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It’s a rare wintry night in your area of Earth C, too cold to go and hang out on the roof for once. Thankfully, that doesn’t matter much. Karkat is out, so you’re at his hive with Aradia, hanging out on the oversized plush couch he and you usually share. John went to bed with Terezi because they were both too tired to hang out. Karkat and Vriska are out being kismeses at one another, and Sollux is spending a quiet night alone at his request. You painted each other’s nails and had to wait for them to dry - and once you were done, you made big cups of decaf coffee for the both of you. You’re both coffee lovers, and finding a good decaf was an absolute gift - letting you drink at night and still get good sleep. You’ve taken and are sharing one of Karkat’s thickest blankets, with the heat turned down - John likes it cool when he sleeps, and it works for you because if it were any warmer, the blanket and Aradia would be way too warm.
The two of you were planning to watch a TV show, but you lost interest quickly once your nails were dry and ended up just cuddling to chat and chill - a typical activity for you. Aradia is mostly your moirail with a side of flush, and you take full advantage of pale romance’s main love languages being physical touch and feelings talk. She’s soft and warm, though you must be cautious of her delicate wings and big horns - things you definitely had a couple of silly incidents with earlier in your relationship. Aradia is fun to chat with, very chill, and a fantastic hugger. Thus, on a night like this, it’s the perfect time for dating talk - which you usually do with Karkat, but you love to switch things up from time to time. Besides, you’ll tell him all about it later. As you’ve learned, dating and quadrant chatter are way more fun with polyamory. It was fun enough with one partner and other people’s gossip - but with five partners, quadrant bullshit, and a metamour? There’s more bullshit going around, and it’s all even better. And, of course, there’s still other people’s gossip too.
“So,” you ask in a rare lull in the conversation.
“You’ve got me mostly in your diamonds and Sollux mostly in your red. Well, both in both, but you know what I mean. But do you have any…blacker interests?” You shift to look over at your partner with a smirk.
You always like to be in on your partners’ business, especially when it’s fun business or romance business, and Aradia is no exception. You’ve honestly picked that shit up from Karkat. Aradia hasn’t said anything about a black crush, but you’re almost sure she has one - and you’re very curious. She laughs a bit and shifts to look back at you - showing off her supposedly unsettling grin. As usual, you’re all too happy to get that out of her.
“Don’t tell me you want to get in my black quadrants too,” Aradia teases, and you scoff.
“No way, I don’t think I could hate you if I tried. Also, I’ve got Vriska, Terezi, and Karkat all over my pitch to some degree or another. If I tried to fit another pitch romance in, I’d explode,” you joke.
“Maybe somebody should auspisticize for you and Sollux then,” she shoots back, shifting to nudge you in the ribs with an elbow, still laughing.
“No way! That’s unfair,” you jokingly protest, even though you know she’s right.
“I’m not coming on to him, I swear,” you add, lying through your teeth.
“Oh, you swear?” Aradia asks, dramatically raising her eyebrows. “Dave, you’re a lot of things, most of them good. Subtle isn’t one of them, flush or pitch - and you’re so into him in both.”
Aradia is entirely right about it, including that you wouldn’t know subtlety if it hit you in the head, and you don’t like that, so you decide to change the subject instead of quizzing your moirail about Sollux’s feelings for you or confirming her suspicions.
“This isn’t about me,” you respond, “I wanna know who you’re interested in. If anybody, that is, I don’t know, and obviously, you don’t have to tell me, but if you’re down, I wanna know.”
“Davepeta,” she tells you with a smirk of her own, “is going to be so mad that I’m talking about crushes with you without them.”
“Oh really? So is Davepeta the one you’ve got black feelings for?” You ask, leaning closer to your girlfriend with a grin.
“I could see that happening, black or otherwise, but that’s not who I had in mind. In fact, Davepeta has a crush on who I’m thinking of too…and they’re not the only one, though I don’t think their crush is as black as mine,” she answers.
“Come on, stop being cagey. Who is it?” You ask, not so much annoyed as excited.
“Jade,” she hums, a somewhat dreamy smile coming to her face.
“Jade? In a black romance?” You question, sitting up straight again to stop being right in her face, and then you stop to think about it for a moment.
“Wait, no, yeah, she’d be great at that if she likes it, but I’m having a hard time figuring out what the fuck you’d hate Jade of all people for.”
“Oh, she’s just so…intensely caring. Every little thing is so important to her! She gets so mad over me being relaxed and jokey; it’s fantastic. Besides, she’s desperate for an outlet, and I volunteer as tribute,” Aradia jokes, wiggling her eyebrows.
You groan.
“John never should have shown everybody those movies. I cannot believe you’re making flirty jokes about the hunger games, the one good series he likes,” you protest, flopping back against your diamond - over the top on purpose.
Aradia laughs and slings her arm around you, planting a kiss on your cheek before replying.
“I know, I know, it must get old. You’re lucky I’m not into you black, or I’d be much worse,” Aradia teases.
“Oh, I bet. I bet Jade would totally hate it too,” you joke.
“That’s what I hope,” she comments, “I’d love to pitch flirt with her a bit.”
Aradia pauses for a moment, then speaks again.
“I’ll probably talk it out with her if I can, like directly. I like passion as much as anybody, but I’d still rather be on the same page about these things, even with a kismesis. And besides, adding an eighth person to this whole mess should be done right,” She adds.
“Oh yeah, definitely. I think Jade would love some direct communication, too. And besides, you’re nowhere near the only one interested in her,” you reply.
“Really now?” Aradia asks, refocusing on you rather than her daydreams.
“No, you’re not even the only one who likes her pitchways. Karkat’s, well, Karkat when it comes to her, and Vriska and Terezi said they’d be interested in getting into it with her in one quadrant or another, mostly black,” you explain.
“Wow, I admit I didn’t know that. Sollux is interested in her, too. That’s a lot of attention. I don’t think anybody is purely red for her, though? Because I’m pretty sure Davepeta’s interest is partly pale and maybe a little black,” she comments, shifting her body to face you rather than just turning her head.
“Jade and Davepeta have been on-and-off red-romancing each other…and I’m flushed for her, as I admit. She was one of my first crushes, along with John. And don’t quote me on this, but I bet Rose likes her too. I’m pretty certain she at least used to,” you admit, a little embarrassed by your old crush - and how you never followed up on that attraction.
“That’s news to me…but adorable news,” Aradia responds, “I think you and Jade would be an awesome couple, and she and Davepeta would too. Both, even. And Rose too?” She smiles at you. “That’s sweet. I may hate her, but it’s nice when she’s happy.”
“Oh yeah, everything is better when Jade’s happy; she’s amazing. I haven’t told her how I feel yet, but I’d like to. I avoided it for way too fucking long. That is after I chat about it with the others more. I kinda got awkward about it, not gonna lie, but… she’s important to me,” you admit as you shift over to your girlfriend, swing your legs over her lap, and plop your head on her shoulder.
Aradia lays her head on top of yours, tilted just enough to avoid smacking her horns into the top of your head. The conversation has got a little more sincere than you planned, and anything even vaguely emotional is way more comfortable for you with a side of pale affection.
“Even not knowing about your crush, it’s clear that you two are special to each other, and it’s delightful. And it may be selfish, but I’d love to see my pale and my pitch together. I didn’t get what you meant about seeing your partners dating before, but…it seems like a privilege,” your moirail responds, snaking one hand down to take yours.
“I think it’s sweet too, and a privilege, and I hope it works out. I’d like to see Jade be part of this as my flush and your pitch. Maybe Karkat’s too, and more,” you comment, half daydreaming.
Aradia smiles and settles in comfortably, as do you. It’s incredibly cozy with the blanket and her, which you fucking love.
“Maybe so, maybe more. Either way, I’m sure it’ll work out,” your girlfriend comments and relaxes - and so do you, drifting into companionable silence.