//------------------------------// // Chapter Six // Story: Brushed Away: Canvas' Cutie Mark Mission // by TheVClaw //------------------------------// It was now nightfall over Manehattan, and the massive cityscape was lit up brightly from all around to encase the island in a neon glow. Lights were illuminating out of the windows of countless buildings, while additional neon signs and billboards helped to leave every street as bright as they were in the daytime. But just away from the downtown regions of Manehattan, down in the lower side where the neighborhoods weren’t nearly as flashy, there stood an old-looking storage building surrounded on all sides with thick iron gates. Rows of large windows were brightly lit across the second story, and three sliding garage doors were locked shut along the ground. A couple decades prior, the building had a large sign above the doors that listed the space as the Manehattan Pottery Company, a once-popular business that went bottom-up due to unforeseen events. But nowadays, with the place un-condemned and restored to a residential property, there was now a new sign advertising its new business: Clawston Creations. Troy and Canvas’ second home had a similar setup to their first one in Ponyville. The ground floor which used to be a massive space that previously contained pottery machinery and a full assembly line, now served as an art exhibition space for Canvas’ latest projects and commissions. On the second floor, which used to be a loft setup that housed the company’s offices for higher staff, was now converted into a fully-fledged living space. If the building was nestled just a few blocks higher up in Manehattan, it was doubtful that even Princess Twilight could afford the monthly rent that the place could garter in revenue. But for Troy and Canvas, who had bought the place for cheap when it was just a dilapidated property from a police auction, their renovation work made the second business an absolute steal. But alas, even with how impressive the Manehattan home was, it wasn’t enough to lift up the spirits of the silver gryphon who resided there. Instead, Troy was left alone with nothing but his lingering worries about his husband, and a wistful sigh while staring into Canvas’ vacant art studio. “Ughhhh…” Troy knew better than to dwell on his thoughts as much as he had, since it would only make his paranoia even worse. Unfortunately, it was hard for the gryphon to even try and clear his head when he saw the dozen or so unfinished paintings that were carefully hung around the spacious room he now found himself in. When the two first purchased the property, the room was originally a manager’s office with massive windows across the back wall; but the rotten carpet had been removed long ago, and was replaced with a professional plastic tarp while three painters easels were set up at various spots.  “Dammit,” he muttered under his breath, turning his head away to avoid glancing at his husband’s artwork. “I really wish Twilight arranged to bring Tenor back here. At least then I’d have someone to talk to.” Bzzzzz!! Troy’s ears perked up upon hearing that buzzing alarm, prompting him to rush down the hallway towards an intercom setup by the main living space. Troy pressed the red button, which turned on the large speaker just above.  “Uhh… Hello?” he asked into the speaker. “Is somepony there?” “Yes, it’s me, darling,” stated the posh-sounding voice from the other end, her Canterlot-esque accent instantly indicating who she was. “I hope I’m not intruding. Twilight messaged me about your husband’s Cutie Mission, and I wanted to check up on you to make sure things were alright.” “Oh!” Troy wasn’t expecting to receive any company tonight, but his brows perked in pleasant surprise from the unexpected guest. He smiled before pressing the button again. “Yeah, come on in, Rarity! I’ll buzz you in.” Troy pressed the large green button right beside the red one to open the front gate. The gryphon sprung out his wings, and soared down to the ground floor in an instant from the second floor balcony. By the time he reached the front doors, he was happy to see that Rarity was already waiting with a smile and a brightly lit horn.  “Good evening, darling!” Rarity gave Troy a hug, which the gryphon accepted and returned. After the two pulled back, Rarity revealed a large casserole dish wrapped in foil she had floating in her aura. “Since you were alone for the night, I figured you could use some home-made lasagna.” “Oh Rarity, that’s so nice!” Troy smiled wide, even though he knew the lasagna was most likely vegetarian. He stepped back to bring a claw out invitingly towards the gallery. “You wanna come in? I can easily make some garlic bread to go with that.” “Ooh, that sounds delightful!” Rarity nodded happily as she trotted into the building, its concrete floors brightly polished for whomever clients would come in for Canvas’ services. There were several raised platforms around the space which were originally foundations for the building’s old pottery machinery. Now these concrete slabs served as display stages for Canvas’ finished paintings listed for sale. While Troy led her back towards the stairs that went up to the kitchen, Rarity took her time as she marveled at the various pieces and their prices. “Oooohhhh… I really like that geometric design over there!” Troy glanced over to see where she was looking, and smiled when he noticed the large canvas piece composed of purple and blue lines over a black backdrop. Just underneath the painting was a sign that originally listed its price, but now had a large red sticker over it to indicate it had been sold earlier. “Oh yeah, I think somepony out in Vanhoover purchased that already,” said Troy apologetically. “I think they’re supposed to arrive in a few days to pick it up.” “Well, I’m sure it’ll look marvelous in their abode.” Rarity didn’t seem too disappointed about the painting already being sold, and instead trotted up the stairs while marveling at the warehouse’s finished renovations. “I must say though, it’s outstanding how much this place has changed.” “I know, right?” Troy huffed with a smile, pausing at the top of the steps to stare at the framed newspaper headlines that he hung along the brick walls. Rarity glanced over the frames as well, her brows raising upon reading the old displays: Manehattan Pottery Company Shuts Down Amongst Smuggling Allegations Millions of Bits Worth of Rare Artifacts Discovered in Former Pottery Factory Manehattan Pottery Company: From Family Business to Criminal Hot-Spot “Hmmm…” Rarity was already aware of the warehouse’s criminal past, and how it was a big reason for why the space was condemned for so long. When Rarity reached the last framed newspaper, she smiled upon seeing a photo of the couple smiling proudly in front of the building: Former Pottery Factory Finally Reopens as Art Studio “I remember my Mother telling me about this place before,” noted Rarity as she followed Troy to the kitchen. “She mentioned how she bought several vases from here back in her college years, and how shocked she was to learn about the smuggling raids.” “Yeah, Canvas and I were just as surprised to learn that stuff when we did some research ourselves.” Troy went to preheat the oven, and pulled out a large loaf of Prench Bread from the fridge. “I think Rainbow Dash told me it might’ve been related to Daring Do or something, which is kinda weird if you ask me.” Rarity didn’t say anything, but her skewed muzzle indicated that she may have known a bit more about that detail than Troy did. Luckily though, it didn’t seem like the gryphon noticed her expression while cutting the bread. Rarity then decided to look through his fridge to see what else could be included in their impromptu meal. “It’s quite convenient that both of us have a night like this to ourselves. Ms. Pommel is off in Canterlot to help with Sassy Saddles, and I’ve been stuck in Manehattan for days without much of a chance for proper social interaction.” “Yeah, I know what you mean--Ooh, thanks!” Troy smiled when he saw a hunk of mozzarella floating in Rarity’s aura, which he took before grabbing a cheese grater. “I’ve been stuck with dress rehearsals over the past week due to a bunch of recasting, and it’s been Tartarus trying to get everypony on the same page. Although I guess it’s a bit different for me, since all of us usually go out for drinks at the end of our practices.” “Well, there’s certainly nothing wrong with that.” Rarity opened up the oven to put in her lasagna, and then sat down at the kitchen table across from Troy. “Fortunately, I’m set to go to Canterlot in a couple of days to meet up with Twilight again. This will actually be our first summit as the Council of Friendship, and I couldn’t be more excited!” “Oh, nice!” Troy’s face lit up, and he placed his uncooked garlic bread in the oven in the second rack. “Canvas and I were hoping that things would stay strong between you guys.” “Well of course we are!” Rarity almost looked offended, but her scoff was accompanied with an understanding smile. “While I can’t deny that things are… different, I suppose… it doesn’t change the fact that our bonds aren’t going to dissolve anytime soon.” Troy nodded with a smile, knowing that Rarity’s statement was as true as it was comforting. Even though a lot of things had changed, both with each other and Equestria as a whole, it meant a lot to know that the Elements of Harmony weren’t likely to disband for any reason. And as the two sat with mutual looks of respect for each other’s successes, Rarity made sure to add sincerely, “Just like how I know for a fact that your husband is doing just fine out in Baltimare.” He knew that Rarity meant that with as much comfort as possible, but the mention of Canvas prompted Troy to sigh and his smile to deflate. “Yeah… I’m sure he’ll be alright too…” Rarity’s smile lessened as well, and was replaced with a more concerned look. “Oh, darling, I know you miss him dearly. And believe me, I completely understand. I’ve been on Friendship Missions myself, so I know how difficult they can be. But I also know that Canvas is more than capable of keeping himself safe.” “Yeah, I’m not saying otherwise. Seriously, I trust him wholeheartedly. It’s just the whole, ‘Going to a new city by himself with no plan’ part that’s making me worried sick!” Rarity merely scoffed. “Oh, what do you think will happen to him in Baltimare? I’ll admit the city is big, but I’m sure that he’s not hanging out with any unsavory types at this hour.” Down in Baltimare, Canvas was having a surprisingly nice time among Flamingo Fire and her friends at Kupigwa juu ya Ink. The stallion never really gave much thought to what the inside of a tattoo parlor would look like, but he was impressed by how clean and stylish Marzo’s setup was. Down on the ground floor, the place almost looked like a barber shop with its tiled floors and sanitized tattoo benches. Up on the second floor, where Canvas and the other four were hanging out in Marzo’s living room, his Zebrican pride was apparent from the various pieces of decor that were draped across the walls. In a way, Canvas was almost reminded of a slightly modernized version of Zecora’s hut back in Ponyville.  The five artists were all seated around Marzo’s coffee table, and having a nice time swapping stories over pizza and drinks. There were several shot glasses around the table, but Canvas and Cherry Bomb were the only ones sticking to cans of Red Manticore instead. Canvas tried not to think too hard about how random everything felt, or how unpredictable it was to be at some random zebra’s place with a bunch of tattooed ponies. Fortunately though, it was easy to just appreciate the nice night while enjoying a slice of pizza, and hearing Marzo talking about a recent client. “Okay, I know I told this to High Flier the other day,” he said while pointing at the pegasus in question. “But I know I haven’t told the others yet, so here it goes. I was just about to close shop when this guy came in, wanting to get a tattoo right off the bat.” “Ughhhh…” Both Flamingo and Cherry Bomb groaned with heavy eyerolls. “Man, I hate it when ponies do that!” griped Flamingo bitterly. “I mean, tattoos take a pretty bucking long time to do. Why do ponies think they can just wander in right before we close?!” “Yeah, I know, I know.” Marzo nodded his head in agreement, while Canvas did the same in silence. “Anyways, this guy asked me if I was good at pinup designs. Now, I was planning to set up an appointment for him at a different time, so I just told him, ‘Yeah, sure. I do pinup tattoos all the time! What were you wanting?’” “Oh, jeeze,” blurted High Flier, who had to cover his face while snickering. “This is a bad one.” “Hey, come on. At least let me get to the good part!” Marzo sighed with an eyeroll, and then went back to topic. “Anyway, after I told him that, this guy gets really excited, and then takes that moment to say, ‘Oh, that’s great! Now I was wondering… Do you have an age limit on how pinups are supposed to look?’” That question prompted both mares to give worrisome “Oooohs” with matching winces, while Canvas narrowed his eyes with concern. “Ummm… Did he mean how old, or how young?” Canvas didn’t want to assume the answer to his own question, but the fact that High Flier had to look away with his muzzle pursed wasn’t helping. Meanwhile, Marzo just sighed with another eyeroll before answering. “Well… I tried to ask him that same question myself, and he said, ‘Well… I was hoping to get a pinup tattoo of Cozy Glow.’” “UGH!!” Cherry Bomb grimaced with a strong cringe, while Canvas just gawked with his eyes repeatedly blinking. Much like High Flier, Flamingo Fire had to cover her muzzle shut to keep from snickering. Meanwhile, Cherry Bomb held up her hoof and said, “I KNOW that guy! He showed up at our shop a couple weeks back! I had to kick him out the moment he started describing the details!” “Holy crap!” Canvas knew that he was likely to hear some crazy stories from these tattoo artists about their experiences, but he had to ask Cherry and Marzo, “Wait, was it like, just a picture of Cozy Glow he wanted as a tattoo? Or was it like… sexualized?” The zebra and mare both sighed with matching looks of disappointment, causing Canvas’ brows to rise up in shock. Marzo decided to answer Canvas’ question flat out. “He wanted her wearing a schoolgirl outfit, and licking a lollipop.” “Ughhhhh…” A heavy round of groans went around the table, with Canvas looking especially skeeved-out. Flamingo shook her head with a strong shudder. “Why is it always the foalita types?” “Heh~” High Flier was the first to start smirking again, and shot a cheeky glance towards the only one without any ink. “Yeah, the kind of clientele that we all get are probably a bit crazier than the ones you deal with up in Manehattan, right?” “Hey, come on now,” chided Marzo. “Canvas just spent all day hanging out with us. There’s no need to hassle him for how he does his work.” “Hey, it’s alright,” assured Canvas with an unoffended smile. “I know that my career is a bit different from your guys’ stuff. If anything, it’s just nice to see that Flamingo is so successful herself.” The red mare raised her brows, and smiled at Canvas thankfully. Unfortunately, that was the moment when Cherry Bomb nudged her side while shooting a jeering grin at the stallion. “Buck yeah she has! And she didn’t even need to get all buddy-buddy with Princess Twilight like you have.” Flamingo Fire instantly whipped her head back at Cherry with her eyes wide-open, looking like she wanted to smack her over the head. Marzo took notice of Canvas’ confusion, who was staring at Flamingo with his eyes slightly narrowed. High Flier looked like he wanted to add to Cherry Bomb’s remark, so the zebra quickly stepped in. “S-Say, Canvas. You’ve dealt with a lot of crazy clients yourself, haven’t you? Do you have any stories worth sharing?” Canvas kept his eyes on Flamingo Fire for just a little longer, with the mare in question avoiding his stare with a shameful blush. Meanwhile, Marzo made sure to shoot some silent glares at Cherry Bomb and High Flier, causing both of them to shut up in an instant. By the time Canvas finally did look back at Marzo, the zebra instantly regrew a friendly smile for the artist.  “Well, ummm… I suppose I have dealt with some crazy clients before…” Considering what Marzo mentioned earlier, Canvas huffed before shooting the group a confident smirk. “You guys think it’s crazy dealing with a guy who wanted a picture of Cozy Glow?” He then leaned back in his chair, and said, “Well… I actually did a picture for Cozy Glow.” In an instant, all four pairs of eyes nearly bulged out of their skulls while pointed at Canvas. “WHAT?!?” “Holy shit, what?!” gawked High Flier with his hooves over his head. “Are you for real right now?!” “Wait a minute, didn’t you say you worked from home!?” added Cherry Bomb with an equally shocked look. “Dude, how the buck are you still alive!?” Flamingo Fire couldn’t even say a word, and just stared at the stallion like he just sprouted a penis from his forehead. Meanwhile, Canvas tried to quell any assumptions. “Okay, in my defense, this was before she tried to drain all the magic from Equestria. Nopony had any clue that she was some demented sociopath. Not even Twilight or the Elements! When she came to my studio to ask for a painting, I seriously thought she was just some filly who saved up her bits for a commission.” He then spoke further with a more baffled look. “And you know what the most screwed-up part is? She was actually one of the best clients I ever dealt with! She was extremely polite to me and Troy, had all the details of her picture thought out and easy to explain, paid for the piece upfront, and even left a forty percent tip! I mean, I’m glad she’s locked up in stone forever, don’t get me wrong! But holy crap, she was a better client than most of my Canterlot regulars!” “Waaaaiiiit, wait, wait, wait, wait…” Marzo was quick to put his hoof up to catch Canvas’ attention. “…What did she actually pay you for a picture of?” Canvas may have been confident before, but that question caused him to wince sharply. But since the three ponies were also staring at him in stunned silence, Canvas had to look down at his hooves while grimacing guiltily. “She… She wanted a portrait of herself… Sitting in Celestia’s throne.” All four of the tattoo artists made strong “Oofs” in response, while Canvas shuddered in utter disdain. “Yeah, I know,” he muttered with a shameful pout. “I have no idea where that painting is, by the way. I can only assume that it’s in a police evidence locker somewhere.” “Yikes…” Flamingo Fire still felt uncomfortable due to Cherry Bomb’s outburst, but she tried to give a response to Canvas’ stunning reveal “So… what were ponies’ reactions when they found out she was a psycho all along?” Canvas scoffed and gave the mare a look. “Oh, everyone in Ponyville was shocked when they found out what was going on! Nopony had any clue that she would do something like that! Of course, when we all realized that she was the one affecting everyone’s magic and natural abilities, it didn’t really take long for us to be grateful she was sent to Tartarus.” “Yeah, I get what you mean there, dude,” stated High Flier. “I was barely able to do stick-and-pokes during that time! I swear, I thought that there was something physically wrong with me.” “Yeah, us too,” noted Cherry Bomb while motioning between herself and Flamingo. “But in all seriousness though, I’m just glad that she didn’t try to skin you in your home or anything.” Canvas reeled back with a cringed look from such a morbid statement, but he knew she was just trying to be sincere. “Well… Yeah, I’m grateful Troy and I weren’t hurt by her too. Thanks…” Cherry Bomb tried to smile while nodding back at him, but she was slightly distracted by the stink eye that Flamingo Fire was giving her. Meanwhile, Marzo glanced over at the clock on the wall before perking his brows. “Damn, is it really getting that late? Jeez…”  The zebra then looked over at Flamingo. “You know, you should really head back home to get some rest. I know that competition doesn’t start until noon, but I don’t want you to be sleep-deprived before then.” Canvas blinked upon hearing Marzo mentioning a competition, since it was one of those things that he only briefly saw being mentioned in that flier he picked up from the station. But when he looked over towards the mares for more intel, Flamingo Fire was already getting out of her seat with a nod. “Yeah, yeah… I really should get some shuteye, shouldn’t I?” Before she could leave, Flamingo made sure to ask, “Hey Canvas, you wanna come with? Unless you got a hotel room, I got a spare bed at my shop you can crash on.” Canvas wanted to be grateful for such a nice offer, since he was sure that most of the hotels in the city were already oversold due to the convention. However, after hearing that odd detail that Cherry Bomb brought up, Canvas had to force his smile a little as he nodded apprehensively. “Ummm… Sure, that sounds alright, I guess…” As he got up from his seat and grabbed his art bag, Canvas paused to ask, “So wait, what’s that about a competition? You never mentioned anything about that today.” Flamingo Fire just sighed with a guilty look. “Well, I was a little freaked out about it, so I didn't want to dwell too much on it while tattooing. But don’t worry, I’ll explain it on the way to my place.” “Hey, be sure to show him what you have planned for the event!” chirped High Flier with a prideful smile at the mare. “Cherry Bomb told me what it was, and I’m curious what Mister Manehattan would think of your artistry~” Canvas wasn’t quite sure if High Flier’s remark was meant to be complementary or teasing. Regardless, the pegasus’ cheeky tone made Flamingo sigh sharply in annoyance. “You know, you could at least try to word it in a less patronizing way, dude.” On the plus side, Canvas and Flamingo’s walk back to her shop was much less lengthy than he would’ve expected. The two had to trot across several city blocks at night, but the stallion’s hooves didn’t hurt a bit by the time they reached the outside of Pins & Needles Studio. Unfortunately, after some of the things that were discussed back at Marzo’s place, the mood was awkward enough between the ponies to keep any conversation severely limited.  The building was much smaller than Marzo’s setup, and looked to be a simple two-story home that had been converted into a business. When Flamingo unlocked the front doors and invited him inside, Canvas was surprised at how differently her shop was set up in comparison to the zebra’s. Instead of having a fairly simplistic setup for clients, Flamingo went all out to make her workspace match her punk aesthetic. Dozens of rock posters were hung up in random places on the walls, while some speakers attatched to the ceiling played some hardcore metal at a low volume to add ambiance. She had hardwood floors across the entirety of the ground floor, with the only similarity to Marzo’s shop being the quality of her tables and tattooing machinery.  “Oh, nice…” Canvas was genuinely impressed by the setup Flamingo Fire made for herself, and he walked around the shop to better examine the place. “This is pretty impressive stuff.” “Eh, you don’t have to exaggerate…” She was smiling gratefully, but she also rolled her eyes while walking past Canvas towards one of the back rooms. “To be honest, I inherited this house from my Aunt after she passed away a while back.” “Oh. Ummm… I’m sorry to hear that…” Canvas cringed awkwardly while she was out of his line of sight. Fortunately, she still spoke up while in the other room. “Hey, it’s alright. She and I weren’t really that close after I came out as a mare. The big reason I got this house was because she was too lazy to update her will. It took a lot of work to make this house up to code as a living business, but I managed to make it happen.” “Actually, I think that detail makes it even more impressive.” Canvas made sure to give her a reassuring smile when she came back out from the back room. Meanwhile, Flamingo was holding a large sheet of paper in her aura while her horn was lit. Upon seeing the sheet, Canvas’ brows perked up curiously. “Wait… is that what High Flier was talking about?” “Well…” Flamingo seemed a little wary about being alone with Canvas, but she felt compelled to nod her head and speak. “I know I didn’t tell you about the competition on purpose, and… to be honest, I feel kinda bad about that. So…” With that, the mare went past Canvas to lay the sheet down on a bare tattoo bench. The glossy paper was only about two square feet in total, but it still provided more than enough room for her intricately-drawn design. When Canvas walked up to see what it was, his eyes widened upon taking in the level of detail that was applied across the small sheet. It was a close-up view of a rose with blood-red petals, and bright green vines that spread out in two wavy strands across both sides. Upon leaning in closer, Canvas let out an impressed whistle when he saw the matching red thorns that adorned each individual vine. “Whoa… Is this what you were planning to do for that competition thing?” “Yes it is,” she said with a confident smirk while marveling at her creation. “I know that roses are pretty commonplace in tattooing, but I figured that by doing something of that high of a quality, it could get me the chance to win.” “Honestly, if you’re able to apply it this well on a pony, I wouldn’t be surprised if you did.” Now with the competition on topic, Canvas looked back at her curiously. “So, how does a tattoo competition actually work? I never even knew such a thing existed.” “Well, it's definitely a higher-stakes kind of thing,” she admitted with a shrug. “Basically, tomorrow I’ll have six hours to apply that tattoo on this guy I have assigned for me. There’s like, five other ponies who are competing as well, which is a big deal since there were a lot of applicants. We get six hours to tattoo whatever design we think is the best on somepony, which are then graded by a panel of judges. I was lucky enough to get the last slot, and I intend to win the ten thousand bit prize.” “WHOA!” Canvas’ eyes shot wide-open. “Ten thousand bits?! Holy crap, you could do a lot with that money!” “Precisely~” she stated while lighting up her horn to re-roll that sheet of paper for later. “Business may be going well enough for me so far, but winning something this big would definitely help get my name out there.” “Hey, I don’t blame you,” he replied while scratching the back of his mane. “Seriously, I know how important it can be to keep up momentum when you wanna achieve success.” “Yeah, I… I suppose you would…” By the time she tightened her roll of paper with a rubber band, Flamingo Fire was carrying an awkward skew of her muzzle. Eventually, the mare sighed to herself hoarsely. “Hey, ummm… would it be alright if we talked about earlier?” Canvas bit his bottom lip, and gave a slightly worrisome look back at Flamingo. He already had a feeling what the conversation was going to be about, but he didn’t want to ignore the topic before it got any more uncomfortable between them. So after nodding his head silently, he followed Flamingo as she trotted up the stairs to her living space. She unlocked another door before entering her home, which looked much less renovated than her business on the bottom floor. However, when Canvas followed her towards one of the rooms at the end of the hallway, he was surprised to see that she had a personal kitchen installed on the second floor. Canvas wasn’t sure what the room may have been before it was changed, but he said nothing about as he sat down at the kitchen table. Meanwhile, Flamingo pulled out a bottle of beer for herself from the fridge, as well as a can of cola for the non-drinker.  “Listen, I…” Flamingo was finding it difficult to start such a conversation, and had to breathe out while sitting across from the stallion. “About what Cherry Bomb said, I… I should point out that when she and I first met, it was really soon after that Canterlot show, alright? I was still coming to terms with a lot of things, and… Well, I was kinda salty about not receiving any recognition for my art back then.” Considering what Flamingo told him back at the convention, Canvas looked a little offended as he tilted his head at her. “But… You told me that you didn’t have any grudges about that.” “I don’t!” she blurted as insistently as she could with both hooves raised. “I swear I’m not upset about it anymore! I know that my artwork wasn’t going to sell to crowds like that, and you certainly deserved all the success you received from that night. I would not lie to you about that, okay?” Even though he was still unsure how to feel, Canvas still nodded his head in recognition of her truthfulness. After that, Flamingo sighed before glancing away, wincing from the discomfort both of them were feeling. “But, ummm… Yeah… Back when you got that offer from Princess Celestia to make a painting for her, we were all shocked by the outcome, you know? And… Well, when the five of us were talking after the show, we… We all kinda assumed that it was because you lived in the same town as Twilight Sparkle and knew her personally.” Canvas’ head reeled back with a strong look of shock. “Wait, what?!” “I know that’s a dumb assumption to make!” she said in an instant. “Seriously, I know that nowadays! I mean, I’ve heard about all those other pieces you’ve done for Royalty, and it’s pretty damn clear you earned those through your own talents. I promise you, I’m not depleting your work at all! It was just…” With that uncomfortable pause, Flamingo eventually sighed with her eyes closed, and her tone became guiltier. “... I was going through a lot back then. Even if I was good at hiding it from everypony. And… A-And it was hard for me to accept certain things as being fair…” Canvas grew a saddened look, his ears pulling downward. Though learning of Flamingo’s true thoughts about him in the past was a little jarring, he couldn’t blame her in the slightest for having a lot on her plate back then. He couldn’t claim that he understood how she personally felt back then, but he could certainly sympathize with somepony struggling to come to terms with who they were. Not to mention, Canvas was sure if he was in Flamingo Fire’s hooves, he most likely would’ve been pissed about somepony else receiving that kind of praise as well.  “Well, I… I guess that all makes sense,” he admitted with hesitance. “I mean… I did happen to know Twilight Sparkle personally before that show, so… there’s always a chance that it may have skewed things in my favor the tiniest bit.” “No, don’t be like that,” she said even more insistently. “Dude, I remember that art piece you made of your husband for the show, and it was friggin’ amazing! Even if you didn’t have history with the Princess, I’m sure that it would’ve sold way easier than the painting I made.” “Well, you had a really impressive piece too.” Canvas tried to give the mare a reassuring smile. “I mean, it might not be something I’d hang up in my living room or anything, but I can think of a few horror fans who’d love something like that.” Flamingo sighed with a weak smile, and said sheepishly, “Well, thanks for telling me that… And to be honest, Celestia did recommend my work to her sister. I even received a letter from the castle a week after the show, asking me to send pictures of my work for Luna to assess herself! I never heard back after that, but I still consider it a pretty big deal.” “Yeah, I don’t blame you! I would’ve said the same thing!” Canvas was smiling wide, and looked like he wanted to go across the table and give her a congratulatory hug. But due to how uncomfortably things felt earlier, Canvas kept himself in his seat. “Seriously, you’re a talented artist, Flamingo! You had one of the most memorable pieces that stuck out to me from that art show, and it doesn’t surprise me at all that you were able to find success doing something you clearly love. I couldn’t be happier for you.” Flamingo grew a touched smile. The stallion continued to speak, but his expression turned discomforted as he looked away from her. “And, uhhh… yeah, I’m not assuming we have any bad blood or anything, I swear. I probably would’ve been upset in your position as well…” “Hey, that’s no excuse for how I treated you,” she said. Canvas reeled back in surprise. “Dude, I was thinking all day about how I acted back in Canterlot, and I… I realized how little I actually got to know you as an artist. If anything, I… all I did was just ask questions about how you could paint without a horn.” Canvas brought up his hoof to make a point, but nothing was able to come out of his mouth. Instead, he stopped himself just as lips parted, giving himself a moment to contemplate. Canvas may have been grateful to learn so much about Flamingo today, but he couldn’t claim their very first interaction as artists was too different from what she stated. Back at the Canterlot show, Canvas really did feel like the outsider of the artists group due to how superficial their interactions were. Still, Canvas quickly interjected. “Well, I know that a lot of the more technical aspects of art were easier for unicorns to master due to magic, and… not a lot of Earth Ponies were able to reach that kind of recognition back then.” “Well, that was also back when I was trying to follow an art path that didn’t work out for me. I… I can’t say I was completely upset about leaving the Canterlot crowds to be myself. I mean… It’s pretty obvious I wasn’t being myself back then, and… I wasn’t being myself towards you either…” She looked down at her hind-legs, which prompted Canvas to glance down as well. He could see the countless stick-and-poke designs that adorned the mare’s bare legs, similar to the mishmash of designs he saw on High Flier. But down at the end of Flamingo’s right hoof, Canvas saw a row of differently-colored bands that wrapped around her ankle. The pink, pale blue, and white stripes stood out prominently against her red fur.  “I got into tattoos less than a month after the Canterlot show, when I was starting to explore better means of making myself more comfortable in my own body. And as I allowed myself to think more about what I wanted, I… I eventually came to terms with what I really wanted underneath…” Flamingo looked back at Canvas, smiling weakly. “Marzo really helped me around that time, and even got me into tattooing. And by the time he officially hired me as an apprentice, he told me I had to tattoo something on myself to truly express how I felt within. And… That was how I came out.” Canvas gave a warm smile. “Wow, really? So… you ended up starting tattooing and transitioning at the same time? That’s… that’s legitimately impressive.” “Yeah, it was…” As she pulled her ankle back, Flamingo shrugged while trying to keep herself from looking overwhelmed. “It… It was certainly a lot for me to adjust to back then. But if anything, focusing on my artwork and self-image really gave me a better incentive to make myself who I wanted to be. And… And it meant everything to have someone like Marzo to help me accept myself without any judgement at all. The moment I told him I wanted to be a mare, he didn’t even flinch. He was totally accepting of it, and was quick to start gendering me correctly like it was nothing…” Despite how optimistically Flamingo was speaking earlier, her head started to hang morosely before her tone soured up. “Unlike certain ponies who I thought could understand…” Canvas didn’t want to pry on any details, but his smile quickly disappeared to reveal a veil of concern. After a moment of silence, Flamingo looked down at her hooves on the floor. “My Mom, she… she really wasn’t willing to accept it. Part of me wanted to think she’d understand, since she was willing to accept the piercings and tattoos. But… In the end, I guess she couldn’t take the idea of losing her ‘sweet little colt’...” With a strong sigh, the mare reeled her head back while keeping her eyes tightly shut. “It’s… been about three years since the last time I spoke to her. The last time we spoke, she… she told me I would never be her daughter…” Canvas held a hoof to his chest, staring at Flamingo with a heartbroken look. “Oh Goddess… Flamingo, I’m so sorry.” “It’s alright,” she quickly huffed with a wave of her hoof, while the other pinched the bridge of her muzzle tightly. “Sorry, sorry, I didn’t mean to get all personal like that. I just... I‘ve been able to do so much since then, and… I can’t imagine my life having gone this well if I didn’t invest myself into tattooing...” With that last statement in mind, Canvas looked down at the table while Flamingo quickly wiped her eyes. The stallion had to take a moment to process his thoughts on the matter, but he still nodded his head silently with an understanding look. After some contemplation, Canvas was able to sigh with a genuine smile back at Flamingo Fire. ”Well… from what I saw of you earlier, I can see how important all of this to you. And… I really think you have what it takes to kick ass in that competition tomorrow~” Canvas’ smile widened genuinely, which caused Flamingo to giggle with a blush. “Oh, come on!” she blurted while covering her face and looking away from him. “You just met me today! You don’t even know any of the competitors.” “That may be true, but I do know this: I was brought to Baltimare by the Cutie Map, and you have a big competition tomorrow. I think it’s easy to make the connection, Flamingo.” “Psh~ Oh, really? You were destined to come and help me? What do I need help with? I already have it all planned out on my end.” “Well, that doesn’t mean I can’t offer my assistance. I mean… a lot can happen in six hours, right?” Flamingo raised a brow, and her muzzle tightened in thought. “Hmmm…” After looking back down at her hooves for a moment, the mare shrugged reluctantly. “Okay, yeah. I mean… I guess it wouldn’t hurt to have a second artist on hoof for something like this…”  She then looked back up Canvas with a conflicted smile. “Are you sure you wanna stick with me for this? I mean, Baltimare is a pretty big city, and I don’t wanna think I’m keeping you from painting a mural for a cancer patient or whatever.” Canvas had to laugh while shaking his head with a wince. “Jeeze, thanks for giving me that hypothetical!” After the two ponies shared a good laugh, Canvas sighed while still smiling. “But seriously though… do you really think that the two of us weren’t destined to try and be friends again?” Even though the question was certainly an odd one, it didn’t take long for Flamingo to give a hesitantly truthful response. “I… I can’t really think of anything different either…” Canvas and Flamingo Fire ended up smiling at each other for a long moment, and brought their hooves out to shake in solidarity. “Alright then,” she said with a pert nod. “If you wanna help me in this competition, I’ll gladly accept your offer.” “That’s great to hear,” said Canvas cheerfully. “Besides, I’m really wanting to see how your rose will look on a pony instead of paper.” “Heh~ Nice to know I’m getting you so interested.” Flamingo shot the stallion a cocky smirk, emphasizing her pride. And now that the mood was lightened up, the mare raised a brow curiously. “So, let me ask you something… I know you don’t drink alcohol, and I’m not gonna push that at all. But I was wondering… do you happen to partake in anything else?~” Canvas narrowed his eyes on her confusedly with a head-tilt. “Hmm?” “What I mean is…” The mare’s smirk widened quite a bit while her brows perked devilishly. “I didn’t want to say anything around the others, since Cherry Bomb is a bit straight-laced since prison. But… I happened to smell something familiar from your bag earlier~” Canvas jolted with his eyes bulging worriedly. “UH! Ummmm…” He tried to look away from Flamingo while blushing heavily over his nervous smile. “Heh heh heh… I happen to have a prescription for it from Zecora. She’s an apothecary back in Ponyville, and I have the paperwork to verify.” “That’s good to know~” The mare grinned mischievously as she lit up her horn, and opened up one of the kitchen cabinets. She pulled out a large glass jar that hovered in her pink aura, which was carrying enough dark, sticky green kush to make Canvas gasp with an elated smile. Even from far away, the stallion could see the many bright red hairs protruding from the thick nuggets that were clinging to the inside of the glass. Meanwhile, Flamingo spoke pridefully. “I happen to have a prescription too~” Canvas grinned just as wide as she was, and reached into his bag to pull out a large ziplock baggie he had in a hidden pocket. “Man, I’m sooooo glad Lyra got me back into this stuff after my wedding.” Not too long after, the sounds of giddy giggling could be heard from outside the dark tattoo shop. The streetlights may have stayed illuminated all through the night, but only the top two windows of Flamingo’s home remained lit as two old acquaintances shared some much-appreciated bonding.