Maybe one day. When Sveta was not dealing a million reality-altering things at once, when New York felt like a safe place to bring her sister to. One day. But in the meantime, at least she was well cared for, back home. And she did not have to deal with arranged marriages and a horrible dating life.

>>"Oh, I don't know. Your luck's turned around quite a bit; pillar of the mutant community, influential, CEO, and now you have an amazing partner in crime,"

Sveta smiled, drinking. Most of those, she lucked into by accident. She didn't even know yet if she wanted to be any of them. Well, except for Zselyke. Having her as a partner in crime was really a blessing. She was just not sure about the other things.

>>"Unless you mean your luck with men. That sounds like it's been properly shite from what you've told me."

"Men are useless." Sveta nodded in agreement. "The ones that don't try to stalk you or kill you will dump you, ghost you, accidentally almost melt your face, or decide they want to go back to being a teenager and then they end up as your company's head of security." she snorted. "I'd say the only way to go from here is up, but I know better."

Sveta needed to give herself more credit. She was strong, competent, and people could rely on her. She could downplay how she got into her position, but she lived a life of challenges, coming through the other side with experiences most people could not imagine. The more Zselyke got to know her young friend, the more she admired her.

The blatant way Sveta called men useless had Zselyke almost snort mid-sip. The way she recalled her past romantic experiences played out like lessons learned from horror stories. She would have to ask the details of some of those eventually. "Men are the worst," she agreed. "Sometimes I wonder why I was cursed to be bisexual. I blame that sense of attraction on my lizard brain. My base instincts. Not that there aren't some problematic women; my first girlfriend did cheat on me after I moved to the US to see her."

Zselyke downed her drink and looked back at the stage where a dancer was ending her performance and attendants were collecting the cash strewn about the stage for her. "I was worried that experience could have spoiled me on women or dating in general, but..." She trailed off, watching the victorious dancer walking away, swaying in all the right ways. Dreamily, Zselyke added, "Women."

"Next to the stage, give a warm welcome to our favorite girl next door, Bubbles!"

Zselyke's ears perked up. "Oh hey, I think your little girlfriend's on next."

Sveta knew that her list of cursed relationship was probably a lot to digest for... people without experiences like that. She'd had some bad boyfriends even before she left Russia, and the streak continued in the US too. She'd had her fair share of heartbreak. Zselyke knew that.

>>"Men are the worst. Sometimes I wonder why I was cursed to be bisexual. I blame that sense of attraction on my lizard brain. My base instincts. Not that there aren't some problematic women; my first girlfriend did cheat on me after I moved to the US to see her."

Sveta frowned. It would have been to easy to think she could swear off men and just start dating women instead. Women were messy too. Hell, humans were messy.

>>"I was worried that experience could have spoiled me on women or dating in general, but... Women."

"Women" Sveta smirked, following Zselyke's gaze. She... couldn't exactly relate, but she was happy to be in someone's company who was at ease with her attractions.

>>"Next to the stage, give a warm welcome to our favorite girl next door, Bubbles!"

>>"Oh hey, I think your little girlfriend's on next."

"My what now?" Sveta arched an eyebrow, and turned to look at the stage. Bubbles. Right. "I think she realized I was a lost cause. Good for her."

The other girls liked to say Madison's charm was always on, like something innate. They were not wrong, but she did turn it on harder when she was putting in the time, working her charm trying to sell lap dances, which she did after her first dance on stage. As far as she could tell, that was the way to get attention. If she had a good dance, people would notice her as she walked from table to table, chatting people up and getting them to ask for a private dance. There was still a particular patron she was curious about, but Madison was not going to spend her time and potential money barking up the wrong tree on a vibe.

Madison took some time backstage to run through her first dance in her head as she added to her outfit. Not all of her dance was scripted, but some of the pole dancing parts were. As the night went on, any dancer gets tired, and the pole dancing gets less acrobatic and more booty-shakey. But for that first dance, she’d give it a whole effort.

The stage was a performance, and Madison prepared by getting herself into a new headspace. Someone sultry yet playful, teasing yet accessible. She was the girl next door, and she could rock a role like that. Loosening up her shoulders one last time, Bubbles was ready when the DJ called her name.

Continued ???

Zselyke was ready, smiling like a fool when Sveta returned to the table. She had done Sveta the favor of ordering her a double whiskey sour to help her come down from whatever she had seen and felt so close to Bubbles and her show. "Now was that so bad? she teased. "A new experience never hurts. Now you can die knowing what it feels like to have a gorgeous younger woman more or less offer herself to you. Not that I'd know anything about that," she added, sipping her drink with a smug sense of validation. Even Sveta could blush. And by the gods, was she red.

Throw money. Enjoy show.

Well, that was largely unhelpful. But also, not hard to follow.
Sveta placed a few more bills on the stage while Bubbles did more acrobatic dancing. It was sort of mesmerizing, how a girl that young had so much sensuality in her movements. Sveta watched, slowly relaxing into her role as a spectator. She was vaguely aware that Zselyke was spectating her.

Once the dance was over, she returned to the booth, where he friend's smile told her she had been right.

">>Now was that so bad? A new experience never hurts. Now you can die knowing what it feels like to have a gorgeous younger woman more or less offer herself to you. Not that I'd know anything about that,"

"Well, it was definitely more pleasant than how most men offer themselves to me" Sveta grinned, signaling for a new drink. She was still more than a bit flushed, and she was sure Zselyke saw it. "So, what now?"

There were different ways to be overwhelmed, and Zselyke had never seen Sveta affected by sexuality. Given what she explained about her past, Bubbles was far outside of Sveta's element. And she may have stood awkwardly at first, but the way she responded to the dancer's body... Zselyke could be wrong, but she wouldn't call it discomfort.

"Well, you've been a trooper and I'm thoroughly amused, so you're free to retire from the stage for the night," she joked. "I'm down for some drinks with my friend. It's nice not having anything serious to worry about tonight."

Letting the influence of alcohol seep into her, Zselyke nudged Sveta playfully, immediately losing luster from her dress as the color transferred into several colorful illusionary plants on the table. "So Little Miss Bubbles managed to do what SUPER and the criminals of New York couldn't; knock Svetlana Sergeyeva off balance. And here I thought bride school taught you how to be sexy and composed?

>>"Well, you've been a trooper and I'm thoroughly amused, so you're free to retire from the stage for the night. I'm down for some drinks with my friend. It's nice not having anything serious to worry about tonight."

Sveta sighed and settled back into her plush seat. The night had already been an adventure. She was happy to be here with a friend, and with all the good-natured teasing, she knew Zselyke was not going to push her into anything she did not want. Her friend nudged her, and her powers immediately acted up in a display of colors.

>>"So Little Miss Bubbles managed to do what SUPER and the criminals of New York couldn't; knock Svetlana Sergeyeva off balance. And here I thought bride school taught you how to be sexy and composed?

"I'm off balance quite a lot. I'm just good at keeping up appearances." Sveta admitted. She had been winging it basically since Devon's disappearance; one could have said, most of her life. "And bride school never prepared me for... well, this. I was supposed to be arm candy. I can listen to people talk about investments with a blank smile for basically ever." she chuckled, demonstrating her best vague-smile bimbo impression.

When Zselyke thought of Sveta, she didn't think of an off balance woman out of her depth. She saw her friend as a badass who found ways to work through whatever challenges she ran into. She was managing to hold Haven together without Devon, and not only had she found a way to deal with the SUPER problem, she found an unlikely in with the organization. "You need to give yourself more credit, dear."

Socially, Sveta was prepared to be something for the consumption of men and the male gaze. The smile she added at the end, perfectly suited for a country club brunch, made Zselyke shiver. "Okay, now I'm the one off balance. It's like you were pod personed for a moment."

Drinking and making eye contact with a dancer across the club, Zselyke considered Sveta's experiences. "When sexuality is something you're trained to offer men, I'm guessing it's quite the change to see femininity and sexuality with no men involved. Just you and a very soft, touchable co-ed." The dancer who caught Zselyke's eye was casually making her way across the club, but if Zselyke were a betting woman, she probably had the offer of a private dance in her future.

I "And bride school never prepared me for... well, this. I was supposed to be arm candy. I can listen to people talk about investments with a blank smile for basically ever." she chuckled, demonstrating her best vague-smile bimbo impression.

>> "Okay, now I'm the one off balance. It's like you were pod personed for a moment."

Sveta grinned. She still had some of her mostly useless skills from way back then. And she sometimes forgot how none of that had been normal to begin with. Even though it felt normal to her.

>>"When sexuality is something you're trained to offer men, I'm guessing it's quite the change to see femininity and sexuality with no men involved. Just you and a very soft, touchable co-ed."

"It was the before times. Maybe she has expended the market since then, and offers trophy spouses for all genders" Sveta grinned. She caught Zselyke's gaze at one of the dancers. They were not done with the entertainment just yet. "So, that's your type, then? Young and with lots of boob?"

Zselyke chuckled, holding her tongue at the urge to accuse Sveta of selecting. "You may have noticed, but I'm not exactly lacking in the boob department, so I've got no preferences there." Would she turn away a girl like Bubbles? Certainly not, though the dancer on her way across the club was more bottom-heavy. "My 'type' is women. I don't know; it is easy to be picky with men, but women are a different story. I just like to leave myself open to the experience, so to speak.

The dancer with the dark complexion approached from behind Zselyke's seat, leaning in toward the Senator's ear with a very tempting offer. Zselyke bit her lower lip, considering it. Still, there was another woman she wanted to spend time with today. "Tempting, but come back to me in an hour? My friend and I are enjoying a chat, but I promise to save my first dance for you."

If the dancer was disappointed, she his it well. She'd be back, because Zselyke made no effort to hide her wallet so far tonight. Zselyke raised her glass to Sveta. "I say we try to make a drinking game out of our dating histories?"

Drinking games and dating histories went well together. Which was kind of awful, if one thought about it sober, but the two of them were a few drinks in now, so they talked and laughed a lot, trying to top each other's stories about horrible dates and ill-fated relationships. Maybe, Sveta thought, that was the healthy was of doing it. Or maybe she was just getting drunk.

And hour ticked by. Dances followed one another on the stage with all kinds of dances, some more spectacular than others. Money was thrown around, the music was good, and people were generally letting go of their daytime worries for the sake of enjoying the show. Sveta smiled too, relaxing into the environment.

The dancer that had approached Zselyke before returned with a new round of drinks, and a renewed offer, or so it seemed. Sveta smiled at her friend.

"You can go... do whatever, if you want. I'll be fine. I think we have maxed out the heart-to-heart for one night."

Zselyke was feeling good. Turns out when you bring together two women with colorful dating histories, the drinking game you create is next level. When her dancer, Karma, returned to the table, Sveta gave her the go ahead to procure a dance.

Zselyke had to remember not to kiss her cheek for it. "Thank you!" she replied in her okay-est Russian. "When I return, we can head home and so much heart to heart, you don't even know." And with that, she let the dancer lead her by the hand to a private room.

Madison was having a fruitful night. Her second stage dance was not as flashy as her first, but people ate it up anyway. Most strip club-goers were not pole technique experts and many were just fine with some shimmying and ground work.

After her first dance, she gave the VIP table some space because she may have been a bit extra, even for a straight woman. There were other clients to occupy and late into the evening, she was actually sitting at a table, ironically near Svetlana and the Senator.

And the potential customer was... okay. Not everyone was going to be dreamy and polite. This guy was a finance guy, based on the long, enthusiastic lecture he was giving. For such a successful businessman, he was being stingy around Bubbles and her hints toward a dance. For now, all she could do was put on her best vague, blank smile and nod. Men rarely questioned the bimbo mode smile.

Zselyke ran away to a private room with a dancer as happily as a child given permission to have an extra helping of cotton candy. Sveta smiled and shook her head, happy her friend was enjoying herself. She sat back in the plush seat of the booth, sipping her drink, looking around at nothing in particular.

"Now, I shouldn't be even telling you this, but that investment, if you are in the know..."

Sveta arched an eyebrow, turning to glance at the nearby table. Bubbles (more dressed than the last time she saw her) was sitting there with some guy with a loose tie and a suit, wearing her very best bimbo smile. Uh-oh. That could not be good. She could see other dancers entertaining guests, or taking the stage, or leading people to VIP rooms, but in this case, it seemed like the guy thought he was doing the entertaining. And he was very wrong.

Sveta smirked at Bubbles over the man's shoulder, and made her best vague bimbo smile, blinking with large, innocent eyes while framing her face with her hands.