Charlatan's Web

Once upon a time, there was a spider. The spider, whose name was
Charlatan, was a leper. Two of her legs were white and peeling. A
third leg, which was in a cast, had fallen off. Charlatan was an
outcast. One day, Charlatan stumbled upon a web spinning exhibition. 
Sipping on her wine, she pretentiously talked about the different web
patterns. Most of the other spiders were quite disgusted at the sight
of the haggard diseased spider, and politely nodded as spiders of good
breeding do, and went along their way. Charlatan held her head high,
and slowly strolled by pretending not to take notice of the aloofness
of her fellow creatures. Charlatan was fully aware of the fact that
she would not be able to wine and dine in her old social circles any
longer. Tears filled her eyes as she kept walking towards the exit of
the exhibition. Suddenly Charlatan was filled with contempt. She
would show them that even despite her decrepit condition, she could
spin a web more beautiful and intricate than any of the others. 
Charlatan of course, had no originality in her work, and copied
previous cliched patterns. She had lived up to her name, and now
thought she would die, bitter and humiliated. Charalatan lost a few
more legs, and soon she had only one leg and the round of her body. 
She slithered on one leg until it too detached from her. She was left
with no momentum to move, slither, or roll. She remained alive for
many years, although nobody quite knew what she was, or for that
matter, that she was even a living creature. A rabbit once thought
she was a turd pellet, but after trying to consume her said, this is
no turd, it's just a charlatan. Eventually, Charlatan turned into a
fossil.


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