CHAPTER SIX #2
Kana spoke up then, apparently having an easier time of finding the words than Torry was.
“Kade, you’re clearly aware of the process involved for people to adopt a dimari,” he said to Kade.
That instantly got him two solid points in his favour, firstly because he’d managed to work out what Torry was trying to say from her abortive rambling – which spoke of a partnership in which the participants knew each other very well – and secondly because he’d addressed the question directly to Kade, rather than to me.
“So according to Delliwari, most dimari are bought, rather than found.”
I knew exactly where he was going with this now, and they’d done a good enough job of expressing it that I once again decided to cut them some slack.
“Kade is entirely aware that dimari on Rendol 4 are found, rather than bought. He himself was found, and we’ve had some long conversations about that.
You can say whatever you need to in front of him. ”
Torry breathed an audible sigh of relief.
“Okay, good. I just didn’t want to go blundering in if he didn’t know that.
But Delliwari said that a dimari wants to believe that they’ve specifically been chosen and bought intentionally.
She said they get very upset if they’ve just been abandoned on a hill somewhere and some random person comes along to claim them. ”
“They do, indeed,” I confirmed, and I was impressed to find that Delliwari had remembered that information from my instruction manual and thought to pass it along.
Torry nodded. “So in Nol’s case, we fit neatly into that lie.
Because there’s three of us, from his perspective, it’s entirely plausible that we deliberately bought an erotic companion because – notionally – the three of us want to play more sexy games with each other and he’s got the skills to facilitate that.
Now, I want to make it absolutely clear,” she rushed on, “that being in a triad is not all about sex. It’s just the same as any normal couple, and it’s actually more hard work, because we have to do a lot of communicating to keep everything stable.
But I’m just trying to look at this from Nol’s perspective, fitting him into a life that he can be wholly invested in. ”
I nodded, the last of my worries easing.
“I’m very familiar with polyamory,” I told them.
“Conceptually, at least. Not in practice. And yes, I’m aware that it’s not all about sex.
And from what I’ve seen so far… Well, no, I’m just going to…
Kade, what are your thoughts so far?” I asked him.
I’d been about to wholeheartedly endorse this group as Nol’s new owner, but I caught myself just in time.
I wanted to hear Kade’s honest opinion first.
“Could you tell us a bit more about your usual bedroom activities?” Kade said, and despite the number of conversations I’d had of this nature, I still felt an automatic embarrassment at his question.
But at the same time, Kade had learned a lot about Alliance social norms, and he immediately went on to soften the question a bit.
“I don’t want explicit details,” he added.
“What I’m asking is more about the overall logistics.
Do all three of you participate at once, or just two at a time?
Would you include Nol in group activities, or one-on-one only?
How often would you be expecting Nol to participate in sexual activity?
Do you have any particular fetishes or toys?
I realise that one is a bit personal, but I’d like to make sure that Nol’s particular skills are suitable for your activities. ”
The three of them fumbled through their answers.
Yes, there would be whole group activities.
They were into some light bondage and role play.
They had a wide variety of sex toys. And at one point, Steve brought up the issue of consent, and asked how to determine whether someone who was programmed to say yes all the time might actually want to say no.
“There is one other important question,” I pointed out after a while, “and I’m not sure whether you would have given this any thought yet.
But the reality is that, regardless of the fact that you’re a triad, Nol can only bond with one person.
So you’re going to have to choose someone to be his official master.
Once Nol accepts the three of you as a family, he’ll happily and willingly obey and love all of you, but that will always come with the caveat that his master’s orders take precedence.
And if for any reason the three of you break up at some point in the future, Nol will stay with his bonded master. ”
Steve nodded at that. “We’ve already talked about that,” he said.
“And Torry would be the one to bond with him. She’s just the most reliable, I suppose,” he admitted with a shrug.
“The hope is that we’d never need to break up, but if it did happen, she’s probably got the best temperament for looking after a dimari on her own. ”
“You’re both in agreement with that?” I asked Kana and Torry, and they both nodded.
“All right, well I’m glad you’ve done your homework,” I said, feeling genuinely impressed now.
“Let’s move on to the next issue then, which is what Nol is going to be spending his time on when he’s not having fun in the bedroom… ”