Chapter Thirty-Three: Dream of an Artist
Many of the gallery’s attendees were aware of Twilight Sparkle and her friends’ attendance, but it was obvious from the shocked stares and intimidated blushes that Princess Celestia was a welcome surprise. The two princesses insisted to be seen as nothing more than guests, but most of the attendees still kept a respectable distance from them.
For Canvas, he had gotten used to being around Twilight over the past few months, and even considered her a personal friend of sorts; but still, to be in the same room with a goddess like Celestia was something he never thought he'd experience. He couldn’t help fidgeting as he stood by his wall of paintings. He almost didn’t notice when Troy came up to stand beside him in support.
“Man, she’s way taller than I would’ve guessed,” Troy muttered under his breath, his cheeks carrying the faintest blush beneath his feathers. Back in the Gryphon Kingdom, the system of government they had as an independent nation was practically nonexistent. That said, Troy couldn’t think of a single gryphon who would dare disrespect Celestia's ruling; although, that was mostly due to her responsibility of raising and lowering the sun. Even now, Troy could feel a huge knot in his stomach about how he should act around her. Of course, glancing back at Canvas and his overwhelmed state, he could only imagine how frazzled the artist was feeling right now.
"Hey Canvas,” whispered Troy, reaching a claw to Canvas’ shoulder. The stallion nearly yelped and flinched to the touch, only to let out an embarrassed breath when he realized it was just Troy. "Canvas, are you okay?"
"Oh, yeah,” he said with a forced smile. “I'm just standing by my artwork on the biggest night of my life, waiting for the Goddess of the Sun to look at my achievements. What's to worry about?"
Troy’s beak clenched tightly. He looked back at Celestia, who was now leaving Gemini’s exhibit and heading for Glitter Shine's, with Twilight in tow. Where Gemini looked as pale as a ghost while standing stoically by her work, Glitter looked like she was speaking a mile a minute while pointing at various paintings.
"Canvas, c'mon. You really shouldn't be this worried. You’ve talked with Royalty before, right? I mean, if anything, you have the most experience of anypony here."
"But what if she doesn’t like my work? What if she says something bad about them? W-What if nopony buys my work anymore? This could be the last night I ever paint again!"
Troy gave him the strongest ‘Are you kidding me?’ face he could muster. "Dude, do you seriously think that would happen? I understand getting a little paranoid, but that's a bit extreme, don’t you think?"
Canvas could only breathe out shakily. Back at Glitter Shine and Gemini’s displays, a good number of attendees were whispering silently whilst re-examining their work. Celestia and Twilight had just left Country Comfort's exhibit on their way to Vintage Vinyl's. The blonde mare they just visited was using her magic to float out a paper bag to stick into her muzzle and breathe rapidly. The hipster pony, meanwhile, was clearly struggling to explain her artwork as articulately as she could.
Canvas gulped, his face almost as red as the other stallion artist. "I-I-I know I’m freaking out right now. I’m just… I don’t know how to handle this … I mean, Celestia has probably seen thousands of paintings in her lifetime, so the idea that I ca--”
"Hey, hey, hey…” Troy tightened his grip on Canvas’ shoulder ever so slightly, stopping his babbling. “Canvas, nothing bad is going to happen. I'm sure of it."
Canvas breathed out weakly before looking up at Troy, who was carrying a calm and collected smile on his beak. The stallion couldn’t say anything, but his eyes widened as he felt his cheeks burning with a heavier blush. As for Troy, he couldn't stop staring at Canvas' eyes more than his obviously smitten expression. The gryphon had no idea why his mind turned blank so suddenly, but those shining pools of blue were pulling him in like a moth to a flame.
Slowly, Canvas' eyes went from wide to half-closed, making him look almost hypnotized as he peered into Troy’s and their burning gold hue. There were so many things Canvas wanted to tell Troy, yet none of them seemed to escape his mind. Instead, all he could do was grow an appreciative smile as he gazed at the gryphon he appreciated so much.
The gryphon he loved.
For a split-second, Canvas felt like he was going to tense up again. Luckily, his attention was piqued as soon as he heard the voices of Twilight Sparkle and Celestia. The Princesses were now within listening distance, for they now reached Flamingo Fire's exhibit. Canvas and Troy turned to see how terrified the unicorn appeared before the two alicorns. Celestia stared at the stallion's morbid painting with an odd fascination. Twilight, on the other hoof, had her muzzle tightly skewed with a look of unease.
“Nnnghh… Well, it's probably a good thing I didn’t bring Spike with me. This would probably give him nightmares."
Flamingo Fire cringed and looked down at the ground in guilt. Celestia gave a more optimistic opinion.
"You know, I think Luna might enjoy this. She's always been interested in the more macabre pieces, and this reminds me a lot of Pransisco Goya's work."
At Celestia's comment, the red unicorn stood proudly once more, although his smile looked slightly unbecoming with all the piercings. After giving a kind nod and thank-you, Celestia and Twilight moved on, making their way toward Canvas’ exhibit.
Canvas started shaking again, prompting Troy to move in closer. When the gryphon's feathers brushed up against his fur, Canvas felt a hundred times warmer as his heart started racing. Though he stopped thinking about the two alicorns coming up to them, Canvas was now feeling a completely different form of worry. Closing his eyes, Canvas breathed in deeply before he could recompose himself. And just as he looked back ahead of him, he was met with the warm and friendly smile of Twilight Sparkle.
"Good evening, Canvas,” she said with pride. “It's nice to see you've been working hard since moving to Ponyville! I'm really glad to finally show your work to Celestia."
Even though he wanted to feel tremendously grateful, Canvas couldn’t help gulping with a worried smile as he watched Celestia gazing at his paintings. After all the restless nights he spent working on his pieces, he never felt so overwhelmed in his life. Even Troy tensed up with a blush of his own, not wanting to do anything to negatively affect his friend’s hard work. Because of that, Canvas was left on his own by the time Celestia turned toward him with a kind smile. She brought out her hoof for him to shake as she spoke cordially.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Canvas.” Canvas had never met her in his life, but the sound of her warm voice put him at ease. He shook her hoof, feeling an almost maternal presence as he looked up at her nurturing smile. Once he put his hoof down, Canvas gave a small bow in gratitude.
"Princess Celestia, it… it's truly an honor to be in your presence. And it's been an honor to know Princess Twilight as well.
"Well, I'm very glad to hear that. She told me quite a lot about you since you moved to Ponyville."
Upon hearing that, Canvas instantly grew worried. He knew what Twilight Sparkle most likely mentioned about him. Troy, who was the only one to know the full scale of Canvas’ past, looked equally as concerned as he glanced between the princesses and his friend. Princess Celestia looked down at Canvas' art bag in curiosity.
"Is that your art bag, Canvas?"
Canvas nodded. Without needing to be asked, Canvas pulled the bag off his shoulder, and hoofed it to her for her shimmering white aura to pick it up. Canvas watched in amazement as the Princess carefully opened the bag and pulled out several pictures inside, shuffling them around midair to scan each one studiously. Celestia paused on one particular sketch. She glanced back at the artist in amusement. Canvas could see through the thin page from the other side, realizing that Celestia was holding the sketch he made of her. In retrospect, that sketch was the very first picture he drew after leaving Gallop Creek.
With her smile unchanged, Celestia carefully arranged Canvas' pictures back together before placing them back in his bag. She levitated the bag back onto his shoulder, and then looked back over Canvas' paintings. Her gaze focused on his largest piece, taking note of the gryphon painted in the middle amongst the vibrant colors. She then glanced over at Troy, whose feathers ruffled out immediately. Celestia put a hoof over her mouth, not wanting to openly giggle in response. Her attention then returned to Canvas himself.
Canvas had no idea what to do or say. He stood frozen on the spot, his heart thundering inside of his chest.
“I hope I’m not too upfront about anything sensitive, but considering everything I learned from Twilight Sparkle, it really makes me happy to see you doing so well."
Despite her grace, Canvas still felt uneasy being in front of somepony who knew what had happened to him. All of his worries flowed away, however, the instant he felt the Princess's hoof resting on his shoulder.
"Despite all that's happened to you, you still managed to move forward and accomplish so much in a matter of months. You have an amazing talent, and you should be proud of what you've done."
Canvas felt his eyes well up. He had to try his hardest to keep his smile from trembling. Glancing over at his friend, Canvas saw that Troy carried a small smirk, clearly proud of him too. Celestia took one last look at his masterpiece, and spoke with sheer confidence.
"Canvas, you truly are a great artist, and I have no doubt in my mind that you can accomplish so much more...
“And because of that, I would like to ask if you would make a painting for my castle."
Most of the attendees had been keeping their attention on Celestia, so her request left everypony in shock, with a round of gasps sweeping across the ballroom. Even Troy’s beak hung agape, not that Celestia seemed to notice. The stallion stood motionless, looking like he was going to faint at any second. His hooves trembled, his breathing turned rapid, and he couldn’t come up with any full words in response.
"You… you-you w-w-wan… you want m-me to…”
Holding a hoof to his face, Canvas almost stumbled forward. Fresh tears fell from his eyes and hit the golden carpet, leaving small dark specks. Upon seeing Celestia’s unchanging smile, one of his own faintly grew back. As he felt the carpet underneath his hooves and the tears against his fur, Canvas knew that this was actually happening, that this wasn't a dream. He bowed his head, and spoke in the most grateful (albeit quivering) tone he could possibly use.
"Your Highness... i-it would be an absolute honor."
The gallery attendees all cheered in applause, while the other artists stared at him in anger or shock. A grey pegasus stallion with a green mane and large camera stumbled up to them. Canvas could see the lanyard across his neck labeling him as a member of the Canterlot Press, so he quickly took position next to Celestia with the largest smile he could own. Twilight made sure to stand beside the artist as well, and used her magic to pull in Troy so he could be present for the photo. A quick flash of light later, and Canvas was left standing in absolute bliss.
The applause continued, and Troy looked back at his elated friend with the widest smile. After everything the stallion had to endure, Troy couldn’t have felt happier to see him truly reach his wildest dreams. Not to mention, he felt equally as blessed to be there with him in that once-in-a-lifetime moment.
After the countless hugs and hoofshakes he’d received, Canvas was left sitting in pure contentment outside the gallery once it was over. He felt the cool air hit his fur, and Troy’s wing over his back. Canvas ended up selling most of his paintings that night, including his largest piece that was purchased by Hoity Toity.
Canvas stayed close to Troy, his eyes closed while listening to the hoofsteps walk past him. Troy stayed silent as he looked down at the pony, smiling about how lucky they both were.
Meanwhile, just a few blocks away, Celestia decided to walk back to the castle so that she could appreciate the summer night before heading to bed. Two pegasus guards, as well as her most faithful student-turned-Princess, walked alongside her. Though Celestia seemed happy, Twilight looked somewhat unsure as she looked up at her mentor.
"Umm, Celestia? Do you mind if I ask a question?"
"What is it, Twilight?"
"When you were talking with Canvas, you said that you knew what happened to him?"
Celestia's smile began to drop, but she still nodded back. "Yes, that’s correct. After you wrote to me about Canvas’ experience, I personally looked into what happened in Gallop Creek."
As they kept walking, Twilight saw that her mentor's face had become more sullen. "I found out what happened to him before he arrived in Ponyville, and… I also know who hurt him."
"Wait, really?” Twilight’s brows flagged up in surprise. “When I asked him about it, he said he didn’t know who it was."
Celestia's pace slowed down. She shifted her gaze to Twilight, looking more grim.
"After learning the details myself, I wouldn’t blame Canvas for not speaking about it. Even to a Princess."
Twilight didn’t expect Celestia to look this morose, especially over something she thought she knew much about. Before she could say anything, Celestia picked her pace back up.
"After finding out the culprit, I asked Luna to verify the claims given to me from the townsponies in Gallop Creek. Then, after looking through the memories of the ponies I interviewed, it became difficult for me to figure out what to do."
"What do you mean by that? If you know who did it, shouldn’t you do something to punish them?"
Celestia stopped walking, causing Twilight and the Guards to stand still. Celestia sighed before looking over at her student sternly.
"Twilight, there was a lot that happened, both before and after Canvas left that town. And even after consulting with Luna, I realized that the issue was much more complicated than I first imagined. I'm not sure what will happen in the near future, but I can say with the utmost certainty that Canvas won't be attacked like that again."
Despite Celestia’s confidence, Twilight’s head tilted slightly with doubt. "I… I trust that you're right, but what does this mean for me? Is there anything that I can do?"
After another long pause, Celestia placed a hoof on Twilight's shoulder.
"All I ask is that you keep an eye out, Twilight Sparkle. I'm not saying anything will happen soon, or even at all. But if anything does happen, I trust that you’ll learn from your own experiences to act accordingly. Do you understand?"
Twilight wasn't sure what that meant, but she still nodded in affirmation. "I… I understand, your Highness."
Because of how long Canvas and Troy stayed at the gallery, mostly to talk with Glimmer Heart and the press, Lyra and Bon-Bon were already back at the hotel by the time their friends started walking across Canterlot. The streetlights were much brighter in Canterlot than in Ponyville, but the meticulously paved stone streets still felt just as empty this time of night. Thus, Canvas felt a nice sense of familiarity as he trotted happily alongside Troy toward the hotel.
Troy kept his sights forward as they walked, while Canvas couldn’t keep his eyes off him with a massive grin. Underneath the bright streetlights, Troy's feathers shimmered like the most polished silver, illuminating the gryphon in a light glow that made Canvas' heart flutter. After everything that happened during the gallery, Canvas was almost hopping around the empty streets like Pinkie Pie.
"I really can't believe this is happening to me!" exclaimed Canvas. "I mean, I knew this gallery was going to be big, but I didn’t think it was going to be THAT big!"
Troy kept his smile, relieved to see Canvas so happy. "I know, right? This is a really huge deal!"
"Oh, this is way, WAY bigger than huge!" Canvas grabbed Troy by the shoulders. "Do you know how many earth ponies have their art in Canterlot Castle!? No really, guess how many!"
“Uhhhh…” Troy’s eyes darted back and forth in slight awkwardness. “... Like… two?”
"NONE!!” Canvas let go of Troy and he paced back and forth across the street. "There are no earth ponies in history who have ever made anything good enough for Canterlot Castle!"
Troy had to do a double-take from that detail, clearly not expecting it. Still, he smiled in amusement as he watched Canvas getting giddier by the second. "I'm going to be the very first earth pony ever to do that! I'm going to make history! I'm…”
Canvas froze in place, and turned back to Troy with a huge smile of revelation "Troy, I'm going to make history!!"
Canvas lunged at Troy, unable to control himself as he hugged him as hard as he could. Fortunately, Troy was just as excited, and quickly hugged him back. He even lifted Canvas off the ground, chuckling as he spun the pony around the street. Canvas moved his head back so he was looking straight at him; and even through his unwavering grin, his blush deepened as he stared into those golden eyes.
Upon seeing how happy Canvas looked this close, Troy could feel his heart beating faster. He couldn’t feel the feathers on the back of his head ruffling out, though. Suddenly, a large ‘whoosh’ could be heard as Troy's wings sprung open. The gryphon’s eyes shot wide-open, as did Canvas’, who struggled not to crack up.
"Umm…” Troy slowly looked back at his wings, his cheeks reddening near-instantly. "It's… it’s not what you think…”
Canvas finally let go of Troy, trying his hardest not to stumble on his hooves while laughing. Troy looked away, his wings slowly folding back. Canvas managed to stop giggling and speak with a smile. "I'm sorry, dude. I just… I didn’t expect that."
"Yeah, me neither,” grumbled Troy.
Once that awkward moment passed, the two continued on toward the hotel. Along the way, Canvas and Troy eventually reached one of the large balconies that overlooked the whole of Equestria. Under the glow of Luna's moonlight, both of them stopped and leaned against the edge, admiring the view. The countless miles of hills, all laid under the stunning backdrop of constellations and stars above. Troy eventually turned back to Canvas with a smile.
"You really did it, Canvas. You made it big time."
Canvas stayed silent, taking a moment to let it sink in. A small grin slowly crept across his muzzle. "I did. I… I really made it as an artist."
Troy thought something felt off about how Canvas said that, but he didn’t want to put too much thought into it. "Well, you want to head ba--"
"And they said I'd never make it!"
Troy was taken aback by Canvas' outburst, as well as how suddenly the pony’s grin turned into a scowl. The gryphon started to get worried when Canvas stepped away from the ledge, and looked over at him in anger. "Back in Gallop Creek, they always told me I'd never do anything with my talent! They constantly picked on me, and treated me like dirt, called me every name in the book! But now…”
Canvas started pacing around again, a weird grin growing on his panting face. He panted heavily and pointed right at Troy. "You know what I want to do right now?! I want to go back there! RIGHT NOW! I want to go back to Gallop Creek, and walk up to every single one of those jerks and just… just… just rub it in their stupid faces!!"
Troy stepped back from the ledge, his eyes darting back and forth over worry that they might be causing a scene. Canvas kept going, pacing along the edge of the balcony.
"After everything I went through! After everything I did and sacrificed, all I wanted to do was prove I could be successful! I wanted to be a great artist, just so I could prove everypony back in that damn town they were wrong! And now I did it! I'm doing a painting for a goddess! A goddess!!"
Canvas quickly turned to the ledge and stuck his head out to. He screamed out at the top of his lungs. "You hear that, Gallop Creek!? I became somepony!! I became more important than any of you morons ever could! I made it, and I did it without any of you losers!! You hear me, Gallop Creek!? YOU HEAR ME, DAD!? SCREEEEW YOU!!!”
Canvas’ head slumped, and he breathed heavily. Troy was left utterly speechless as he stared at him from the side. Before he could say anything, he heard the sounds of clanking armor coming toward them. Knowing what might happen if the Royal Guards saw them, Troy quickly snatched an exhausted Canvas and flew off.
Fortunately for the gryphon, the two were practically invisible once they were out of the streetlights. Troy landed about a block away from the hotel. He rested the pony's hooves on the ground, and looked at him with worry. Canvas was still breathing heavily, and clutching his chest with a hoof.
"I… I'm glad I got that out..."
Looking back over his shoulder, Troy made sure nopony saw them before addressing Canvas. "Okay, I know I told you to let these things out, but did you have to do it with a bunch of Royal Guards around!?"
Canvas blushed in embarrassment. "I'm… I’m sorry, Troy."
Troy chuckled under his breath and put a claw on Canvas' back. "Hey, it's alright. Believe me, I totally get it. At least you're not bottling it up. Besides, we didn’t get caught, so it's all good." Troy gave one last look behind him. "And hey, I finally got to fly around Canterlot a bit."
Canvas giggled. “Yeah, that’s true. But don’t worry, I… I got it out of my system.”
“Well, that’s good to hear…” Troy motioned for Canvas to follow him back to their destination. The two stayed silent for the remainder of their trek, still smiling as they walked side-by-side without worry.
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You truly are posting updates faster than I can come up with suitable replies. Just as I've read the last chapter and am about to comment, I notice you having posted yet another chapter for your story. At the very least it's something to greatly look forward to tomorrow morning. It's awesome how dedicated you are to this project. Might I ask what your inspiration is for your characters in these settings?
It's wonderful to read a story like this where things can take a turn for the worse yet end up all the better, it's heartwarming and sweet. I'm liking how well things are going for Canvas and Troy as well. It's both encouraging and motivating to see Canvas make it as an artist, sharing similar ambitions myself. I'm also curious how Troy will be doing in his leading role with Derpy. Celestia's talk with Twilight was a little concerning foreshadowing something going to happen. Maybe Canvas is really intending to go back to Gallop Creek and confront his past, or perhaps his new found fame might cause his past to come haunt his new life. Whatever the case, things may not be going to all be easy from this point on at all.
I greatly liked your depiction of Canvas' and Troy's struggles to come to terms with the realization of their feelings for one another, yet neither willing to risk their friendship over acting upon them. it's great how you're taking your time to build up on it, and it works really well with having Lyra and BonBon point out to Troy and Canvas what the reader already suspects. It's also rather cute to see how shy and flustered the two can be when confronted with the concept of liking each other more than friends, or the at times naive ignorance either can display.
It was a nice touch to make the majority of the crowd as well as the other artists unicorns and having them focus mostly on Canvas' being an Earth pony than on his work, thus singling him out similarly to how Troy feels, giving them even more in common and more reasons to seek each other out.
I wouldn't have caught the statue idea, having not seen 'how I met your mother' before, even though NPH is rather cute, but I greatly liked how you used it in your chapters, both as an introductory joke, as much as I pitied the poor stallion, and later try and convince Troy of canvas' feelings towards him. I'll add 'An affliction of the heart' to my read later list, which keeps increasing as quickly if not faster than the stories I seem to finish on there. I remember having seen it before, but didn't really give it a chance then.
Once again a great read. Thanks for writing so diligently.
I'm stopping at 4, I know i said that an hour ago but, I am stopping at 4!
WOOOOOOOOOOO! GO CANVAS!
who needs sleep when i have this awesome story.
4136384 who needs food water and friends when you are a sequel
Gee, I sure do hope this isn’t foreshadowing for something....
Yea I just hate it when I'm staring into my future bf's eyes and I suddenly get a wing boner
I don’t get why Troy was so scared about the guards.