Featuring Kristen Bell and Hayden Panetierre of the TV series "Heroes."

It had been a successful season for Heroes, and the series had been renewed for the next season, so Kristen Bell couldn't figure out why she was so depressed. She watched from the far end of the room as the rest of the cast and crew drank and caroused, or split into small, intimate groups, bragging about past conquests and future plans. Kristen pulled her arm around herself more tightly. She excused the action by telling herself that she was cold, which might have been only a slight exaggeration. Not for the first time, she regretted having chosen her gown before she had discovered the production company was throwing its celebration in an Alaskan hunting lodge, and her own stubbornness for not changing into something more appropriate, or at least warmer.

Kristen had positioned herself carefully at the edge of the room where she could interact with anyone who might be inclined to engage her in conversation, but not so exposed as to be in the way of people moving from one tight group to another. She had no patience with the forced niceties that prevailed at these events. Part of her wanted to simply leave and return to her room, but part of her wished someone, anyone, would come and talk to her.

Kristen slipped farther back into the shadow of one of the timber columns holding up the open-beamed ceiling and her body went rigid when she felt fur brushing up against her bare back. Glancing behind her, she let out her breath in a relieved sigh when she saw it was nothing more than one of the many stuffed game animals that had been pushed towards the walls to make room for the festivities.

"Don't worry, he won't bite you."

Kristen gasped and dropped the glass from her hand as she spun around.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," said Hayden Panettiere.

Kristen forced herself to restore the frozen smile she had been holding all evening.

"I was just…" she stammered. "I wasn't…" Finally, she took a breath and said, "It was just the fur. It's silly."

"You dropped your drink," said Hayden, warmly. "Can I get you another?"

Kristen saw Hayden's eyes sweep over her. She blushed in embarrassment to realize that Hayden probably thought her a fool for dressing in such a flimsy gown in the midst of an Alaskan night.

"No, really, that's okay," said Kristen. She made a careless gesture at herself, tilted her head and grinned. "I don't drink. I don't have the body mass for it. One drink and you'd have to be mopping my vomit off the floor." She blushed again, this time for her repulsive imagery. She expected Hayden to smile politely and leave, and was relieved when, instead, her young co-star smiled broadly.

"I'd kill to have a body like yours," said Hayden, "and you look like you were dipped in that gown." She looked at the thin silk that was cut so cannily that it gave the impression that a warm, red liquid had been poured across Kristen. It had already run off from her shoulders, leaving them bare except for the thinnest of trickles flaring into two narrow streams that covered only the highest parts of Kristen's low breasts before joining at a point below Kristen's navel. The confluent streams swept in silken rivulets down the length of Kristen's legs, leaving the outsides of her thighs exposed, but gathering at her feet in a crimson pool.

"It looks like syrup. I expect someone to come over and try to lick if off of you," she added.

Kristen blushed again, but this time it was with pleasure.

"Wearing that, you must have to beat the men off," said Hayden, her voice low and warm.

"You'd think," said Kristen. She gave a small laugh, hoping that Hayden wouldn't notice her sadness.

If her costar noticed, she gave no evidence of it, but backed herself against the pillar until her side was pressed lightly against Hayden's. She wasn't sure exactly why the girl had moved closer, but she was grateful for the warmth that seemed to radiate in waves from Hayden's body.

Hayden slipped her arm unobtrusively behind Kristen's body, and Kristen didn't pull away even as Hayden's hand slid across the small of Kristen's back and settled on her hip.

"Thanks," said Kristen. She wasn't exactly sure why she said it. She was grateful that Hayden had come over to talk to her, but in retrospect she wondered about her motives. Kristen knew she had the reputation of being only poor company, and she knew she deserved it. For reasons she couldn't even begin to articulate, she never felt comfortable in the easy flirtations that were expected on any film set. People avoided her, and she was alright with that, but she resented the possibility that Hayden was merely pitying her.

"So," she said brightly, "What do you have planned for your time off?"

"I'll visit my family in the Palisades," said Hayden, "and then I'll probably go up to Provincetown."

"Oooh, I love the Bahamas," cooed Kristen. "Anyplace that's warm!"

"It's in Massachusetts," corrected Hayden, "out on the Cape."

"Oh," said Kristen. "Oooohhhhh," she added, nodding her head. She now remembered hearing the design crew talking about their vacations in P-town.

"I don't think there's anything there for me," said Kristen, quickly.

"Why's that?" asked Hayden, giving no suggestion of any motive behind her question.

"Isn't that where all the gay people go?" asked Kristen. "I mean, like Fire Island for Bostonians."

"You have something against gays?" asked Hayden, giving Kristen a small smile.

Kristen blushed. She felt she should step away, but, she told herself, there was no harm in keeping warm. She reassured herself in her mind, "it's not like it's catching, or anything."

"No," said Kristen, smiling and tilting her head. "Like in this business, I could get away from it… them." She gave a small laugh and said, "Besides, it's not like I'm a lesbian or anything."

"Every woman's a lesbian," said Hayden. "Haven't you seen the studies? They did experiments and found that even the straightest of straight women responded to images of women having sex together."

"Yeah, but there are all kinds of ways to ‘respond,'" said Kristen, smiling.

"I think you understand what I mean," said Hayden. She had slipped her hand down the small of Kristen's back and slid her finger under the silk that barely covered Kristen's rear end.

"I thought you said you were cold," said Hayden, playfully.

"I am," protested Kristen.

"Not everywhere," said Hayden.

Kristen looked down the length of her body, suddenly feeling more naked than she had felt a moment before. Her eyes widened as she saw the tips of her nipples pressing hard against the thin fabric covering them. She knew it was just the cold, but she wished that they weren't so blatantly providing evidence for Hayden's innuendo.

"That's okay," said Hayden. She pulled her hand from beneath Kristen's dress and stepped away. The look on her face was calculatedly wistful as she briefly drew the tip of her finger beneath her nose and affected a longing inhalation.

Hayden turned to go, but Kristen grabbed Hayden's arm in both her hands and said, "Wait, I really wasn't trying to be unfriendly."

"You just want me to stay because I tend to put out a bit more heat than I need," said Hayden. "It's the curse of my ancestry. Just look at this body. I'm only nineteen and I'm already going to fat." She turned slowly in place. When her back was towards Kristen, she turned her head back and said over her shoulder, "Have you ever seen a bigger ass in your life?"

Kristen looked down at Hayden's rear end, which Hayden was playfully swaying back and forth.

"No," she said, "I mean, no, it's not that big." She blushed again and said, "Really, I think you look great… fabulous!" She meant it sincerely. Like most small girls, she had always looked at her more generously endowed friends with envy. Hayden had the figure that Kristen had always wished for. Without thinking, she reached her hand out and began to caress the ample curve of Hayden's rear end. The tip of her finger slipped into the small dip between Hayden's cheeks, dimpling in the rich fabric. When she realized what she was doing, she quickly pulled her hand away.

Hayden grabbed Kristen's hand in hers and then slid back against the column until the two women were again standing side-by-side and looking out across the gathered guests. She had pulled Kristen's hand behind her as she turned and now led it farther back until Kristen's fingers were again pressed up against the small depression between her cheeks. Pulling her own hand away, Hayden pressed back against the column, trapping Kristen's fingers in place.

Kristen glanced at Hayden. Her co-star continued to stare straight ahead as if nothing untoward were happening, but Kristen noticed that the low mounds of her chest were rising and falling more quickly than they had been a moment before. Kristen slid her fingers lower and then bent them forward until they slid between Hayden's thighs. She was amazed at how warm that small spot was as she began to work her small fingers back and forth.

The grin on Kristen's face broadened as she continued to stroke Hayden's crotch. She looked out across the crowd. Although from time to time a face was turned in their direction, no one seemed to have noticed what the two women were up to. Kristen couldn't even imagine ever working up the nerve on her own to indulge such a daring gambit in public, and when she looked at Hayden it was with a look of admiration.

Kristen let her eyes drift half-closed as she focused all of her attention on Hayden. She slipped her fingers tentatively deeper, and was rewarded by a small, involuntary moan from the girl. She felt Hayden's thighs part, granting Kristen's fingertips easier access. She moved her fingers back and forth across the thick brocade of Hayden's gown. Kristen suddenly resented the obstructing fabric, but then thought that its slight roughness might be even more effective than her own small, hard nails. Pressing upward, Kristen felt the fabric bunch, but then felt it suddenly yield as is slid between Hayden's lips. Hayden sucked in her breath, and Kristen felt a warm moistness penetrate the thick fabric.

For long minutes, Kristen plied her fingers in the service of her co-star's pleasure, altering her pace and adjusting the pressure in response to the small cues that Hayden's body was betraying even as she struggled to preserve a pose of nonchalance leaning against the pillar. Finally, Hayden tilted her head back and gave a stifled cry that she masqueraded as a yawn and relaxed against the pillar.

"I've got to lie down," she whispered warmly.

"Here?" asked Kristen in surprise. She felt no incentive to withdraw her hand from where it was locked between Hayden's thighs.

"I know a place," said Hayden. "Why don't you come with me."

"I don't know," said Kristen, slowly shaking her head.

"Okay, but I'm afraid there won't be anyone left to keep you warm once I'm gone," said Hayden as she slowly moved away from the pillar. She slipped her hand behind her back and repositioned Kristen's hand around her waist.

"I'll go with you, but just to make sure you're alright," said Kristen.

"I'm more than alright," said Hayden. "If I wasn't afraid you'd be scandalized, I'd kiss you right in front of everyone."

Kristen blushed, but at the moment, she wouldn't have fought off that kiss.

"Come on, you direct and I'll steer," said Kristen, slipping her arm around Hayden's waist. She hoped that anyone looking on might assume Hayden had had too much to drink and needed to be helped to her room.

When they had made their way to a back hallway, Hayden indicated a door and said, "In here. Without your finger up my snatch, I'm starting to get chilled. I think we both need warming."

Kristen looked at the door that was clearly marked "Employees only."

"Should we really go in here?" she asked.

"Should you be going into any small, private room with a strange woman?" asked Hayden, playfully.

"I don't think you're strange," said Kristen. She felt she needed to say something and it was the most non-committal response she could come up with.

Hayden pushed the door open and pulled Kristen in behind her.

"What is this place?" asked Kristen, looking around at the deep piles of furs. The room was dimly lit by a single incandescent bulb, and smelled of leather, and animal.

"It's where they store the pelts before mounting them for sale to the tourists," said Hayden. I stumbled upon it in my explorations.

"You're an explorer, then," said Kristen, laughing lightly.

"Don't you ever get the urge to explore?" asked Hayden, sliding down into a pile of furs and pulling Kristen down beside her.

"They're soft," said Kristen, in seeming surprise. She snuggled into the mound and pulled a large tanned reindeer hide over herself. "And warm!" she exclaimed.

"The hairs are hollow," said Hayden. "That's why reindeer don't get cold in the arctic." She undid the simple fastenings on her dress and shimmied out of it. "You'll get too hot under here dressed like that."

Kristen felt Hayden's fingers slip under the thin straps of her gown and work them over her shoulders. There was a moment of roiling under the hides, but after a few moments, Kristen felt her gown slip off of her.

"It feels wonderful!" said Kristen in surprise as the millions of soft filaments swept across her skin. "I never knew anything could feel this good!" The kiss of the furs was like countless small tongues licking across her body. She wriggled against the furs, savoring the sweep of warmth and softness against her.

"Oh god! Oh god!" she exclaimed. She was afraid she was going to orgasm from the primal sensation.

"Whoa! Slow down!" murmured Hayden. "I'm not done with you yet."
"What are you talking about?" asked Kristen, pulling her head from beneath the covers and sucking in the cool air. Almost as quickly, she sank down again and said, "Oh god! What are you doing!"

Beneath the covers, Hayden had her mouth pressed against Kristen's breast, sucking her hard nipple between her lips and gently biting at it. Her other hand had slid up and was locked gently but firmly around the back of Kristen's neck.

"When animals mate, the female gets held down to keep her from escaping," whispered Hayden as she pulled Kristen's head back down and under the covers.

Kristen's mind raced. She had never felt so exposed – so captured – so female. It didn't matter to her that Hayden was also a woman. She responded instinctively to the press of flesh upon flesh, to the hot breath against her breast, to the small teeth that brought the hint of pain with their inescapable pleasure.

Beneath the furs, Kristen let her arms and legs fall aside, opening herself to anything that Hayden wanted to do to her. Her eyes were closed, and she didn't open them when she felt a tongue sweep across her lips and then thrust itself into her mouth. It might have been any animal intent upon having its way with her. To Kristen all that mattered was the pure sensation. She opened her mouth to Hayden's use, her tongue returning the intrusion lick for lick. She gasped for air as the lips pulled away, but a moment later, they reappeared on the softness beneath her arm. The mouth took her fingers one by one into its moist warm recess. The teeth reasserted themselves on Kristen's soft flesh, and Kristen would have born no regrets if they had consumed her. Kristen felt Hayden's own soft hair mingle with the furs as it swept in gentle caress across her chest. Hayden's tongue burrowed like a questing creature into Kristen's navel, and Kristen clutched the furs in her fists and arched her back in pleasure.

Hayden's tongue swept lower, licking at the spider-silk-fine hair at Kristen's crotch. Kristen cried out, the gentle pull of her hair commuting directly to her groin and making her swollen labia spasm.

"I can't take…" gasped Kristen.

Hayden's tongue slipped lower, drove with unexpected force between her thighs, and then plunged upward like a hot, hard shaft impaling Kristen's clitoris before expanding around it and engulfing it.

"What are you doing to meeeeee………" screamed Kristen as she half-rose from the mound of covers like a newborn creature emerging from its nest into the cold sunlight. As quickly, she sank back into the covers and wrapped her arms tightly around Hayden's sweat-drenched body.

"I want to go to Provincetown with you," she whispered into Hayden's ear, but the girl was already drifting off into pleasant dreams and merely snuggled her face contentedly against Kristen's breast.