Anonymous - Pauline

That night I took her into my bed. I talked to her for hours about my lovers; I told her I might call upon her to entertain me even when visited by my friends; I told her I was going to make some “great monster of a man” fuck her-and to all of this she willingly agreed.

Together we spent three weeks there, and then, feeling healthy and much refreshed, I returned to Pest.

The show reopened in a blaze of glory; I met all my old friends and many new ones. I received a call from Bernice and, naturally, I welcomed her with open arms. I thought her more beautiful than ever, and it was due to her efforts that I learned more about the inner life of our talented and wealthy Europeans.

During the course of her visit, I happened to mention that I had never seen the interior of a house such as hers. “Then why not pay me the honor of a visit to mine?” she said.

Anna, who was present, said, “Before going to Bernice's home, why not visit some of the other places first? Then you will appreciate the splendor and beauty of hers."

"A capital idea,” seconded her pretty sister. “I haven't had a real outing since you took sick."

And so it was arranged. But there was more to it than just getting up and going. All the places, as I was to learn, were not like the famed house Bernice maintained, and a visit to most of them required something more than just merely opening a door and entering.

And so it became necessary to make a certain amount of preparation for the night's fun, and the witty, fun-loving sisters provided the necessary answer to it. First, we needed to provide ourselves with men's attire. Also, we had to wear little masks and long black capes.

The following night after the show, we started out. All preparations having been made by the thoughtful girls, we entered a carriage that was waiting at the exit of the theater. I noted, too, that one preceded us while another followed. I said nothing of my suspicions for some time, but seeing that all three coaches maintained the same positions, I finally called attention to it.

Nina said, “Have no fears, my dear; just a little protection in case things get unruly."

It must be remembered, my friend, that at that time there were a great many houses operating in the various cities throughout Europe, and since the police were lax in their vigilance (it seemed to be general knowledge that the police owned many of them) it was only fair to assume that some of these dens housed the more criminal element who were forever on the alert to trap the less wily. Hence the two carriage-loads of masculine protection.

We visited five of these dens that night, and a few brief descriptions of them wouldn't be out of place here.

The first one, a den that was entered by descending a flight of stone steps, was of the more common type found throughout Pest. It was a cheap drinking place frequented by the lower class of girls who resided in the neighborhood, and where their favors could be purchased for drinks. There were no private rooms, no darkened corners where the couples might converse in private. Everything was done more or less openly and, as is common in such places, fights occurred with startling regularity. Enough of that place.

We had started, as one might guess, with visiting the more degraded places. The second one, while no less dangerous, was a little better. This was the meeting place for the working, or middle-class, girls and young men, and was less conspicuous. I mean that little rooms were provided, each with a curtain, and a steady parade of couples entered and left them.

You must think we looked strangely out of place, but keep in mind that we were wearing men's attire, masks, and long opera capes, and since members of the “upper class” were continually visiting these places, it wasn't at all uncommon to find visitors dressed somewhat like ourselves.

The next place, though a little better, furnished us with a little bit of excitement. It also proved to us that our “guards” were ever on the alert. We were approached by one of the other visitors to the place who asked for a drink. This girl was of the medium type, and after perching herself on the edge of the table and going through the formality of adjusting a garter-a little trick common among them when they wanted to flaunt their wares upon an unsuspecting wayfarer-she asked one of us if we wouldn't buy her a drink. That in itself wasn't at all out of the way, and we would have gladly done so, had not something else happened at that moment.

Before we could summon a waiter, we were approached by a villainous looking man who promptly insisted that we were trying to steal his darling girl. The altercation was cut short by the timely appearance of a stranger who promptly delivered the would-be troublemaker into the waiting arms of his mistress. The scowling face of our rescuer seemed to convince the callow fellow that it would be far better for him to take his girl and leave.

When I discovered our deliverer was one of our guards, I said, “What a splendid man, my dears! I should like to know him better!"

Anna, being better acquainted with the brute, answered, “Leave well enough alone, darling! That brute, while he appears gorgeous, is little better than the man he ruined and would as soon knife you as protect you. The only reason he doesn't is because he is being paid more for his work than he could possibly get from our purses."

As you can readily guess, I put all amorous thoughts about our protectors out of mind.

On to the next place! This one was of the better-class resort, and I really got something of a thrill there. Instead of being in a smelly basement, the place was off the sidewalk, and we had to pass between two burly doorkeepers before we could enter.

I wondered if our eight “guards” would be denied admittance and was glad to see they followed us; a whispered word from one of my companions seemed to have done the trick. Inside, however, they seemed to have melted away, but Nina said, “Don't be alarmed my dear; they aren't far away-they haven't been paid all their money yet, and until they get it, you couldn't lose them if you wanted to."

The place, besides sporting a dance floor of sorts, was lighted by gas-lamps, and all about the dancing section were tables where one could sit and enjoy the activities of the others, while sipping your drink. I noted, too, that there were several other groups, dressed somewhat like ourselves, sitting at the tables. They, too, were women, only an occasional man being present, though they all wore masks.

I remarked at this. The only answer I received was a shrug of the shoulder and a lifting of eyebrows. I wondered at this.

Another strange thing about the place was that several of the guests received notes or cards or a whispered word from the waiter, and in almost every case the one receiving the summons left their group and entered through a door at the far end of the room and disappeared from sight. My curiosity being aroused, I called attention to this, remarking of the scarcity of men present.

"How do you know they're not men?” asked Anna.

"So,” I thought, “it's that kind of a place, is it?"

Knowing more or less about the type of man who ran about dressed as a woman, I didn't think I cared for it. They were, as Anna so aptly put it, a sexless crowd unable to produce a hard-on for even the most beautiful girl.

There was a string band, which furnished music for the dancers-which were chiefly women-and after a short stay we departed. Riding along, Nina said, “Having a good time, dearie?"

I laughed. “If seeing is having a good time, then I'm surely enjoying myself, but it's like coffee without cream-there's something lacking."

"Something to quell the raging fever?” asked Anna, reaching across and patting my belly.