//------------------------------// // Chapter Five // Story: Brushed Away: Canvas' Cutie Mark Mission // by TheVClaw //------------------------------// Canvas wasn’t sure how much he would need to tell Flamingo Fire about his situation, mostly because he was worried that she wouldn’t believe him. But much to his pleasant surprise, the mare seemed fairly intrigued by his tale while the two were waiting in line at the concession stand. By the time they received their orders, Flamingo had some questions of her own. “Wait a minute, so you’re telling me you weren’t even planning on coming to Baltimare today?!” “Nope.” Canvas shook his head before taking a swig of his energy drink smoothie. “Mmm! That’s nice~ But yeah, I was back in Ponyville when my Cutie Mark lit up, and then I was flown out to Canterlot by some Royal Guards. After that, I took the train here, and when I arrived at the station I found this flier.” Canvas hoofed Flamingo the pink convention poster, which she took via her pink magic. She scanned through the flier briefly, and her muzzle skewed while humming in thought. “Hmm… And you had absolutely no idea this convention was even happening?” “To be honest, I didn’t think that conventions like this existed.” Canvas knew how stupid his statement may have sounded to Flamingo, since this sort of setting must’ve been commonplace for her. “Not that I’m against it or anything! In fact, I can totally see how tattooing could be this popular! I saw some really impressive pieces before you came up to me.” “Oh really?” she asked curiously. “Anypony specific?” Canvas tried to point off towards the direction of where they met. “Actually, I saw a great tiger portrait being done on some guy by a zebra back where we were at.”  “Oh, you mean Marzo!” chirped Flamingo with a chipper smile. “Yeah, I actually apprenticed for him when I first started tattooing! I work at my own shop nowadays, but he’s been really supportive of my work.” Canvas’ face lit up “Wow, congratulations! I didn’t know you had your own studio.”  “Well, it's still fairly new, but business has been picking up as of recently. This convention is actually more for my work than anything else.” Flamingo floated that flier back to Canvas, and then used her aura to pull out a sheet of her own from her bright pink purse. She unfolded what looked to be a large event schedule pamphlet, which also had a map of the entire center printed on the back. She showed Canvas the diagram while pointing a hoof at one of the listed booths, titled ‘Pins & Needles Studio.’ “See? This is actually my first time getting a booth for a place like this.” “Oh, nice!” Canvas was impressed to learn that the mare had her own business, especially since he knew from experience how taxing such a thing could be. “Wait, if you’re here, then who’s at your booth?” “Oh, don’t worry,” she said assuredly. “I’m not the only one who works at my studio. One of my other artists is tending to the stand right now while I went to get something to eat.” Flamingo’s eyes widened in an instant, and she quickly reached for a walkie talkie that was strapped to the waistband of her skirt. She used her magic to float the device to her muzzle before clicking it on. “Hey, Cherry Bomb, you there?” Canvas heard the walkie talkie click in Flamingo’s aura before another mare’s voice came through the speakers. “Yeah, I’m still here. What’s up?” “Nothing much,” said Flamingo apologetically. “I just wanted to make sure things were alright. I kinda got caught up on my way to the concession stand.” “Heh~ Lemme guess. The stand ran out of pickles already?” Canvas almost burst out laughing, since Flamingo had purchased three individually-wrapped hot pickles alongside her smoothie. The mare huffed with a sharper blush while looking away from Canvas. “It’s not that. Actually, it’s… it’s kinda hard to explain right now. I’ll bring you up to speed when we get back.” “Alright, stay safe!” Flamingo Fire smiled and clipped her device back to her skirt. Meanwhile, Canvas’ brows rose up in surprise when he took notice of Flamingo using the pronoun ‘We’. When she glanced back at Canvas, she was smiling with interest as she asked, “So Canvas, you wanna stick around and learn more about tattooing? You seem like you’re already getting interested.” On one hoof, Canvas couldn’t deny that he was growing curious about the medium. He had only been at the convention for an hour at most, but he was definitely warming up to tattoos more than he would’ve expected. But on the other hoof, it was hard not to feel apprehensive when he could hear those constant drones of buzzing machines all around, as well as the sounds of various ponies groaning painfully. Regardless, when he saw the hopeful smile across Flamingo’s muzzle, Canvas began to blush optimistically himself. “Soooo… I’m guessing you believe me about my Friendship Mission, huh?” “Honestly, I... kinda do,” she said, trying not to sound too weirded-out. “I mean, I certainly didn’t expect to see you again, let alone at a place like this. But at the same time… I can certainly agree that this all feels a lot more than just coincidence.” “Exactly! Ohmigosh, thank you! I was honestly worried you’d think I was crazy or something.” “I mean, I’m sure a lot of ponies might, but considering everything you told me about your summoning, it’s pretty weird how conveniently things matched up for us to meet. Plus…” Flamingo paused briefly with her lip bitten shut, taking a moment to contemplate what she wanted to say next. “... We never really had the chance to be friends back in Canterlot, so… If your theory about being here for your Cutie Mission is correct, then… maybe there might actually be a problem to solve between us.” “You… You really think so?” asked Canvas, his expression appearing as contemplative as hers. “I mean, I was considering that too…” Though he was really happy that both of them were on the same page, Canvas tried not to feel too hesitant about accepting Flamingo’s offer. Since Baltimare was a huge city, and he literally just showed up to the first place he could find to get some clues, it seemed a little hasty to double-down on her theory without considering alternatives. However, as Canvas thought about all that happened since that morning, the biggest thing to stand out in his mind were the words that Princess Twilight Sparkle told him: ... every single one of them had everything in them to figure out what to do, or to set things in motion to help somebody else in need. With that reminder in mind, Canvas blinked with newfound clarity. After all, if this Cutie Mark Mission was meant solely for him, it only made sense that it would be for a problem that only he could solve. And given what Flamingo just said, Canvas knew that her theory carried far too much weight to ignore.  “You know what?” Canvas looked at Flamingo Fire in the eye, and nodded with a smile. “If your tattoos are just as good as your paintings were back in Canterlot, I would love to see you in action.” Flamingo grinned with newfound determination. “Well, I can promise you that that I don’t plan to disappoint~” When Canvas first arrived by train to Baltimare, he originally expected to be running all over the city in search of some vague interpretation of a friendship problem; but much to the relief of his hooves, Canvas had a feeling that most of the day would be spent inside of the Baltimare Convention Center. Flamingo Fire’s booth happened to be right near the middle of the venue, so he was within range of many prospective artists and curious attendees alike. But even with all the stellar designs he could see from the other artists set up around her, Canvas kept himself in Flamingo’s booth to learn about the technicalities of such a daunting skill.  “NNNGHHH!!” One of the first ponies that Flamingo Fire got to tattoo was a burly grey stallion who showed up to her booth less than five minutes after she and Canvas returned. He was a large pegasus who wore a nylon harness around his torso, which helped to keep his wings from springing out during the painful process. Luckily for Canvas, the stallion didn’t seem to mind having his artist explain the application as a large compass was being etched into his left shoulder.  “A lot of ponies assume that when it comes to tattooing, unicorns would have an advantage due to having magic at their disposal…” Even as she spoke, Flamingo was absolutely focused, with her eyes pinned on the thick black lines she was applying as symmetrically as possible. Both of her hooves were covered in thick black gloves, while her right was holding the actual tattoo machine firmly in her grasp. “But in all honesty, modern tattooing depends more on technical mechanics than anything else.” Canvas nodded while staring down at the mare’s setup, which didn’t seem to depend on magic to be used. The tattoo machine in her hoof almost looked like some sort of hoof-held power tool, with a tiny plume of needles sticking out from the very tip to puncture into the skin. The device was connected to a thick wire that ran to a power source on the ground, which included a hoof-pedal for her to press down on while seated. Canvas was reminded of the mechanics of Rarity’s sewing machines back at the Carousel Boutique, which he knew were fairly easy to learn with a little practice. Before she could apply another line, Flamingo turned on her machine as she dipped the tip into a tiny cup of black ink beside her table.  “Another common misconception a lot of ponies have is how the tattooing process actually works against fur.” After dragging a thick straight line down the stallion’s bicep, Flamingo paused briefly to rub some clear gel over his fur. The stallion was still wincing from the long swipe of her needles, but sighed deeply as she applied the ointment. “If anything though, tattooing for ponies is more like freeze branding than anything else.” She looked back at Canvas while holding out her machine, allowing the artist to lean in and inspect the precise mechanics up-close. “Those needles are set up so they can only puncture the skin down to the dermis layer, which is right where his fur follicles are. It’s fast enough for the needles to sink in at least fifty times per second, but it can be sped up to go in a couple thousand if desired.” “Yeeeesh!” Canvas instantly brought a hoof up to clasp over his shoulder, just in case he started to feel the phantom pain the pegasus was experiencing. “And I thought getting tetanus shots was bad.” “Yeah, I heard that one before,” she replied with a giggle, and then turned around in her stool to return to her work. "But anyway, each puncture strikes the nerves in a way that leaves a brief trauma to the hairs, which is actually really important. Ink is deposited into the dermis layer each time the needles sink in, which permanently soaks into the skin to change its color. And when the hair follicles are opened up, the ink also goes in there to change the fur’s color as well.” “Oh, wow…” Canvas blinked while watching Flamingo making another long, slow drag to give another line to the design. From where he was sitting, Canvas couldn’t see anything off about the compass design. And even with the pegasus grunting hard through gritted teeth, Canvas could see that the ink was leaving the affected fur a deep shade of black against his grey coat. “So… even if he gets his fur shaved, the tattoos would still be present?” “Mmhmm. In a way, that makes tattoos stand out from Cutie Marks. If you shave a pony’s flanks, all you’d see is bare skin.” “Yeah, I’ve seen that happen before,” said Canvas with a brief chuckle. “One of the students at the School of Friendship accidentally used hair remover instead of vaseline for some fire-proofing experiment, and ended up looking like an uncooked chicken.” Canvas giggled to himself from the memory, even though he felt really bad for Sandbar for basically being nude for over a week. However, when Canvas realized Flamingo’s tattoo machine was no longer buzzing, he looked back to see both her and the stallion staring at him wide-eyed. It took Canvas a moment to realize what got them so alarmed, but he was quick to explain. “Oh! Sorry about that reference. My husband’s a gryphon, so I’m used to preparing meat for him. Heh heh heh…” The artist cringed as he looked away from them awkwardly, not wanting to be judged for something he had been doing for years. Luckily for Canvas, Flamingo Fire processed that point for a second before shrugging her shoulders, and returning to her work. Meanwhile, the stallion she was tattooing looked away from Canvas, muttering under his breath. “Huh… gryphons eat birds? I would’ve guessed that’d be like, cannibalism…” Canvas tried not to get too upset by that remark, keeping his muzzle shut while rolling his eyes. But before he could think to say anything, the mood was thankfully interrupted when he heard a deep voice from outside the booth. “Hey, Flamingo?” “Hmm?” She paused to look up from her half-finished compass, and immediately grew a smile. “Oh hey, Marzo! What’s up?” Canvas leaned forward to get a glimpse of the mare’s former mentor, and was happy to see it was the same artist who was working on the tiger piece he saw earlier. Now standing upright, the zebra looked rather intimidating with a tall and muscular physique; and with the various colorful tattoos that adorned the white sections of his striped fur, it was hard for Canvas to pull his eyes away from him. Canvas may have been a married stallion, but he was certain that even Troy would consider him to be cute. But while the stallion tried not to blush too notably, Marzo kept his eyes on Flamingo with a friendly smile. “Hey, you happen to have any extra mag pieces for my machine? I wanted to get the shading right for this girl wanting a Saint Bernard on her foreleg.” Canvas gasped loudly enough to catch Marzo’s attention, turning to see the stallion wide-eyed with both hooves over his mouth. “Ohmigosh, can I see the design?! I love Saint Bernards!” The zebra chuckled with a light shrug before glancing back at Flamingo. “It’s always the dog ponies who get super excited, right?” “To be fair, he showed me pictures of his dog, Tenor. I gotta agree, they are adorable.” She lit up her horn to float out a small piece of metal from her toolkit, which looked to be a row of needles latched together in a straight line. “Here you go, Marzo. Oh, and that guy is Canvas, by the way. He’s an artist who I knew from a while back. I’m showing him the ropes about tattooing, but he could always learn more.” Flamingo shot the stallion a cheeky smirk, and perked her thin brows to emphasize her intentions. Canvas’ blush deepened even more, but he wasn’t able to correct her before Marzo took notice. “Oh, really now?” he asked cheerfully, giving the stallion a raised brow with interest. “You know, she actually brought some photos of her dog, and I wouldn’t mind getting a second opinion about the application.” “Oh, ummm…” Canvas wasn’t sure how to take such an offer, even though it was really tempting. He tried to point a hoof at Flamingo and say, “Well, I… I was kinda--” “I actually think it’s a really good idea.” Flamingo motioned her head towards Marzo while looking back at Canvas. “Marzo’s one of the best artists I can recommend, and he taught me everything I know about tattooing. Besides, you said it yourself how impressive a lot of the designs are around here. This piece is gonna take a while, so it wouldn’t hurt to look around and educate yourself.” Flamingo then reached into the bottom drawer of her toolbox, and pulled out a walkie talkie to hoof to Canvas. “Here, take this. If I have something new to show you, or know of anypony you should visit, I’ll hit you up with the details. I already know how important this trip is for you, and I wanna help out however I can.” Canvas wasn’t sure how to feel about leaving Flamingo alone by herself, especially if she really was the pony he was supposed to help for his quest. However, he couldn’t deny how hard it would be to help a tattoo artist if he didn’t know anything about tattooing. And when he looked over at Marzo, the zebra seemed genuinely accepting of the idea of helping him out. “So, what do you say, Canvas? I honestly never did a Saint Bernard before, so some intel could be helpful.” After taking one last glance back at Flamingo, who was getting back to her basic linework for the pegasus’ piece, Canvas only needed a moment before shrugging his shoulders. “Well… I was curious about how you made that tiger piece so realistic.” “Oh, you think that’s interesting?” Marzo huffed with a chuckle. “Trust me, the guy who got it is way more interesting to hear about! C’mon, I got some crazy stories about him!” The zebra motioned for Canvas to follow, and Flamingo paused her work to assure him. “Seriously, it’ll be fine. I’ll call you when I get the free time, I promise.” With that, Canvas decided to place his trust in the mare, and nodded with a smile. “Alright then,” he said as he got out of his stool. “Hopefully I won’t feel like such a newbie by the time we meet up again.” “That’s the spirit!” she said enthusiastically. “And who knows? Maybe you’ll be curious enough to get something for yourself~” The mare giggled at Canvas’ deep blush, but she wasn’t able to see much more before he scurried out of the booth in a hurry. Fortunately, Marzo was quick to start some chit-chat with the stallion on their way to his booth. “Okay, so you saw those three guys earlier, right? Well let me tell you, the one with the mullet is one of the craziest ponies I ever met in my life…” True to Flamingo Fire’s word, Canvas did end up learning a lot about the world of tattooing that day. Even though he would’ve preferred to learn more about the craft from Flamingo herself, it was hard to complain when he was being given so much personal education about the history and range of the medium. Not to mention, along with learning different tattoo styles and techniques from so many artists, Canvas also got to listen to ponies going under the needle. “Aaahh!” Back at Marzo’s tattooing booth, which was named ‘Kupigwa juu ya Ink’, Canvas tried to keep conversation with the pudgy yellow mare who was lying on the tattoo table. Unlike most of the other attendees at the convention, the middle-aged pony looked just as out-of-place as Canvas himself; she didn’t have any other tattoos on her body, but was soldiering on to get her Saint Bernard engraved on her right shoulder. Fortunately for Marzo, who was working at a slow pace to keep the pain as minimal as possible, the mare gripped the edges of her table and refused to stop. “Nnnnghhh!! H-Holy moly, that smarts!” “Yeah, I don’t blame you,” noted Canvas, trying not to cringe from the sight of Marzo’s machine digging deep into her foreleg. Of course, that was easier said than done when he could see tiny droplets of blood beginning to seep through the photorealistic portrait of her smiling dog. Canvas glanced over at the photograph Marzo was copying, and smiled at the photogenic dog with a big pink bow atop her head. “I will say though,” he added in an attempt to distract the mare from the pain. “The picture is looking really good from what I can see.” “Thanks, man,” said Marzo with an appreciative nod. He pulled the machine away to dip the tip in a tiny cup of white ink. “I just gotta get the shading and light sources nailed-down next, and we’ll be good, Ms. Strawberry.” “W-Well, that’s good to hear,” muttered Strawberry, trying to keep her eyes away from the zebra so she wouldn’t sneak a peek at the unfinished product. Instead, she looked over at Canvas while he was seated in a folding chair beside her. “Honestly, I kinda came here out of impulse, you know? I… I was really wanting to do something special to pay tribute to ol’ Dolly.” Canvas nodded with a smile of his own, but tried not to look too saddened after hearing her story. “Yeah, I can understand what you mean. Tenor is basically like a son to Troy and me, so I can only imagine how much you miss her.” “Yeah… I really do…” The mare was carrying a wistful smile while trying not to tear up, although it was unclear if that was because of her memories or the needles driving into her shoulder. She sighed to herself before looking down at her hoof, which was holding an old pink collar with Dolly’s tag still attached. Strawberry closed her eyes to take a breath, and returned her sights on Canvas with a content smile. “But still, Dolly had an amazing life to the end, and she went peacefully enough. After all the years she spent by my side, it only seems fair to do something special to commemorate her.” Canvas’ smile widened a little, happy to hear how at peace she was about such a somber moment. Meanwhile, Marzo decided to add to their discussion while dragging the mag needles across the chubby cheeks of the portrait. “Honestly, it’s tattoos like this that really make me grateful I got into the craft professionally. So many ponies assume that tattoos are just for thugs or low-lives, but they can also be meaningful to those who understand the impact. If you’re going to be carrying a piece of them for the rest of their lives, it’s important to go for something personal or special for you.” “Exactly!” said Strawberry with a thankful smile. “I swear, when my cousin first recommended I try this, I thought he was completely nuts! But after thinkin’ about it for a while, I figured… Hey, why not have a picture of Dolly that I can always look at that’ll never get lost?” “That’s a good point,” noted Canvas with a shrug. Though he doubted he could stomach getting a tattoo of Tenor anywhere on himself, it would definitely be something he would appreciate if it was the same quality as Strawberry’s design. Even with the piece three-quarters of the way completed, Canvas couldn’t deny how stellar Marzo’s portrait work really was.  “So, what do you think of my photorealism technique?” asked Marzo curiously. “I know it’s a bit of a leap from what Flamingo was drawing, but you seem to be paying attention fairly well.” “Yeah, I suppose so.” Canvas glanced down at the small notebook he was holding in his hooves, which he had been using to jot down notes about the tattooing process. There were still a lot of details he wasn’t completely sure about, but he was already gaining a lot of respect for the intricate craft. Considering how tedious and detail-oriented it was (especially for a style like photorealism), Canvas was downright impressed that Marzo could lay down a portrait so flawlessly in one go. “I will say though, I would be terrified of trying to tattoo somepony like that. No offense, but a living pony is a bit less forgiving than a blank canvas board.” Marzo and Strawberry both laughed from that truthful remark. “Yeah, I totally agree with you there!” said Marzo. “And to be honest, I’ve had a few mistakes when tattooing ponies in my past.” He made sure to follow that up with a clarification to Strawberry. “But that was years ago when I was still learning. And even then, I was able to fix most of them fairly easily. It’s not as much what you do wrong with a tattoo, but what you can to to turn it around and make it right instead.” Canvas smiled while rubbing his chin in thought, nodding at the zebra’s insight. But before he could think to ask anything else from Marzo, a distinct crackling hiss emanated from inside of his art bag. Canvas quickly reached into his satchel to pull out the walkie talkie, just as he heard Flamingo’s voice on the other end. “Hey Canvas! You still with Marzo?” Canvas was quick to answer into the device. “Yeah, I’m still at his booth. He’s almost done with the Saint Bernard, and it looks fantastic!” “Well, that’s not much of a surprise to hear. Anyway, Cherry Bomb has a new-school design she’s about to start back here. I really think you’ll appreciate seeing it yourself.” A short amount of time later, Canvas was back at Flamingo Fire’s booth to see what her fellow artist was working on. The stallion with the compass tattoo had his piece finished while Canvas was gone, but Flamingo made sure to take some polaroids for him to see the final result. Canvas was really impressed by how symmetrical and well-saturated Flamingo’s design looked at the end; however, the stallion was even more intrigued by the tattoo her partner was placing on the hind-leg of a black Earth Pony. “Oh, man…” Canvas was leaning in close to marvel at the sheer detail of Cherry Bomb’s design, which was a neon-colored mushroom cloud that stood out wonderfully against the stallion’s coat. Unlike the previous client Canvas watched, this guy already had a lot of simplistic pieces composed of white lines across both of his forelegs, as well as around his ankles. Meanwhile, Cherry Bomb’s tattoos were all over the place across her limbs and torso, as her white fur made it easy to give herself tons of colorful designs. And as the mare used her magic to tie up her frizzy green mane, Canvas tried to ask, “So, how long did you do tattooing before joining Flamingo’s shop?” “Oh, about five years or so,” she said with a light shrug while focusing on the bright blue outlines that she was adding to the top of the design. “Of course, that was back when I was in prison for drug charges. But don’t worry, I’ve been clean ever since I was locked up, and I haven’t broken sobriety since. If anything, prison was one of the best things to happen to me.” “Wow, really?” asked Canvas with a confounded look. Though he wasn’t judging the mare for being incarcerated -- especially since she was turning a new leaf -- Canvas never would’ve expected a pony to say such a statement. “How long did you serve?” “Only ten months,” she answered casually enough. “But it was more than enough time for me to learn how to tattoo other inmates with a homemade stick-and-poke setup. By the time I was released, I was really getting into it! I was always into art as a filly, but well… other things got in the way to keep me from realizing my potential…” Despite how morose that last part may have sounded, Cherry Bomb looked over at Flamingo with a cheerful smile across her pierced muzzle. “But still, I’m really grateful to have someone like Flamingo offer to give me a chance. Not many places would hire a convicted felon with tattoos all over her body, so it means a lot to make a living doing something I love.” Canvas’ smile was just as wide as Flamingo’s, who was trying not to tear up while sketching something on a large sheet of paper. “J-Jeeze Cherry, c’mon,” she said as she looked away from her bashfully. Before Cherry Bomb could add anything else, Flamingo spoke to Canvas, “To be fair, we were both apprenticing under Marzo at around the same time. As soon as I got my shop opened, I would’ve been insane not to offer her a job with me. She really understood how much I was struggling during my first months of transitioning, and she was one of the most helpful mares I could’ve asked for.” “Well, you certainly did need some help,” she retorted with a cheeky smirk. “You remember when you tried to use hoof-polish as an eye-liner?~” “Ugh, you’re never going to let that go, are you?” While Canvas giggled from that mental image, Flamingo rolled her eyes without looking too offended. “Honestly, I just wanted to see how they looked in that specific color. It’s not my fault I didn’t know how much that stuff would sting my eyes.” “I dunno, Flamingo,” noted Canvas. “I’d probably realize that as soon as I smelled the bottle.” “Oh, shut up!” Despite her warning remark, both of the mares ended up giggling in response to Canvas’ playful jab. Meanwhile, the stallion lying on Cherry Bomb’s table sighed with an impatient look on his face.  Canvas eventually found himself back at Marzo’s booth, but this time it was to study the technique of a different artist. While the zebra was out to collect some supplies, one of his newer apprentices was busy at work applying an intricate tribal design across the back of a writhing mare. Unlike the other artists Canvas watched, this one wasn’t using a modern tattoo machine; instead, the blue pegasus was holding a long stick in his hoof that was the same girth as a pencil, which had a thin needle pinned to the tip. Unlike all the near-constant buzzing that Canvas could discern from all different directions, the only thing he could hear from the stallion’s technique were the faint pricks of needle to skin, as well as the pained groans from the mare beneath him. Canvas wanted to pay close attention to the simplistic method, as well as the impressive design he was creating at a slow and steady pace. However, he couldn’t help but sneak glances at the tattoo artist himself. The pegasus looked to be much younger than Canvas, but he already had some thick black tribal designs across both sides of his face. He also had a tattoo that went down the side of his neck, which read the word ‘Redemption’ in a bold and artistic font. Canvas didn’t want to ask how a stallion his age got such drastic body art, but his eyes couldn’t help glancing down at his hooves; unlike the other artists Canvas met, the pegasus’ forelegs were laid bare while severely scarred from elbow to wrist. “I honestly don’t have any problem with tattooing with machines,” he said with a shrug while repeatedly jabbing the tip of his stick into her back. “But after I started working with Marzo, he got me to try stick-and-poke as an alternative. It’s actually way less stressful for me to handle, so I like getting to do it whenever I can.” Canvas nodded silently, and shot a glance down at the artist’s hind-legs to see what he meant. All down the length of both legs, he had what looked to be dozens of individual designs of varying color and quality. “So, did you do all those pieces on your legs yourself?” he asked curiously. “Yep!” he said with a prideful smile while stretching out one of his legs, which allowed Canvas to see several more intricate pieces that adorned the back end of his calf. “It was actually a great way to practice the techniques before doing it on others. Marzo did the same thing with the tribal across his wrists. He told me that if I wanted ponies to wear my art, I should at least prove they’re good enough by wearing them myself.” Despite how daunting it was to imagine putting himself through such a painful endeavour, Canvas couldn’t refute the pony’s point by any means. “Hmmm… Yeah, I can totally understand that.” “Not to mention…” With that pause, the stallion pulled back from his work to inspect his progress, nodding in approval over how symmetrical and full-bodied his lines were looking. The mare on the table sighed in relief as he used a small dab of ointment to rub across the irritated skin. “... Given what I went through, it really meant a lot to get the chance to change up my appearance from what I had before…” Canvas’ muzzle pursed tightly in sympathy, not needing to clarify what he was referring to. Even though he was worried about asking for details, he couldn’t help but do so. “So… Is that why you got those face tattoos?” “Pretty much,” he replied casually with a smile, dipping the tip of his needle into a cup of black ink. “Back when I was in college, I was stupid enough to try cooking hay fries in my dorm room with a pot of oil over a hot-plate. As soon as the pot started boiling over, I freaked out and tried to put out the flames with water, and…” Both Canvas and the mare getting tattooed cringed hard from that mental image. While he couldn’t blame the artist for not knowing how to put out a grease fire, he could only imagine how horrible the aftermath of such an ordeal would’ve been. “Dude, I’m so sorry,” he said sincerely. “Hey, don’t be!” When he looked back at Canvas, his smile was natural as could be between his tribal tats. “To be fair, I only went to college because my Dad was pushing me to be a doctor like himself. But since I couldn’t really use my hooves too well after that incident, he didn’t try to stop me when I dropped out. It took him a while before he accepted my choice to go into tattooing, but nowadays he’s really supportive of the work I’ve done.” He then brought a hoof up to one of his cheeks, pausing briefly enough to feel the tiny indentations that went down each individual line. “And when I realized that this was the career I wanted to dedicate myself to, it strangely made sense to get my face tattooed. My Dad always told me, ‘High Flier, when you have a dream you believe in, you put everything into it to make them come true.’ So when I found my calling in tattooing, I decided to take his advice.” “Oh, jeeze,” muttered the mare, her muzzle nestled in a face-hole in the table. “I wish I was a fly on the wall when you went home and showed him that!” “Oh, moons yeah!” he exclaimed with a hearty chuckle. “I swear, that was the only time I ever saw him cry. Not that I blame him though. I’m mostly just grateful he was able to move past it and see the work I put on others.” “Well, I think it’s really cool you were able to make a commitment like that,” said Canvas with a genuine smile towards High Flier. “Not to mention, you kinda rock those tattoos if I say so myself.” “Thanks, man! I know that I get a ton of looks from ponies when I walk around in public, but…” With a light shrug, High Flier held up his scarred hooves and said, “Well, ponies were already staring at these, so I might as well move their focus on something I did intentionally.” All three of them were laughing, with Canvas smiling comfortably. He never thought he’d have such a nice conversation with a pony with face tattoos, but it was surprisingly easy for him to look past High Flier’s body art to see who he was all-around. Just as the sun was beginning to set outside Baltimare, Canvas was sitting outside of Flamingo’s booth again to witness a group tattooing. The inside of the booth was crammed with a family of four, who were each getting matching pieces just above their right wrists. The husband and wife already got their designs, which happened to be a simplistic yellow smiley face. And as the teenaged son grimaced under the needle of Flamingo’s machine, his older sister was sitting beside Canvas and holding a stack of photographs. Even though there were smiles all around, there were also a lot of tears due to the meaning behind their family event. “Pearly… Pearly Whites was always the big risk-taker of our family…” The college-aged mare had to wipe her eyes with a hoof, as did Canvas as he glanced down at the photo she was holding. It was an old picture of a purple stallion smiling at the camera with his tongue sticking out, just as he was leaping off a bridge with a bungee cord around his ankles. On his flank was a Cutie Mark of that same yellow smiley face that his family members were all getting applied. Though the mare was still crying, she spoke with legitimate cheerfulness in her quivering voice. “I-If anything, he… he would’ve been the one to get a tattoo before any of us. Heh heh heh…” Canvas tried to nod his head, but he had to glance away from the booth to wipe his eyes with a tissue. Flamingo did the same with a handkerchief in her aura, but she was quick to try and finish up the last smiley face without any issues. Meanwhile, the mare flipped over to a more recent photo of the stallion they were commemorating. Canvas’ heart broke upon seeing the somber update, which had that same stallion sitting in a hospital bed alongside his family. Even though his purple fur had faded to a near grey across his rail-thin body, and his blonde mane was completely gone, he was still smiling wider than anypony else in their last family photo. “Since he was always the one to do crazy things,” she continued tearfully, tucking the emotional photo away in an effort to control herself, “we… w-we decided to pay tribute with something crazy of our own...” Canvas had to cover his face with his hoof to muffle any sobs that escaped his muzzle. Fortunately for the artist, he wasn’t the only one crying from the pure emotion that was ruminating within the booth. By the time Flamingo finally finished the last smiley face, she had to wipe her eyes with her magic while rubbing ointment over the teenage colt’s wrist. “A-Aright, dude,” she said, her voice trembling just as badly as the others. “That’s the last one. I hope you like it.” The stallion lifted up his hoof to inspect the piece, and immediately clasped his free hoof over his mouth. He was tearing up hard the moment he saw his brother’s Cutie Mark on his wrist. Much like his sister and parents, he now had a permanent reminder of the fallen pony that left him smiling wide. “Oh my gosh… I-It’s perfect!” He instantly lunged in to give Flamingo Fire a strong hug, which she returned while tears ruined her mascara. The other family members all went in to hug her as well, their thankful smiles meaning absolutely everything to the tattoo artist. And all the while, Canvas had to control his breathing while drying his cheeks, feeling eternally grateful that he was able to witness such a personal moment alongside her. “Wow… I’m not gonna lie, that last one got to me way harder than I would’ve expected…” While attendees and artists alike were getting ready to leave the convention at the end of the day, Canvas and Flamingo were standing outside the center side-by-side. The two were leaned against the guardrail that went alongside the Equestrian sea, the gentle waters illuminated beautifully by the setting sun. Since the skies were a deep shade of pink and orange, their reddened eyes weren’t too noticeable to any ponies that walked past them. Meanwhile, Flamingo could only nod her head. “Yeah, I know, right?” She looked out at the cityscape before them, and let out a deep sigh. “Of course, that kind of thing is pretty common with tattoos sometimes. If you’re willing to go under the needle to get something permanently embedded in your skin, chances are good that it’s something really meaningful.” “I can see what you mean there…” Canvas let out a heavy exhale of his own, needing a moment to contemplate everything he experienced at the convention. Despite how overwhelmed he felt by the end, it didn’t take long for a natural smile to spread across his muzzle. Considering how he originally came here by chance, he couldn’t have been more grateful to learn so much about such a new side of art. And as he looked back at the mare who introduced him to it all, he didn’t have a single doubt in his mind that this was where he was meant to to be. “Hey, Flamingo?” “Hmm?” She looked back at the stallion, her brows raising when she saw his gracious smile.  “Thank you. It… it really means a lot to be here.” With that, Flamingo smiled back kindly. “No problem, Canvas. It really meant a lot to have that chance again.” “A… a chance?” he asked puzzledly. Flamingo just sighed and rolled her eyes. “You know… a chance to actually get to know you.” Canvas’ smile widened in an instant. “Ditto.” As the sun finally set behind the Baltimare skyline, Canvas and Flamingo Fire looked at each other with friendly smiles, neither of them sure who should try and hug the other first. But before such a moment could have the chance to occur, both of their ears perked up when they heard Marzo’s voice. “Oh, there you guys are!” The two pulled away from the guardrail, and turned around to see the other three artists Canvas met that day. Marzo, Cherry Bomb, and High Flier were all smiling as they walked up to them. “We were wondering where you ran off to! We were just about to get some pizza and hang out at my shop. Wanna come with?” When Canvas and Flamingo looked back at each other, the mare shrugged with a friendly smile. “Y’know, all I had today were those pickles and a salad, so I wouldn’t mind. How about you?” Canvas didn’t even hesitate as he nodded in agreement. “You know what? I would really like that.”