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Once again, it was silent. Rarity stared at Fleur De Lis with an expression of disbelief. Twilight was similarly surprised. After all, she was believed to be dead by the government. But this didn’t seem to be the reason why Rarity was so shocked.

“You know her?” the purple mare wondered.

“She used to be Fancy Pants’ closest friend! He spoke so highly of you whenever you were the topic of our conversations… I just can not believe you joined the BloodClaw Cult after he died!” Rarity explained.

“Oh, I already was a member of the cult when I killed him,” Fleur replied, grinning devilish.

“Wha… You?! You killed Fancy Pants?!” Rarity shouted.

“Just the same way I killed Soarin, Hoity Toity, your friend from the charity auction and pretty much every other pony I had a relationship with,” the top model stated casually.

“So you are the pony behind the celebrity disappearances and murders,” Fluttershy analyzed.

Rarity just stood there, gasping in lack of words. This was too much for her. It was explaining everything so well. Fleur De Lis had very strong connections with high society all over Equestria and direct connections to Canterlot Castle. In her position, it was a piece of cake to convince others to do her bidding and to gather any information she required.

“How? Just how could you do all this, Fleur?” Rarity wanted to know.

Fleur’s expression slipped from a sinister smile into an angry glance. She took a deep breath before she bothered to respond.

“You are just the same as everypony else. You have no idea what it is like. I have been a member of high society all my life and if I could have traded my life with anypony else, I would have instantly accepted that deal. You can’t believe that I killed all the ponies dear to me? Well, I can’t believe you want to be part of this whole hypocritical act,” she replied.

“Huh?” was all Rarity could say.

---

For as long as I can remember, I had always been in the spotlight. Born into a rich and famous family, everypony was expecting a lot of success from me from the very beginning. I grew up surrounded by a mountain of the highest quality toys, fed with a silver spoon by my personal butler and enjoyed the best schooling in the entire land by hoof-picked private teachers. It took me many years to realize that, throughout my youth, I was always missing something. Something that is a lot more important than anything material in this world and seemed to be standard to the entire rest of the land: friends.

I was raised to be a little picky snob and I acted just like that in my teenage years. I always thought of myself as way, way above everypony outside of my family. Why shouldn’t I? My whole family was like that. But when the time came for me to look for work, I was quickly pushed down from my high throne. Nopony wanted to deal with me, since I saw others just as servants for me. I came and went as I pleased and nopony had any right to tell me anything.

For the longest time, I was unable to find a job. This greatly displeased my parents. A failure in their family? Unacceptable. So the pressure was on. If I couldn’t find a way to bring fame and fortune to my house, I would be disinherited and thrown on the street.

I had so many fights with my family and ran away so often. I was lost. I didn’t know what to do anymore. On my own, I would have never figured out what I did wrong. But then, he came into my life.

Fancy Pants was just a teenager back then. He found me, and he saved me. I don’t know what he saw in me. I was an unbearable little beast back then. But he had so much patience for me. Compared to him, I felt so crude. Everything Fancy did, he did with perfected elegance. He was so calm, so gentle, so… friendly. He never demanded anything. He was grateful for even the smallest things and instantly saw everypony he met as a friend. Slowly, I came to realize that not acting like him was my great mistake.

It was a tough piece of work, but I ultimately adapted. While I still did not fully understand why this was what everypony wanted me to behave like, I at least could act now in the expected role.

Suddenly, things started to change. Ponies suddenly started enjoying to spend time with me. They even called me ‘friend’... Friend? What are friends? I never had any. Was Fancy Pants my friend, too?

Eventually, I came across Photo Finish. She was just an aspiring photographer back then with no name. I was one of her first models and she just loved the way I looked. Even though the way I was raised mostly just caused me a lot of problems, it at least made me end up with a body every mare in Equestria could only dream of having.

From then on, everything happened very fast. Before I even realized, years went by and I rocketed into the ranks of the top five most demanded models in the entire land. In all this time, Fancy Pants never let go of me. He kept sticking around, kept meeting me. Slowly, I started to understand. I was so grateful. I would have ended up on the streets without him.

Fancy Pants saved my life. And for that, I loved him.

Again, it took me a long time to even become aware of my feelings for him. I never experienced anything like that before. I spent most of my life surrounded by butlers and private teachers. My family barely ever had time for me. They just expected me to work, so how could I have known such feelings even existed?

I am not a mare very capable of dealing with feelings. I never learned how to cope with what was happening inside me. So, I also never understood how to deal with Fancy Pants, now that I was in love with him. I thought, maybe if I just kept spending time with him, he would eventually… I don’t know… find out? I honestly never understood how these things work.

I don’t know how much time has passed then. I knew the seasons changed and all, but it felt timeless to me. I just wanted to be close to him. I always sought for opportunities to just… just… I honestly don’t know.

Then… this mare appeared. Rarity. She just bumped into Fancy Pants one morning. From that moment on, everything changed. I was just standing nearby, waiting for Fancy to finish talking to this mare and throwing a few poses. But neither of them even looked at me. Suddenly, I realized Fancy had gone ahead without me. That never happened before. What was going on?

The more time passed, the worse things got. He wanted to see Rarity much more often than every other mare he knew. Slowly, it felt like even I became less important to him.

I still don’t understand why this made me so sad. I look at Fancy Pants and suddenly, I feel like crying. I think of Rarity and suddenly, I feel angry. Why is this happening to me? It hurts. I want it to stop. What can I do? I got lost once again.

The more time I spent at work, the more I came to realize how superficial my job is. Sure, I was admired by many for my beauty. But nopony ever cared to look deeper than my coat. I don’t know if they would even be able to understand what was going on inside me if not even I was capable of doing just that. But they did not even try. I was just a beautiful statue to them. Even my own family only praised me for being successful. They didn’t care for what happened inside me. They didn’t want to know. It was my problem, they said. That I was old enough to deal with this myself now.

I am just a shell. If I lost my good looks, nopony would even care about me anymore. Maybe not even Fancy Pants.

Four years ago… I will never forget that evening. I was with him again and once more, all he could talk about was Rarity. I spent every single day with him and never once did it seem like he appreciated me for that. Rarity, he didn’t see in years, yet he kept talking about her so often and praised her so much. Was all we had been through together worth nothing to him? Could he have forgotten it all? Or was he just so used to it by now, he didn’t see it anymore? But what he said then… this was the first time I ever realized my heart was broken.

A candlelight dinner with Rarity… He never even asked me for one. At that moment… I can’t even put in words what was happening to me. All I remember asking myself is: Is he in love with Rarity?

No matter what I would do, I would always just remain a good friend to Fancy Pants. He even made that clear to me with a toast over a glass of grape juice.

As I went back home to my own apartment… I didn’t even have any thoughts in my mind. I was blown empty of anything. After a while, it seemed to me that what others thought of me was true. If I can’t even feel or think, I guess I truly am but a pretty shell.

Before I could reach my home, I was blocked in my path. I could not believe who was standing in front of me… wearing this robe… red with three black claw marks. I would have never guessed that it would redefine my entire existence not much later.

I was stunned. In awe. Even I had to admit that this pony in front of me was a lot higher than I am or will ever be. As it was expected of me, I bowed down, only to be asked back up immediately. I was offered a way out of my misery. ‘They will show you everything you don’t know. Everything will be much clearer to you once you met them’. ‘Them?’ I wondered. Oh yes. Them.

They were just a small group back then. The worshippers of Nightmare Moon. The ponies who knew the truth. I was brought to the BloodClaw Cult.

They were so different from anypony I have ever met. They welcomed me with open front legs and accepted me just the way I was. Unlike anypony before, they did not care for how I looked like. They wanted to see inside me, see what was going on in these depths which not even I understood. Then, they started sharing me their secrets.

I don’t know how long I sat there and listened with wide open eyes. This was too much for me to handle all at once. Demons? Blessings? The tyrant alicorns? I did not even understand half of what they were talking about. But as time passed and I went through my daily routines with that knowledge in the back of my mind, things slowly became clear to me.

All the sudden, my naivete ended. As I saw more and more signs of what was truly going on in this land, in this society, things finally became clear and understandable for me. Looking back now, I can hardly believe how dull I was to not ever once question why things were like they were. It is all just an act. Everything is fake. Princess Celestia enraged Nightmare Moon and brought her fury over this land. She manipulated the way ponies thought for such a long time, which made them all just as superficial as I observed all around me the whole time. It finally became clear to me: It was not my fault. The way things happened around me, the way I was treated by others. I did not provoke it. I never did anything wrong. It was the princess and her manipulation which created this society as it is. For the first time in my life, I felt at peace with myself. A huge guilt was taken from my shoulders, and I had the BloodClaw Cult to thank for it.

But still, I was unsatisfied. My heart still belonged to a stallion who didn’t want me. I was unable to express this myself, but I didn’t need to. The cultists could see right through me. They could put in words what I couldn’t. And they had solutions.

I spent time with the cult frequently now. I took part in their demon worshipping and they advised to me that I should pray to Nightmare Moon about my desires. One day, my prayers were answered.

A demon entered the ceremonial hall. The first time I ever saw one in person. I was quite frankly intimidated by its divinity. I knew they could be cruel, but that was not why it was here. It spoke to me and offered a deal.

The demon held a potion bottle in its claws. A special love potion, created by the demons. If I accepted this gift and drank it, I would gain the ability to make everypony I desire fall in love with me. All it demanded in return was my undying loyalty to Nightmare Moon. I already was so grateful she took me under her wings, made her children protect me and her disciples take care of me. How could I deny her such a simple and modest request?

From the moment on I drank that potion, I was in paradise. I just went up to Fancy Pants the next day, looked into his eyes and he suddenly started to blush. He confessed his love to me and I… I was so happy. So very grateful for this gift Nightmare Moon made me. This was all I ever asked for.

Weeks passed by, full of tender moments with my stallion. Mine! Not Rarity’s! Oh, if only she would be around to see us now. How happy we are. I wanted to see her green with envy.

But after a while, I noticed something. I had everything I ever wanted… but… it wasn’t enough. I was rich, successful, had the stallion of my dreams as mine… but it still wasn’t enough to satisfy me.

I tried everything I could think of. I made Fancy Pants do the most ridiculous things for my amusement. I made him do things with me no pony would be able to speak about without feeling deeply humiliated. Still, no matter what I tried, I still had this deep, underlying feeling of dissatisfaction inside me.

I got more and more frustrated. Mostly with Fancy Pants. He did everything I wanted. He tried every trick to please me. How could he, of all ponies, fail to make me happy? It certainly was not my fault! I follow the teachings of Nightmare Moon! I see and act like everypony should!

No. It was him. Fancy Pants was too much of one of Celestia’s loyalists. I could never be happy with one who was still so blind to the truth as he was. At this point, he reduced himself to an object in my possession. So I did with him what I did with so many things that did not please me: I got rid of him.

After I finished stabbing him and let him bleed to death in that dark backstreet where nopony would be looking, I could feel the demon queen smiling at me. I just knew that this pleased her.

Nightmare Moon, her children and her disciples… It felt like they were the only ones who truly were capable of understanding me. Why should I even bother to keep looking for a mate now? They have done me better than any of the alicorns’ followers had ever been for me.

For more than a year, I devoted most of my attention to the BloodClaw Cult and its needs. I donated a majority of my money to them and finally, we could start spreading to other cities. We were a wealthy little secret society by then and our exclusive knowledge granted us a lot of power.

The more I did for Nightmare Moon’s children and the cult, the more I rose in rank. My reputation shot up like I only last experienced in my modeling career. Eventually, I was asked for a very special task.

The demons personally invited me to Tartarus, their biggest and most populated stronghold. A sanctuary of such massive proportions, one as small as us ponies can barely withstand the urge to fall on our knees in awe. I was surrounded by thousands of my lords. I felt like I had entered the heaven of demons.

Still, despite all this, I had to stay focused. I had a task to complete. It was up to me to bring back one of the most important children Nightmare Moon ever created. I already had everything I needed. Due to my connections, I could easily get ponies to gather the ingredients from Ponyville. A bone exhumed out of Obsidian Shards’ grave. A sample of Twilight Sparkle’s blood, directly given to us from her doctor. A spell tome from the cult’s private library. A metal container of phoenix ash.

Here, among all these gods, with countless eyes watching me, I had to draw a rune in this divine red darkness. I added the bone and poured the blood over it. Then I cast the spell as described in the book. It worked. Right in front of me, Nightmare Moon’s child came back to life.

She greeted me with a sinister grin. Of course, I immediately bowed down and welcomed her back. Though she did not act as I would have expected. Of course, our lords know that they are divine and have every reason to look down on us puny mortal creatures. But she wasn’t like that. She wanted to, I could hardly believe my ears, be my friend. Friendship with a demon? Do our lords really care so much about us? I asked her for her name. From that moment on, I was constantly accompanied by Despair, the Guillotine of Hope.

With Despair by my side, the cult suddenly gained a never before seen efficiency. Our influence spread across Equestria like wildfire. Every city would soon have a church and the number of disciples rose into the ten thousands.

But with all I did for the cult, I disregarded my own needs. Sometimes, I missed this innocent, beautiful sensation of being in love with somepony. Every now and then, I looked through the streets with a longing sigh. Would I ever get a second chance? Did I have to feel guilty for making our lords create a gift exclusively for me and never putting it to use again?

I looked into the sky. Then I saw them. The Wonderbolts flew to Canterlot during their training routine. I watched them. Such muscular bodies. Such great athletes. Wouldn’t it be nice to have one for your own? Somepony you could really brag about for having as your coltfriend?

I scanned through them carefully. All the male members had some features worth wanting them for. But I did not just want features. I wanted fame. Call me superficial, but this is what this world and society is about. So, I chose the best of all male flyers. I chose Soarin.

He had no chance to resist my charms. What a stallion. So strong, so skilled, so fast. The complete opposite of Fancy Pants. For a while, I was happy again. I could even bring him to the BloodClaw Cult. Even though he wasn’t a member, as long as I desired it, he would never reveal any of my secrets.

But once again, as the weeks passed by, the same sensation as before returned. I was unsatisfied with Soarin. He was interesting when he was still a Wonderbolt and completely out of reach for any mare. But now, he turned into my servant, just like Fancy Pants. This just wouldn’t do. So, in Nightmare Moon’s honor, I spilled his blood.

The demons and the disciples were pleased. ‘Deadly as a Black Widow’ they praised me. Even Despair could only agree with everything I did. Soon after, she suggested me to become a priestess of the cult. I knew I already learned enough about the demon queen’s blessing and her children to be able to hold ceremonies, but it still was such an honor. Slowly, my official job as a top model became less and less important. I relished my task as priestess of the BloodClaw Cult. I was admired by so many who did not just look at me, but also inside me. They understood me. They supported me. In return, I gave everything to make them strong. With Despair’s help, it was an easy thing to accomplish.

Still, it wouldn’t let me go anymore. Why couldn’t I be happy in relationships? What was I doing wrong? Perhaps I should look for a stallion who was closer to my line of work. Somepony who had more in common with me. So I tore Hoity Toity out of his marriage and made him mine.

The stakes were higher than ever this time. His wife was in the way. I had to make sure Hoity hid from her and fully committed to me. If she found me, the press would soon find out and I would end up in the newspapers in a romance scandal.

She annoyed me. I had to get rid of her, so the demons offered their help once again. Silently, they abducted this little pest. I don’t know what happened to her, but neither did I ever care. All I cared about is that, whatever my lords had done with her, not even the news ever reported her disappearance.

Hoity was a fine stallion. Such a good taste in fashion. We could talk about a lot. But once again, he failed to please me. How very frustrating. Once more, I am left unsatisfied by a stallion. As I discovered that, he meant nothing to me anymore. He was nothing but another sacrifice in honor of the demon queen then.

I had become a serial killer of blinded ponies following the alicorns. This brought me more fame and appreciation than my whole career as a model ever brought to me. ‘Black Widow’ slowly turned into a nickname for me. And I have to say, I started to enjoy it.

The more time passed, the deeper my insight into the truth the demons had to share became. By now, I was no longer a student. I had become the teacher for thousands of disciples. My duties as a priestess made me travel around more than my job. I met so many cultists with so many various interpretations of Nightmare Moon’s teachings. Yes. I found a true family. The ponies who raised me could hardly be called like that. They never were around. They always just demanded from me. But still, they are the reason I was born. For that, I will at least give them the opportunity to join the BloodClaw Cult and find out the truth of how much more than they I had become. If they refuse, they will die in honor of Nightmare Moon.

So many ponies admired me. In the cult, as well as in the public. Outside of the bloodstained walls, I was playing my usual act. But my inner perception had changed. I no longer look at these ponies as my kind. They are like sheep, blindly following the alicorns. They are worthless. Everytime I see them, I hear their admiring words, I can’t help but laugh mentally.

But they are not entirely useless. The ‘Black Widow’ is still on a hunt for the stallion capable of satisfying her. So, instead of looking for a stallion myself, I let them come to me. I had so many fans who admired me so much. Maybe a few of them even were honest with their flattery. So I gave them all a chance. I seduced them, invited them to my home, spent intimate hours with them. But every time, they failed. Not a single one of them could even succeed in making a night memorable. I don’t even want to count how often I had to change the water in my whirlpool because it turned red from all the blood I spilled into it.

With all my sacrifices for the demons and their queen, I gained a lot of respect from my lords. At last, they officially declared me as the high priestess of the BloodClaw Cult. With my deep understanding of Maledictum Insania, the demon queen’s desires and everything the cult stands for, I became its very embodiment. By now, Despair was not only my counselor, but also my private bodyguard.

I finally decided to abandon my old life and fully give myself to the demon queen and the cult. While just few even knew I was still around before, my lords now rearranged records to officially declare me as dead.

They linked Fancy Pants’ death with my disappearance. I will never be able to find a stallion capable of satisfying me, but that doesn’t matter. Like a spider, I will keep feasting on them. Like a siren, I will keep luring them to their deaths.

Fleur De Lis is gone. I am Black Widow.