A Different Kind of Predator
For the fourth time this evening, Fluttershy wished she wasn’t here, and she hadn’t even walked up to the front door.
The place didn’t look like she had expected, though truthfully, she hadn’t been entirely sure what it would look like.
Tucked away in a small alley, a single door pony stood out front under a tiny veranda of red canvas. A sign illuminated in neon glow read “The Night’s Chalice” with the picture of a tilted glass being filled with red wine. At least she assumed it was supposed to be wine.
Through her research searching for a solution to her problem, she’d heard this place held privacy as one of its highest tenets, so all guests had to wear a mask, and something to conceal their cutiemarks.
The yellow pegasus was wearing a dark green dress with space for her wings, and hung just lower than her knees, easily covering her cutiemark as required. She didn’t have any jewels to adorn the outfit, but some glass imitations peppered the collar and accents. The mask was simple, but adorned with dark blue feathers, donated by a few of her feathered friends.
Fluttershy had worked on her dress herself, along with the mask. Normally she would have asked Rarity for her expertise, but given the circumstances Fluttershy didn’t want to put her friend in any danger.
She took a deep breath and approached the entrance. She wasn’t wearing her mask yet to avoid attention, so currently hers was resting just under her collar. She just had to be brave like her friends. As long as she looked like she belonged, she could walk right in.
“First time?”
Fluttershy jumped with a quiet gasp and stopped, broken out of her thoughts suddenly. She peeked up at the door pony that had spoken to her. A tall earth pony with a grey coat and a short amber mane. He was wearing a jacket with a spiky collar and an earpiece that connected to a radio on his shoulder.
The mare swallowed as she looked up at him and nodded meekly. “Is he the same? Is he… like me?” she wondered briefly.
“I could tell,” he said, his voice deep and rumbling like distant thunder. “You were hanging back on the street long enough I thought you might just lose your nerve and leave.” He looked up and scanned the street a moment, before his eyebrows lowered slightly into a confused frown. “You alone?”
“Is… is that a bad thing?” she asked cautiously.
The door pony snorted as his eyes narrowed. “Irresponsible more like. Where’s the one responsible for you, childe?”
A shiver ran down her back. He wasn’t calling her a filly. “Oh, I don’t have… I mean… i-it’s complicated,” she struggled, eyes darting to the different pavers on the ground in front of her.
His eyes relaxed and he sighed. “I see. Don’t worry, you haven’t done anything wrong,” he told her gently. “But I should explain how this works if you haven’t been here before.” He cleared his throat once and spoke in a professional informative voice. “Privacy is of the highest order at The Night’s Chalice. Your mask remains on, and we don’t use real names. Ever. Nothing said or discovered within these walls will be shared outside. These rules will be enforced.”
He pointed just inside the doorway to a short table, on which sat a bowl that looked to be made of some kind of black stone.
“Leave an offering in the well just inside. After which, you’ll both be protected and bound by the pact of hospitality within these walls. But don’t hurt yourself. One drop is sufficient.”
Fluttershy frowned at the last part. Until she noticed the small black knife resting on the bench just above.
A chill ran down Fluttershy’s back as she realized the implication. All things considered, it made sense. “O-oh! right…”
She stepped up to the black bowl and eyed it cautiously. It looked empty and pristine. She gingerly took the black knife in her mouth and held up a foreleg. She carefully poked the fleshy part of her leg just above her fetlock. She winced and drew a short breath as the knife pierced the skin, and she held the wound just above the bowl, as a single drop seeped out and dropped into the receptacle.
She gasped and drew back quickly in surprise, dropping the knife at the same time, as the instant the blood touched the bowl, it ignited and a flash of green flame burned for a couple of seconds like a bright candle, before winking out in a puff.
For a moment, she felt something magical settle over herself, a sense that put her in mind of whenever Twilight levitated her with magic, but without the motion to go with it.
“And you’re done,” the door pony stated, stepping up to pick up the knife and place it back in its spot. “The pact will protect and bind you. So for now, have a good night.”
“Th… thank you,” she stammered, her heart still racing from the unexpected flames. She shook her head for confidence and stepped toward the dimly lit corridor.
“Oh, and a word of advice,” he said, his words stopping her before she got too far away. “Lose the feathers before you enter the main hall. The other patrons might think you’re part of the staff. Or the menu.”
Fluttershy’s fur stood on end at the implication. “U-um,” She looked around nervously, and out the doorway back to the street, worried that somepony was about to walk by.
“There are rooms for changing if you don’t feel comfortable out in the open. Second door on the right for mares.”
She breathed a sigh of relief, relaxing her a little. “I see. Thank you again.”
Fluttershy found the door he spoke of easily enough, and slipped in quickly, pleased to find that there was nopony else in the room when she entered. It reminded her of the fitting rooms at one of Rarity’s boutiques. Well lit, with a large mirror on one wall and a couple of pony sized chambers with curtains for privacy opposite.
She didn’t feel comfortable standing in front of the mirror, so she took one of the little boxes and closed the curtain behind her.
She still found herself hesitating a moment before committing to anything. Was she sure this was what she needed to do? It would be just typical that she had gone to all this trouble and go through the change, only for other ponies to be frightened when they saw the real Fluttershy.
But the door pony seemed to know what he was talking about. And his comment to “lose the feathers” could only mean one thing. This had to be the place.
Fluttershy closed her eyes, and took a deep breath.
No matter how many times she went through it, Fluttershy always found the transformation deeply unsettling. The fur wasn’t so bad. Just a slight puffing up around the chest and corners of her face, growing unnaturally fast. Then her ears began to twist and point, growing more sensitive. The sharpening of her teeth in her mouth was a bit more troubling. She’d hurt herself a few times, and now pulled her tongue back to keep it out of the way. But most of all, it was her wings that felt the most unnerving.
Her feathers practically melted into the thin membrane, and the elongation of long, thin bones into her wings that didn’t belong on a pegasus. Even though it wasn’t painful, she couldn’t help but whimper at the feeling. It was the feeling of becoming something unnatural. Becoming a monster.
Fluttershy took a moment to herself before pulling back the curtain. As soon as she did, she could see the rest of the changes in the mirror that she hadn’t felt. She stepped closer as she stared at the reflection that was both unusual, but had grown more familiar, ever since the incident at Applejack’s farm. Her friends thought that everything had gone back to normal, but if anything, it was getting worse. It wasn’t just apples she thirsted for anymore. It was her eyes that was most prominent. They had gone from a soft cyan, to a deep red.
“You can do this Fluttershy,” she said quietly to her reflection for confidence. “You’ve survived this for almost a year now. Surely somepony here can help you figure all this out.”
At that very moment she heard a pair of voices approaching, talking happily to each other. Fluttershy felt another wave of anxiety and fumbled for her mask.
A moment later, two chatting mares entered. Both of them were pegasi, and looked similar enough to be sisters. Their outfits were a little more glamorous than Fluttershy’s and were both already wearing their masks.
“Well of course I told him that. But what can you expect?”
“Normal ponies are all the same. Hopefully we can find somepony better here tonight.”
Fluttershy stole a glance back at her own wings, as if she had reflexively reverted back to her normal self, but they remained batlike in their entirety. If either of them had taken any notice of Fluttershy’s appearance, they hadn’t seemed to find anything odd about it.
Fluttershy took the opportunity to slip away, as the two continued their conversation. “I hope the bug is here tonight, I’d love to get her attention…”
The rest faded into the background as Fluttershy made her way down the hall, inwardly berating her cowardice. That could have been the perfect chance. There weren’t any crowds in the change room for her to get nervous around, she could have talked to them privately. But at the same time, her social anxiety meant that she didn’t want to interrupt their conversation. She’d just have to find somepony else on their own and hope for the best.
There was only one way to go, which led to a tight spiral staircase leading underground. She built up the courage to descend, and eventually found herself at the bottom on a carpeted landing that opened up into a generous space, that while clearly still underground, had done its best to hide that fact.
The large hall had the feel of an elegant nightclub. Velvet curtains of a deep red had been hung up across the walls, trying to hide the stone and cement that made up the borders. The space had been carpeted in a similar colour, except for the dance floor on the far wall that had been raised on what looked like white marble slats, tightly packed together. Small rounded alcoves sat on either side of the hall with circle tables and couches for more private gatherings. The lighting was fairly dim. A gentle red glow that permeated the venue.
She was certainly detecting the colour theme here, and she could easily guess the reason for it.
In the centre of the room was a square bar that surrounded the supporting pillar. She couldn’t see what was being served, but as the door pony mentioned, she could see the three staff ponies behind the bar were about as normal as they came.
And the place was busy. She wasn’t sure how many ponies were here, but she had never seen so many pairs of bat-like wings, and even the ponies lacking wings still had the tell-tale signs she knew to look for. The taller ear fur, a sharpness in ponies’ eyes, or the fangs they revealed when ponies opened their mouths.
And it wasn’t just ponies here either. She could see a few gryphons scattered about, and even a towering minotaur off in one corner.
She let out a quivering sigh, filled with a strange mix of emotions. “It’s all real,” She thought to herself, relief flooding through her body, dispelling some, but certainly not all, of the anxiety she had coming here. “I’m not the only one.”
It was an odd thought really. She’d been dealing with all this alone for so long, believing herself a monster. But there were so many here, surely it couldn’t be that bad if there was such a large gathering even in Canterlot.
She stepped down into the crowd and the gentle hubbub of conversation around her. It wasn’t a loud venue like a regular nightclub. There was music, but it was more a subtle ambiance with a heavy base but not too much volume. There was a white unicorn with a blue mane and some of the same features she saw from most of the patrons, up at the DJ station overseeing the music. Something told Fluttershy she found the unicorn slightly familiar, but given the rules on privacy she decided not to think too hard on it.
The crowd largely ignored her, but the sheer number of creatures around her in the crowd raised another problem. How was she going to find somepony on their own to ask all the questions she was desperate to know the answers to?
Her thoughts were interrupted however, when her ears swivelled to hear a sharp laugh that pierced the hall from the other side of the room. The type of laughter that was filled with mirth, but perhaps a little disdain. Except Fluttershy felt her heart leap into her throat and her eyes widened in horror at the sound.
She recognized that voice.
Fluttershy shivered, and turned slowly, casually, trying to avoid any attention as she scanned the crowd for the source of the voice.
And there she was. The black mask over her face did nothing to hide this creature’s identity. Charcoal black carapace and dark green elytra, a crooked horn at the top of her head, holes scattered along her legs, and long mane of swamp green. There was no mistaking Chrysalis. Former queen of the changelings.
She was lounging on a couch at the far side of the hall, with a number of ponies with bat wings that appeared to be fawning over her. They all seemed to be laughing along with whatever had amused her just moments ago.
Fluttershy found herself hyperventilating, her own problems fading into nonexistence.
How was this happening? Why in Celestia’s name was Chrysalis here of all places? Fluttershy looked around, but nopony else seemed to care that one of Equestria’s greatest villains was sitting casually and soaking up the atmosphere.
It was as if they were all ignorant of the danger that was sitting right there. But what could she do? She couldn’t cry out and warn anypony. Her mind travelled back to the “offering” she left behind at the entrance, and the feeling of old magic that still lingered ominously around her. She didn’t know much about magic, especially blood magic, but she wasn’t about to go testing its limits.
As she pondered frantically, she watched Chrysalis tilt her head as if listening for something, then suddenly and unexpectedly, her head and gaze snapped directly towards Fluttershy and locked eyes across the hall.
Time froze for Fluttershy, for an agonisingly long second. Chrysalis’s eyes narrowed as she peered curiously, before widening in what Fluttershy could identify as recognition.
Finally, Fluttershy’s limbs began working again, and she took no time to flee, darting to an unused alcove on the other side of the hall. She drew the curtain as far as it would go, which regretfully still left a considerable opening, but she hid behind the fabric as best she could, and struggled to settle her racing heart.
She had worried about making a fool of herself, finding herself in the wrong place and revealing the truth to unexpecting ponies, but this was beyond even her worst nightmares. Almost worse than losing control and hurting somepony.
She’d been so hopeful, but if this place catered to a monster like Chrysalis, what hope did she have of finding a generous soul to help her through her transformation?
“Well well, this is unexpected.”
Fluttershy darted around on her hooves at the voice. There before her, pulling back the curtain and blocking the exit to the little alcove, was the creature she had been dreading. Queen Chrysalis towered over her, with a satisfied grin on her face.
Fluttershy scrambled back, falling onto the seat behind her and scrambled back in a panic. “Ch-C-C…C…” she tried to speak, but it felt as though there was something wrong with her lungs, and her breath got caught in her throat. Every time she tried to speak, it was like a barrier held her mouth unable to form the name she was attempting to sputter out.
Chrysalis sneered. “No names here, pony. Unless you want to force the old magic to rip the soul from your body.” She stepped into the little alcove, and made her way to the couch on the opposite side of the table to Fluttershy. “Though that would be entertaining to watch if you wanted to give it a try.”
“H-how? How are you here?” Fluttershy sputtered, finally able to speak now that she wasn’t trying to say Chrysalis’ name. “I… I thought this place was only open for… for…”
“Vampires?” Chrysalis provided smugly as she took a seat, still towering over her.
Fluttershy swallowed, and gave a cautious nod.
The changeling chuckled darkly. “To be a changeling is just another type of vampire. Though we hunt for emotions rather than blood.”
She blinked in confusion, some of her fear ebbing away for a moment. “But… that doesn’t seem right. When Th… Th…” She swallowed as her words got caught in her throat again. It seemed that with the old magic active, she couldn’t use any names, even those not in the venue. “When the new Changeling King showed how…”
The rest of her comment was interrupted by Chrysalis slamming the table with her hooves. “Do not mention that traitor in front of me!” the former queen snarled. “And his pathetic followers are no longer True changelings. They gave up their pride, their strength, and loyalty to the swarm for nothing more than a colourful palette and an illusion of a queen-less society! They will realise their error in due time.”
The former queen took a breath to calm herself, and regarded Fluttershy with a grin. “But enough of that. Right now, I find you far more interesting.”
Fluttershy cringed and tried to sink into the couch under the fierce gaze.
Chrysalis rolled her eyes and sat back on her cushion. "Enough of that whimpering you pitiful foal. I am bound by the same pacts of hospitality as you are. I cannot harm you here, no matter how much it would please me. None can fight while within these walls, and all secrets discovered shall remain. Your 'friends' shall not learn of your secret from me, just as they will not learn of my presence here from you," narrowing her eyes into a glare at the end. Not that the intimidation was necessary of course, but Fluttershy still found herself cowering under her gaze regardless.
“Why… why are you here?” Fluttershy asked, finding at least a little comfort that Chrysalis had no power to hurt her. At least for the moment.
“I could sense your terror the instant you laid eyes on me. It was a beacon among the adoration surrounding me. I had to find the source. I never expected to find one of you soft ‘heroes’ in a place like this. Imagine my surprise to discover the meekest among you was a predator this whole time?”
“N-no, I’m not… I don’t like thinking of it that way. And I haven’t been… well, like this the whole time.” Fluttershy hesitated a moment, not sure how much she should reveal. “It was… a spell that went wrong.”
“A spell? Hah! I’d heard some of you could awaken like that. Must mean you have some vampire in your family history somewhere. I can only imagine the body count you must have behind you after you first awakened.”
“Nopony!” Fluttershy exclaimed. “I haven’t even… well, Harry has been a big help. He has a lot of body mass, so he doesn’t mind offering a little… b-blood, now and then.”
The changeling’s eyebrow raised curiously. “That doesn’t sound like a pony name.”
Fluttershy shook her head. “No, Harry is a brown bear that lives nearby.”
Chrysalis drew back, eyes widening. “You hunt bears for your blood?! Perhaps you do have a spine after all.”
Fluttershy shook her head emphatically. “No! I don’t hunt, he’s my friend and offers when I… when I need it. I try not to take too much, only enough to keep… this under control,” she said, gesturing to herself.
The changeling’s eyes glinted with understanding. “You barely drink enough, don’t you? You’re starving yourself out of some misbegotten desire to not harm others.”
“I don’t want to hurt anypony though!” she exclaimed. “But it is getting harder to hold it in.”
Chrysalis scoffed. "Starvation only works if you can use it to control. If the one in question knows you are the only way it will be fed. But at the same time, a well-fed dog is less likely to misbehave. Your vampire self is like that starving dog, lashing out at whatever it can sink its teeth into."
She reached for an empty glass in the middle of the table with a hoof and drew it closer to herself. She lifted her hoof to her mouth and opened wide.
Fluttershy blinked in confusion. “What are you…”
Chrysalis bit down, her sharp teeth piercing the tough hide, cracking it under the pressure. Removing her hoof, bright green blood ebbed from the wound and began pooling in the glass. Fluttershy was struck silent, watching in horror at the display.
By the time the glass was half full, Chrysalis pulled her hoof away and licked the wound, somehow stopping the flow. She held the glass up to the light in her hoof. At first Fluttershy cringed at the green plasma, but she found herself unable to look away. There was something about it that drew her attention. And then the scent.
It. Was. Powerful! And she found her mouth watering as she stared.
“I’m told that changeling blood, when filled with love, is intoxicating to your kind. I’ll never be able to experience it for myself, for obvious reasons, but just the chance at sampling a little is enough to earn the praise and adulation of half the patrons of this venue on any given night. While I prefer hunting for my food, it is a relief on occasion to have it gift wrapped in exchange for such a small price.”
She cocked an eye towards the space beyond their little alcove, and Fluttershy followed her gaze, only to squeak in surprise when she found over a dozen other ponies were watching them with anticipation.
No, not them. All their eyes were on the glass of Chrysalis’s blood. There was hunger and longing in their eyes, and more than one pony was drooling. Embarrassingly enough, she realised she had been doing the same, and quickly wiped her mouth before it dribbled anywhere.
Chrysalis picked up the glass in her magic, and settled it on the table in front of Fluttershy.
Fluttershy gasped, eyes wide in confusion. “What? But…” she stammered, at a loss for words.
She heard a series of grumbles from the crowd. “Hmph, lucky neonate,” she heard a voice say under their breath.
Chrysalis shot a glare their way, and they seemed to get the message, dispersing quietly.
“Indulge my curiosity, little pony,” she said, settling down and watching Fluttershy expectantly.
Fluttershy could barely make sense of Chrysalis’s purpose. She swallowed, looking down at the glass before her. Some part of this whole ordeal repulsed her, but another part, that part she had been repressing for so long, that part that wanted this, to feed. That part of her pushed her to take the glass gently in her wing, and bring it up to her mouth.
The aroma put her in mind of a sweet ambrosia, more potent than anything she had tasted, and the moment it reached her lips, her world exploded in a whirl of sensations.
After the first drop, she emptied the glass in an instant, tipping her head back and exhaling all the anxiety and stress she had ever held across her entire life.
The world looked different in her eyes, and she felt things, and ebb and flow of something that settled through the hall. She looked out at the ponies, and beyond the ability to explain it, she could understand what they felt.
Fluttershy could feel the emotions she realised. The jealousy of the others that watched and wanted what she had felt tart and judgemental, while she could sense the hunger or desire of others, not directed at her, but other attentions. And she could feel other emotions between the various patrons, some of which made her feel warm with embarrassment. She made a note not to interrupt whoever that couple was she could sense.
Chrysalis stood and leaned down close to speak softly. “As much as you may deny it, you are a predator. You may feel it is not in your nature, but that has changed. But just remember pony. Don’t think this changes anything between us. If we come across each other anywhere but here, I will end you and your friends.”
Fluttershy didn’t even flinch. She giggled, still relaxed and replied “Sure. I know that.”
Chrysalis walked away, and left her to sit in contentment.
“Damn girl,” came a voice a moment later, and Fluttershy could feel two bodies settling into the couch across from her. Her eyes opened and she recognized the two pegasi from earlier in the changing room, though now they both sported bat wings and the other typical vampiric traits.
“First night and you got the bug’s favour,” The other said, an impressed smile on her face. “How’d you manage that?”
Fluttershy shrugged, feeling none of the usual anxiety from meeting new ponies. “She wants to kill me,” she replied.
A pair of confused blinks returned her answer, and she couldn’t help but chuckle. “Huh, that’s a new one,” the first replied.
“It’s all new to me really,” Fluttershy added. “I’ve been trying to find anypony to help me understand…” she gestured around. “All of this.”
“You really are a neonate, aren’t you?”
“I don’t even know what that word means.”
The two mares shared a surprised look. “Well,” the first one began, offering her hoof. “Sounds like you’ve got a lot to learn.”
Author's Note
I probably could have done more for this story, but I actually found myself over the word limit for the contest and had to cut down, so if any of this feels rushed, that's likely why 
That said, it was an interesting idea that popped into my head looking over the prompt and rules for the contest
Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoy 
