tucking her nightgown under her knees, she sat next to him and peered at him in curiosity.

"Hard to believe it's been two years," he murmured. "It seems so long ago now."

"Time is funny like that," she agreed. "It never seems to flow the way you want it to."

"No, it doesn't. The times you want to last seem so short when they're over, and what you wish would leave your memories seem horribly long when you go through them," he said. "I was regent for so short a time, yet it seems like it lasted forever when I think about it. The things I did... the people I hurt..."

"Loghain-" she started before he cut her off.

"You know, I left myself nearly broke by the end of it?" he asked her. "Not the end of the Blight, but by the time I left six months later. I thought about what I'd done, the lives I'd ended and those I'd willingly sold into slavery. There was no way to make it better, but I still had to try. I spent almost everything I had to track down those elves, buy them back from the slavers. I... I never was able to track them all down. Most... but not all. Those that were alive, I spent everything to find them, but not all of them had survived. Some deaths were the sickness I imagine, and they could have died at home in peace if it weren't for me. I try to console myself with the fact most of them made it home, but it doesn't do any good. All of them would have been safe if not for me, and here I am at a celebration that's going to proclaim me a hero."

"You tried to find them?" she asked. "I... I never knew that."

"It seemed like I had to do something," he stated. "To think I once fought so hard to win a war to drive monsters out of this land, only to have become one myself. I love Ferelden, and I hate the people who tried to take it. They wanted to destroy us, to make us victims who were too afraid to fight back. When they tried to bully my father, I was so proud of him for refusing to give them our hard earned money. We weren't rich. They couldn't have gained that much from us, yet they demanded it anyway, just because they could. When they took my mother... what they did to her... I'd never felt so helpless, so angry before. My father tracked the men down and killed them, and for the first time in my life, I realized what kind of animals were at the head of our country. They weren't men, weren't human. They were beasts, all of them begging to be put down. And now... after everything I did to stop them, I became them."

"Loghain, don't say that," she insisted. "It's not the same."

"Isn't it?" he asked her. "People have died because of me, hurt because of me. I told myself I worked to save these lands, yet I tormented its own people to do so. Maric never would have done such things. He would have found a way without such measures that I insisted were necessary."

"You've been drinking too much," she stated, taking the bottle from him. She was oddly surprised when he didn't fight for it. "You're not thinking clearly."

"Yes I am, and I have been since I got here," he stated. "I should never have come back. Denerim is no longer my home. Anora can think I'm a hero all she wants, but it's Alistair's reaction that will meet me when I see the people. They'd not wanted speeches from a traitor such as-"

"Will you stop it?" she snapped at him. Self-pity was one thing, but this was ridiculous. "No one is going to say anything, alright? You are a good man who made bad choices. I'm not saying that makes it right, but if what you said about the elves is true, you've certainly been trying to make it right on your own. Damn you, Loghain. You're not this monster you seem to think you are. You're human. We make mistakes. We stumble. We fall. I saved your life so you could make it right, and that's exactly what you've been doing. Don't sit here and beat yourself up because you think you don't belong here."

"This celebration is not for me," he said. "It's for you. You're the Hero of Ferelden. Who even wants me here?"

"Anora does," she said in exasperation. "She was the one who had the idea to invite you here in the first place."

"What?" he asked in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"She asked me to invite you as my guest," she explained, setting the bottle down on the floor firmly as she glared at him. "She didn't want His Majesty to know it was her idea, so she asked me to. She was missing you, wanted you to come home so she could see you again."

"You said you asked me because you wanted my company though," he pointed out.

"Of course I did. I agreed for my own reasons," she informed him. "We both wanted to see you again, Loghain. You have people that wanted you here. Isn't that enough?"

He paused for a second, staring at her before he reached out for her, brushing a hand over her face. This young woman was too kind for him, too sweet. Here he'd been thinking she'd been using him as a ploy to harass his daughter, and she'd been willingly going along with Anora's scheme just for the pleasure of seeing him again? He idly wondered just what he had done to deserve such loyalty from her when she began to kiss him.

It started slowly, her lips pressing against his wrist, warm against his skin. One he could have ignored, but she took his hand in her own and began kissing his wrist again and again. He watched, shocked as she pushed his tunic sleeve up his arm to his elbow to reach more of his flesh with her mouth.

"Solona?" he asked, his voice nearly catching in his throat. "What are you doing?"

"What I should have done eighteen months ago," she whispered as she crawled into his lap. Her nightgown rode up to her knees as she straddled him, her arms wrapped loosely around his neck. Before he could ask what was so important about eighteen months ago, she was kissing him fully on the mouth, her fingers digging into his hair as she did so.

His mind went blank for a second, not sure what was going on. Surely he had passed out, was dreaming or something. Not that he should really be dreaming about her, but it was the only explanation he could come up with. This certainly couldn't be real, after all.
He closed his eyes, but he could still feel her, and when he opened them again, she was still there. She'd pulled away a bit, no longer kissing him, but looking at him expectantly.

"Well?" she asked when the silence stretched on too long for her to bare.

"Solona..." he breathed, trying to think of what to say. "This isn't a dream, is it?"

"No," she whispered. "It's not a dream."

"Why then?"

"Are you really so clueless?" she asked before she sighed and shook her head. "Forget it. This was clearly a mistake. I shouldn't have assumed..."

She began to climb off of him, but he grabbed her by her wrist and waist, yanking him close to him to keep her in place.

"Why?" he demanded in a growl to her surprised expression. "Tell me."

"Loghain, I don't-"

"I said, tell me," he ordered.

She licked her lips, looking nervous. Even in the dark, he could see the flush of her cheeks as she blushed, not quite able to meet his gaze.

"Because I want you," she confessed. "Desperately. I want you to take me all the time. I can't think of anything else when you're near. It's why I asked you here. It's why I came looking for you tonight. I need you so badly."

"Solona, I'm old enough to be your father," he breathed. "Older. Anora has several years on you."

"What's that matter? We're both adults, and because of the taint, neither of us will live longer than a decade from now anyway," she said. "I can't marry, can't have children even if the taint didn't make me almost barren. I can't have anything else but things like this, moment of pleasure I can steal when no one is looking. Is it really so wrong?"

"There's nothing wrong with it. I just... I'm so..."

"Attractive. Hot beyond words. Everything I want in a man," she purred as she pressed close. He could feel her chest against his own, rubbing a little against him. "Shall I go on?"

"All this time... you were... Those things you did were on purpose?" he asked, it finally clicking into place. Here he'd thought she was just utterly innocent, too much for her own good, and she'd been trying to entice him the whole time?

"I thought you'd never get it," she whispered before resting her forehead against his own. "I want you, Loghain. Please. I'll beg you if that's what you want. I'm not too proud of a woman to be on my knees for you."

"T-that won't be needed," he managed, his breath catching in his throat as she began rubbing her bottom against his lap. His hand still on her hip tightened and she gave a soft moan, her lips so close to his own. Even if the thought of her kneeling in front of him could be resisted, what she was doing couldn't be. He kissed her hungrily, the wine in his system no doubt urging him on. He couldn't take this, her teasing and resist her, not when he couldn't think of a reason why he shouldn't.
Maybe if he could think clearer he would have. One would think there would be a whole list of reasons to say no, but they were all blown away when her tongue slipped into his mouth and invited him to play with her. He broke. He was still a man after all.

She squeaked in surprise when his hands suddenly found her bottom, rubbing at her hungrily, and make her practically dance in his lap. She could feel him beginning to get aroused and she eagerly ground herself against him. Once he got into it, she found he was a marvelous kisser, better than she had ever dreamed. His tongue was everywhere and so demanding, forcing her to go at his pace, but it was a pace she didn't mind in the least.

The mage almost hated Morrigan for having this body first. She remembered the woman claiming he'd been horrible during the ritual, barely able to satisfy her and had lasted such a short time. She didn't know what in the world the witch had been talking about. This felt fantastic!

"We're never going to get any sleep at this rate," he growled against her lips in a way that made her shiver in delight. "We have somewhere to be tomorrow."

"We'll be late," she said quickly. "I don't care. Just keep kissing me, please."

"And here I thought you knew nothing about the opposite sex," he chuckled before he began to plant little kisses upside her neck. She writhed against him as he worked her over, every kiss making her pant a little harder, every squeeze at her ass making her jump against his cock. "To think this whole time you were trying to seduce me."

"You didn't notice?" she gasped in surprise.

"Believe me, I was trying very hard not to," he assured her before giving her a soft smack on her bottom, making her squeal. "Trying to make a man over twice your age aroused with this body of yours, all to bed you. Have you no shame?"

"None," she gasped, hoping desperately that's what he wanted to hear. "None at all."

He pushed her dress up to her hips and his fingers slipped underneath her small clothes to kneed her ass directly. She arched her back, shoving herself into his hands and moaned so loudly he was sure the servants would hear. He should have been worried about that, but somehow it didn't bother him as much as it normally would have.

Not that he was in the habit of sleeping with unattached woman, half drunk in the middle of the night.

The thoughts about the servants hadn't been enough to stop him, but that certainly was.

"Wait!" he hissed suddenly, yanking his hands away from her and grabbing her hands just as she'd begun to tug his shirt off. "We can't."

"Sure we can," she purred happily. "I'm a naughty girl, Loghain. Don't worry about corrupting me."

Maker, she thought he was playing hard to get. He leaned back just as she tried to kiss him again, shaking his head firmly.

"No, I'm serious. This isn't going to happen," he told her. "Not tonight."

"What?" she asked, shocked. "Why not? What did I do?"

"Nothing," he assured her quickly. "Solona, I'm just not... I don't know if I can. I'm not thinking clearly right now. Too much wine."

"Then drink more," she ordered him, and he couldn't help but chuckle a bit.

"I'm sorry," he said sincerely. "It's just I'd rather wait until I know for sure."

She sat there for a minute, seeming clearly disappointed. The same pout she wore when she lost a game was on her face again, and he had to admit, it was just as cute now.

"So... you just need time? This isn't a no?" she asked. "If you know you want this, why wait?"

"I don't know yet," he corrected her. "I think I do, but not for sure. I'd rather consider this when I know I'm of a clear mind."

For a minute she said nothing, clearly thinking it over herself. He wondered a bit if she would jump him, make him take her anyway, and he wasn't sure he'd be able to resist if she did. Finally though, her shoulders slumped and she nodded her consent.

"Fine," she grumbled. "If that's what you need, I'll wait."

He gave her a chaste kiss on the forehead to appease her, then walked her to her room. For a second, she didn't go in, just stared up at him and reached out to stroke his hair.

"Don't make me wait long," she said before she went inside of her room and shut the door. He felt absolutely dirty for standing there so long after she must have gone to bed, listening to the noise she was making inside of her room by herself. It had been terrible of him to send her away, and his dick seemed to think him pretty stupid too from how hard it was straining in his pants.

He forced himself to leave her door when she began to cry out his name, because it was either that or go into her room and fuck her until morning, and he knew he needed a clear head before he could allow himself to do that.

End of Chapter 4

You all hate me now, I know you do.

Next chapter, I swear. There will be sexy times soon, I promise. What can I say? I just love drawing these things out. That and frustrating poor Solona. She's about ready to set him on fire, but damn he's too sexy to risk burn marks.