Disclaimer: All characters are owned and copyrighted by Marvel Comics Group. No infringement for profit is intended.

Notes: Originally posted in 2001, this is a loose sequel to "An Afternoon Off." Spoilers for Amazing Spider-man #121.

Scarlet's Cove is a creation of Ann Douglas. I'm just borrowing the club for my stories – as an homage to me inspiration for writing femslash.

Part 1

Questions

Gwendolyn Stacy arrived home to the Queens house she shared with her father, Captain George Stacy, NYPD. She had just left work after a long, slow day and was still in uniform, as Peter jokingly referred to her designer dress.

She smiled when she thought of her boyfriend, Peter Parker. He was such a surprise to the girl. So shy and reserved but with an underlying passion and commitment. And he was a wonderful lover. She had determined that personally just before high school graduation.

She supposed she loved him, as much as any high school graduate could. She knew he was the first boy she really felt any attraction to. And he was the one who had taken her cherry.

Peter was home, quite upset as his Aunt May was in the hospital again. Gwen went over to give him a shoulder to cry on. As they sat and talked, she leaned in and kissed him. Before either teenager was aware of what was happening, Peter was inside Gwen. The feelings he created in her wiped out any pain from her broken hymen. And he somehow was able to hold his own orgasm in check until she had come twice.

They had made love two other times since then. One time, they made love beneath the Boardwalk at Coney Island. The other time, Peter had borrowed Harry Osborne's car and they had driven out to Montauk. Both times they were more careful, Peter using condoms to prevent any surprises for them.

Tonight was going to be special. First, Peter was taking her to dinner and then dancing. Afterward, they would come back here and make love all night in a real bed, like regular people. She had the house to herself, her widower father was out of town for several days at a conference. She hoped it would be as good as the other times. She fervently hoped she wouldn't feel like something was missing, as she had on the two most recent times.

At that thought, the smile dropped from her face. She was confused, terribly confused. A little over a month before this potentially special night, shortly after she started working at Karen's Boutique, a very unusual situation developed.

Karen's is an upscale shop in Manhattan. Gwen had started there part-time as a sales clerk, mainly on weekends. Since graduation, she had been working full time. She loved the job, it gave her a chance to see some of the latest fashions from the European design centers. And she had to admit the pay was quite good, even when she was working part-time.

Karen had set up the shop to cater to a particular clientele, the rich and elite. Though often snobs, there were the occasional customers who treated Gwen as more than just a servant or door mat. Such a couple had come in that day last month.

She had been hanging some of the newest Halston originals as a pretty blonde and an equally attractive brunette came into the store. She directed them to the spacious dressing rooms towards the back after they selected some clothing to try on.

She soon heard muffled groans and cries coming from the room they were in. She became concerned and asked several times if they needed any help only to be told that everything was fine. Finally, Gwen went to the store manager, Marie Granicos. But, in all that time, the dressing room was never out of Gwen's sight for more than a few seconds at a time.

As Marie prepared to open the door to the dressing room in question with her master key, the door fell open at her touch. They looked in but could see no one. There was only the one door, so where could the women have gone?

Marie yelped and jumped back as if she'd been stung. As Gwen stepped forward to offer assistance, the young blonde felt a slender hand gently squeeze her breast as a light electric shock zapped her other breast, sending a tingle down to her suddenly damp core. She heard a whispered "Thank you" and felt soft lips press against hers and a tongue slip in to caress her tongue.

Her heart skipped several beats because there was no one there! Nothing but the lingering scent of sandalwood and something else. Something earthy and musky.

Later, after she and Marie had calmed down, she went into the dressing room to gather the clothing the women had taken in there. She noticed a very distinctive aroma in the air. Gwen recognized the scent, it was similar to what lingered on her fingers after she secretly masturbated herself to sleep. And it was one of the scents that she had noticed after the phantom kiss.

Since that very strange incident, she had not noticed anything else unusual at the store and Marie patently refused to discuss it. As Marie had been reluctant to call the police, the incident was easily hushed up. As far as the manager was concerned, the event never occurred.

That was far from the case for the lovely teenager from Queens. Gwen had been having erotic dreams since the incident, sometimes more than one in a night. These dreams always involved some unknown or invisible woman making love to her. These dreams always ended with her in the throes of an orgasm that roused her from her slumber. When that happened, Gwen was too keyed up to sleep and ended up giving herself another, if not as intense, orgasm before she was able to drift off to sleep again. One night she fingered herself to three separate orgasms!

Gwen felt a pleasant tingling between her legs as she remembered those torrid nights alone. Deciding to deal with the insistent itch, Gwen went into the living room and sat on the sofa. Flipping up the short skirt, she slipped her hand under the waistband of her panties.

Feeling the damp heat, she began to slide her fingers up and down the soft, protruding lips before slipping two of them into her hot center. As she penetrated herself, she gave voice to a little cry of pleasure.

Gwen pumped her fingers in and out of her pussy. With her other hand, she began to flick the tip of her clitoris as it slipped out of its protective hood.

While she was pleasuring herself, Gwen pictured several different people naked. All women. And the one image that she knew was accurate from the locker room was the center of her masturbatory fantasy.

Just as she was about to reach her climax, the phone in the hallway began to ring. Gwen decided to let the ringing act as a counterpoint to her orgasm.

Just as her climax was about to break over her, the answering machine picked up and she heard her father's voice. It acted like a bucket of cold water on the aroused teenager.

Guiltily she pulled her hands out of her panties and got up off the couch. Her legs were unsteady but she made it to the hallway and picked up the receiver of the phone next to the answering machine the NYPD had supplied her father.

"Dad?" Gwen said in a relatively steady voice. "How's Chicago?"

George Stacy was in Chicago at a conference of city, state, and federal law enforcement professionals. It was a four day event to discuss the rise in super-powered beings and what, if anything, can be done to protect normal human beings.

The voice in the receiver was slightly distorted by the distance, "Its okay. I think my time would be better spent back home on the job. How's work?"

"Things are great at the store." She hadn't mentioned the incident to her father, and now she was glad of it. "Peter's coming by in a little while though. He's taking me out to dinner then dancing," Gwen replied happily, glad her father couldn't detect anything unusual in her voice. She felt a fresh pang of guilt when she detected her own essence on her fingers while talking to her father.

"That's great, honey! Well, I won't keep you. I'll be here for the next four days. You have the number for the Palmer House if you need to get in touch with me. See you when I get back. Love you!" George Stacy said.

Gwen, constantly aware of her scent on the fingers holding the receiver, said, "I love you too, Dad. Have a good time!"

As she hung up, she was certain beyond any doubt that what she had smelled in the dressing room was the scent of an aroused woman. What were they doing in there? And where did they go? the young blonde wondered yet again. Well, I think I know what they were doing but where could they go?

Then she saw the clock and realized she didn't have much time until Peter came by for her. Tonight was going to be special!

As she went upstairs to shower and change, she considered trying to recapture the moment that her father had inadvertently interrupted. She decided against it as she didn't have enough time before Peter's arrival. And he could certainly help cure her itch.

Peter. She was confused, she tried to picture him when she masturbated but her thoughts kept going back to those women. And one redheaded woman in particular.

Standing under the warm spray, she tried to remember Peter naked. Gwen found that unless she concentrated, the image would slip away to be replaced by the image of a naked Mary Jane Watson.

Shaking her head, Gwen stepped out of the shower and began to towel herself off. Dimly, through the mist on the large mirror, she saw herself. What Gwen saw was quite pleasing. She rubbed the towel between her legs, trying to dry the darker blonde hair there, but merely increasing her arousal.

She slid her fingers down there and found she was really wet now, and not from the shower. Knowing she could achieve several orgasms in a night, Gwen decided to try to quickly relieve some of the sexual tension or her panties would be soaked all night!

Going into her room, she reclined on the bed and, realizing time was limited, moved her fingers rapidly in and out of herself. Using her thumb, Gwen also manipulated her clitoris until she came with a loud shout. She lay on the bed, breathing heavily, until she was calm enough to finish getting ready.

After another quick shower to wash the passion-induced sweat from her body, Gwen pulled on the black, lacy bra that she had been almost too embarrassed to buy at the store. The matching panties barely covered her, front or back. Since her legs were already quite smooth and soft, she opted to forgo any panty hose.

Pulling on a sexy little number that barely went below her crotch, Gwen admired herself in the mirror. "Look out, Peter! I'm almost too sexy for you!"

Gwen threw her long blonde hair back and laughed. Peter's eyes will be popping out of his head when he sees her.

As she headed back downstairs, the phone started ringing. Gwen picked up the receiver with a happy note in her voice, "Hello?"

"Hi Gwen. It's Peter."

"Hi Peter! How are you?"

"Terrible actually. Gwen, I'm sorry." Hearing the buzz of the press room in the background, Gwen suddenly knew the night was not going to happen. "Jolly Jonah wants me to go with Ben Urich to the docks. He seems to think that major smuggling operation is going to get busted tonight and wants to scoop the Times and the Daily News. And with pictures. I told him no but then he promised a big bonus if I get good pics. And that could help with Aunt May's prescription costs. I'm real sorry, Gwen. Maybe tomorrow night?"

Gwen was frowning and said, "That's okay, Peter. I didn't feel that good today. I wasn't really interested in going out tonight anyway. I was going to call you to cancel but you beat me to it."

Peter laughed and said, "Gwen, you're a horrible liar. And I'm really sorry. Why not call MJ? See what she's doing? I gotta go babe, Ben's getting a cab downstairs. I'm sorry."

"You have no idea how sorry you should be, mister," Gwen mumbled into the dial tone.

Replacing the receiver, she thought about changing into jeans and going to the movies. Alone? she thought. No, not the movies.

As she thought about her options, Gwen thought about what Peter had said about her calling Mary Jane. Peter could never seem to understand that they weren't friends, they barely even said hello to each other.

But still, the idea wouldn't go away. She paced from the living room into the kitchen and back. She turned on the TV, but there was nothing on worth watching.

"What am I doing?" Gwen said aloud. "Before I started dating Peter, I was the life of the party! Just because he has to go sit outside some dank waterfront warehouse all night is no reason I should be stuck here!"

After calling several of her friends, Gwen was struck by the realization that she was just about the only person in Queens, maybe the whole city, who didn't have plans for the night.

Frustrated, Gwen sat on the couch and closed her eyes. Falling into a light doze, the image of Mary Jane Watson came to her again. The girl was dancing, her hips swinging to an unheard beat. The beautiful redhead was in a short go-go skirt but parts started to fall away until she was just in white go-go boots. Gwen smiled at the sexy figure of Mary Jane in her mind, the full breasts, the neat triangle of red hair between her legs, the tight ass. "Mmm, yeah. Oh baby..."

When she heard herself speak, Gwen's eyes jerked open and she sat up straight. Feeling the growing dampness in her crotch, she knew she had to see Mary Jane. If only to dispel these images she kept seeing and to come to terms with her previously unknown desires.

Dialing the number of MJ's aunt, Gwen remembered for no reason that Anna Watson lived next door to May Parker. Did Peter try to peak into Mary Jane's room? Did Mary Jane try to look into Peter's room?

When the pleasant voice of Mary Jane's aunt answered, she told Gwen that her niece had already left for the evening. "She didn't have any plans but I made her go out. A young woman shouldn't be stuck home with her elderly aunt on a Friday night."

"Oh, Mrs. Watson, you're not elderly," Gwen replied.

"You're sweet dear but I do collect Social Security so…" They shared a laugh.

"Did she say where she was going?" Gwen asked, again feeling the evening slipping away.

"Yes, dear. I believe it was a club in the Village. The Pink Rabbit? No, that was years ago… Scarlet's Cove! That's it. Do you know it?" Anna Watson asked.

"Um, no ma'am."

"Were you two going to get together tonight? A girls' night out?"

"Well, not exactly. But I would like to talk to her."

Anna laughed, "Well, try that club, Gwen. Or the coffee shop nearby. I'm sorry but I can't remember its name."

"Thank you, Mrs. Watson," Gwen said after getting the address from the older woman.

"Anytime, dear," Anna Watson said as she hung up.

Gwen stood indecisively for several moments then grabbed her jacket and purse and, after locking the house, headed for the nearest train into the city.

A little over an hour and two subway lines later, exiting near the heart of Greenwich Village, Gwen looked around. She hadn't been down here for quite a while. And that was in the daytime. She had no idea where to go. The Village was much more expansive than she remembered.

A woman in black with short dark hair was walking towards her. Gwen stopped her and asked about the club. The woman smiled knowingly and directed her to a side street. The club was a block away.

Gwen thanked her, happy to learn she was near her destination, and walked in the direction indicated. She failed to notice the woman openly staring at her tight ass under the short, form-fitting dress.

Coming up a side street, she saw a small neon sign of two female buccaneers above a Miller Lite sign. Next to that was a small, neon pink rabbit that was dancing (like Snoopy, Gwen thought with a smile), and pointing down to the entrance. Swallowing her nervousness, Gwen walked up to the door and pushed it open.

Stepping into the entry way, Gwen saw a coat room to the right and a very large man in a tuxedo sitting in a heavily padded chair near the inner door.

He heaved himself to his feet and asked in a deep rumble, "Kin I he'p ya?"

Gwen had to clear her throat before responding, "I was looking for Scarlet's Cove?"

The walking mountain rumbled again, "Dis is da place."

"Hey Sweetcheeks," Gwen turned towards the cloak room and saw a pretty, young girl standing there.

"Yes?"

"Ignore Rocco. He's here to intimate the unwanted," the girl said, her jaw rapidly working on a piece of bubble gum. "Ya know, the kinda jerks we don't wan' any of in here."

Gwen walked towards the girl and asked, "Do you know if a redhead about my age came in?"

"Hon, with all the dishes in there, it's kinda hard to keep track, ya know? Here, gimme your coat and go on in. Af'er all, it's ladies night!" The girl snickered and Rocco barked out a loud "Ha!" that startled Gwen.

"It's always ladies night," the big Italian declared.

Gwen handed the girl her jacket and took a claim stub. At least they do that here. What have I gotten myself into? Why would Mary Jane Watson come here?

"Hey, Sweetie, if ya don't find yer friend, stop by. Maybe we could get together. My name's Candi, that's with an I, and I'm here 'til we close." Candi winked at Gwen as Rocco pulled the large inner door open.

"No ID required," Rocco rumbled.

Gwen stepped through and was suddenly surrounded by people and sound. The inner room was very large. Along the left side was a bar that extended most of the length of the room. In front and to her right she saw tables and, along the other wall, booths. Straight ahead, through the milling crowd was a crowded dance floor. The far wall was covered with a large mirror, giving the illusion that the room was even bigger.

God, this place is mobbed! I'll never find Mary Jane here! Gwen despaired, as she scanned the crowd. Looking towards the bar, she hesitated. There was a brunette sitting there that looked very familiar.

The brunette, who was talking to another pretty brown-haired woman, saw Gwen looking at her, hesitated, then waved. Gwen, completely lost and wondering why she ever left Queens, slowly walked over towards the bar.

As she came up to the two women, the first one said, "I know you. You're Peter's friend, um, wait...I know...Jen?"

Smiling shyly, Gwen shook her head, "No, it's Gwen. Gwen Stacy. Oh! You're Betty Brant, aren't you? You work with Peter?"

"Gwen! Of course, I'm sorry. How could I forget you?" Betty mock-hit herself in the forehead and continued, "Yes, I work at the Bugle. For J. Jonah, himself actually. Is this your first time to the Scarlet's Cove?" Gwen nodded and Betty went on, "Well, this will be quite an interesting night for you, I promise."

"Betty, aren't you going to introduce me to your pretty friend?" the other brunette said.

"I'm sorry, Jane. Gwen Stacy, this is Jane Foster. Jane, this is Gwen."

Gwen shook Jane's hand and felt the woman's fingers trail along her palm as they released their grip. Gwen felt a not unpleasant thrill at that.

"Jane works as a dental assistant uptown," Betty said to Gwen.

"Yes, it's a glamorous job, but someone has to do it!" Jane said as all three laughed.

"I work at Karen's on 5th Avenue. But I'll be starting at Empire State in September," Gwen offered.

"Please sit with us," Jane offered, as she moved over to the next seat. "What would you like to drink? Maybe wine?"

Gwen nodded her thanks as she sat down between the two women then replied, "Oh, no. I'm underage. Thank you anyway. Maybe just a Coke."

Betty placed her hand on Gwen's shoulder and gave her a gentle squeeze, and said, "That's alright dear. This is a special evening. And a special place." Then she signaled the bartender, a cute redhead wearing a blouse opened down to her navel, exposing a lot of lightly tanned skin.

"Jess, can you get my friend here a white wine? Jane? Need anything?"

Jane smirked and said, "Yes, but even here I don't think I can get it at the bar..."

"Tease! I meant a drink." Jane shook her head and looked out across the room as Betty turned back to the barmaid. "I guess that's it Jess. Just the wine."

Betty turned back to Gwen, "I didn't think you were into this scene, Gwen. Of course, until Jane and I roomed in college, I never would have guessed she was into it too."

Gwen, unsure of what Betty was talking about, said, "I'm just looking for a friend."

"Aren't we all, dear?" Jane said as she placed her hand on Gwen's, patting it lightly for a moment before lifting it away.

Gwen's brow was knitted in confusion as Betty said to Jane, "Look, there's Sue Storm. Who's she with?"

Jane followed Betty's eyes and replied, "I think that's Janet Van Dyne. They've been here together several times. Wonder if Reed Richards knows where his fiancé is tonight?

"There's that new girl, from the Greek embassy, I think," Jane said indicating a tall, dark-haired woman near the door. "I heard someone call her Electra last week. Do you think she's like a female Electro?"

"God, I hope not, one electrical psycho in town is..." Betty was interrupted by Jess as she delivered Gwen's drink. "Here, Jess. I've got it." Betty reached for her purse.

"First one's on the house," Jess winked at Gwen. "Just let me know if I can get you anything else. Anything!"

As Jess walked away, Jane said, "Oooo! Somebody likes you, Gwen."

"Uh, I'm not sure what..." Gwen took a deep drink of her wine then continued, "I don't understand. What is..."

Jane interrupted the teenager with, "Uh-oh! Look out! Here comes trouble."

All three looked at a tall blonde woman in what was essentially white leather lingerie and a white fur-trimmed cape. She had white spike-heeled thigh boots over white fishnet stocking and white leather gloves that stretched up past her elbow. Her shoulder length hair was shining in the light and her deep blue eyes promised fulfillment of many dark desires. With her was a slightly younger woman with hair that was almost white. She was wearing a black body suit with white fur along the plunging neckline and at the sleeves and cuffs.

"I see Emma Frost has a new playmate," Jane said.

Betty shook her head and said, "I think that's Felicia Hardy! I remember a spread in the Bugle's society page and she was in it. She's the daughter of one of the richest men in New York. I guess the rich are different!"

Jane and Betty shared a knowing laugh as Gwen began to understand what this club was. She quickly scanned the crowd and realized that, while there were some women in men's suits, there were no men anywhere in the club. Just women. Women of all ages and races. Women talking and laughing, women dancing slowly and sensuously together, women in dark booths who were obviously kissing!

"Uh, Betty? This is a lesbian club, I think," Gwen whispered to the woman on her left, as if warning her.

Betty Brant laughed and said, "Of course it is, hon! What did you...Oh! You didn't know?"

Jane Foster chimed in "Oh my God! You came here without knowing what kind of club this is?"

"Well, I was looking for a friend of mine and her aunt told me she was here. I guess I..."

Betty stopped her with a gentle touch on her arm. "Gwen, this is a semi-private club. You see, many of these women here are public figures and we all have reputations, careers, lives that could be destroyed if the existence of this club came out. Do you understand?" Gwen nodded. "Good. What I'm getting at is this: you won't say anything to anyone, will you?"

Looking into Betty's anxious eyes, Gwen thought for a moment then replied, "No. I won't tell a soul. I guess, deep down that's why I came here." Gwen felt the truth of that statement as she said it. She did come to find Mary Jane and explore her unvoiced dreams.

"Thank you." Betty leaned towards Gwen and kissed her gently on the lips. "Have you ever been with another woman?"

Gwen shook her head but then said, "Well, I'm not sure. See, a few weeks ago at Karen's..." She proceeded to tell Jane and Betty about the nearly supernatural incident that had, apparently, awakened her interest in women.

When she finished, Jane pointed to a couple on the dance floor who were locked in a passionate kiss as they swayed to the music. "Were they the women in the store?"

It was one of the couples the two women had been discussing earlier, Gwen realized. Then she remembered, "Oh my gosh! Yes, that's them! I'm almost certain they were the ones who went into the dressing room!"

Betty said, "Well, they aren't supernatural. Well, not exactly..." The pretty brunette went on to explain who the two were. As she mentioned their powers, it was like a light went on behind Gwen's eyes.

"Then, the zap was from the brunette, Janet Van Dyke, and the blonde, Sue Storm, kissed me?"

"I'd bet money on it," Betty said. "And it's Van Dyne, dear." The last was said with a smile at Gwen's unintentional faux pas.

A stunning blonde came up to them and said, "Hi, Betts. Hi Janey. I thought I'd never get done with Matt's dictation. And Foggy..." She shook her head with a bemused smile. "Oh, hi Jess. A vodka tonic, please. Who's the new chick?"

"Jeez, Karen. Take a breath between sentences," Jane said, rolling her eyes comically. "This is Gwen Stacy. Gwen, this is an old friend of ours from school, Karen Page."

"Pleased to meet you, Gwen," Karen said with a quick handshake. Scanning the crowd, she continued, "Hey, have any of you seen that hot redhead from Long Island? She was here last week and we shared a dance before she had to catch a train. But she said she'd be here this week and, well... Boy, can she kiss!"

Gwen looked up sharply at the mention of a redhead. Could she be talking about Mary Jane? If they had plans...

As Karen wandered towards the dance floor, Betty leaned towards Gwen, "So, do you see your friend?"

Gwen shook her head sadly, "No. Anyway, I guess your friend made plans with Mary Jane already."

"What? Oh no, Karen is talking about some woman named Ginger or Pepper or some spice kind of name. She works for some industrialist out on the Island." Betty paused and looked intently at Gwen's face, trying to read her mood.

Finally, Betty took Gwen's hand, softly kissed her, and said, "If you're interested, I'd be honored to show you how a woman makes love to a woman. You are so beautiful."

Gwen blushed and, while surprised, was happy and a little scared to discover that she was attractive to the slightly older woman.

Even as she replied, she realized how foolish it sounded considering where they were. "Betty, I thought you were..."

"Straight? Not exactly. See, many of us, probably most of us, are bisexual. Some, like that Emma Frost, are strictly girls-only." Betty paused as if considering her next comment then said, "You know, it would almost be fitting. A few years ago, before he started seeing you, I was Peter's first. I'd love to be yours, too."

Gwen stared at Betty, her mouth hanging open. Betty and Peter? Gwen thought, then she smiled and said, "Peter seemed to be a little more skilled than I thought he'd be. I guess I have you to thank."

Betty kissed Gwen again, this time passionately. While Betty's tongue explored Gwen's mouth, the young blonde decided she like kissing women.

Sitting back, Betty said, "You're welcome."

Jane shook her head and muttered, "You get all the hot ones... Hey, look, isn't that the president's press secretary? And the other woman looks familiar too..."

Betty and Gwen looked in the direction that Jane discreetly indicated. A lovely, older woman with beautiful silver-gray hair in a low-cut dress was chatting with an equally stunning Asian woman in a backless, red dress. They both appeared to be in their 50s but Gwen thought they were still in tremendous shape and quite sexy too.

"That's the assistant Chinese trade delegate to the UN, I think," Betty said, again using her work-acquired knowledge.. "Maybe this will improve relations..." All three chuckled at Betty's intended double entendre.

Just then, Karen came back with a couple of redheads in tow. Gwen smiled when she realized one was Mary Jane.

Mary Jane's eyes almost popped out of her head when she saw Gwen Stacy sitting at the bar. And with a very pretty brunette woman's arm draped around her shoulder.

"Gwen?"

"Hi, Mary Jane!" Gwen gushed. Turning, she said to the brunette, "Betty, this is Mary Jane. Mary Jane, this is Betty."

Taking Mary Jane's hand, Betty said, "It's a pleasure. So, you're the girl Gwen came here to find.." Her brown eyes roamed up and down the shapely figure, "I can understand why."

Karen was beaming and, from the looks she kept tossing the older redhead, quite interested in one of her new friends.

"Janey, Betts. This is Millie. Millie, these two are a couple of my old suitemates from school." Karen never took her eyes off the tall woman.

Gwen looked and recognized the woman from ads in various magazines like Vogue. It was Millie! She was the hottest model in New York, if not the world.

And she was here with Mary Jane!

Gwen felt her elation of a moment ago disappear. Mary Jane wouldn't be interested in her if she could be with either of these beautiful women. Gwen turned and looked down at her wine glass, sadness slowly growing inside of her.

A slender hand settled on her shoulder. "Gwen?" The hand gently pulled and caused the stool to rotate. "Gwen..." The young blonde found herself staring at a pair of pumps. Her eyes slid up from the shoes along the shapely legs and body to find Mary Jane looking at her with concern.

"Gwen, you came here looking for me?" Gwen nodded. Mary Jane took her hand and said, "Excuse me ladies. I'd like to have a word with my friend."

Leading the nervous girl to a recently vacated booth across the room, Mary Jane signaled to a waitress and ordered a Manhattan. Turning to Gwen, she asked, "Would you like a drink?"

Gwen smiled weakly and said, "Yes, please. A white wine. Thanks."

As they waited for their drinks, Mary Jane asked, "How did you know I'd be here?"

"Your aunt. I guess she thought it was a coffee house," Gwen replied and grinned when Mary Jane flashed her a dazzling smile.

Back at the bar, as Karen and Millie had progressed to holding hands, Betty sighed and said, "Oh well, that's life. Can't win 'em all..."

"It's not like you to give up so easily, Betty," Jane said. "You might just get your little blonde yet."

Betty smiled and said, "She's not mine, Jane. And anyway, I can tell. Those two have something..."

Watching as their blonde friend went back to the dance floor with her new companion, Jane offered, "Well, you can always come home with me. We can sit up and get drunk and cry on each others shoulder..."

Betty took Jane's hand and said, "You know, we never cry on each others shoulder. There's so much more fun we can have..."

Jane smiled knowingly, feeling a wonderful thrill that her old friend still found her desirable. "Let's go!"

As the two old friends and lovers headed for the exit, Betty glanced at the far booth. The look the redhead gave Gwen confirmed her suspicions. Now she could really enjoy the night's activities.

Post-note: When I originally posted this in various Yahoo Groups and some long-gone websites back in 2001, I did get some comments about the fact that I made all the Marvelverse women gay. The readers thought that made the story unbelievable. In a story with super-powered people, the gay factor was unbelievable? Really?

At any rate, those comments have stayed with me over the years and I've managed to avoid that for the most part (with the occasional lapse for a specific story). I decided, as with my other older stories, to leave them fairly untouched though so, if a lot of superhero lesbians bother you… Sorry!