//------------------------------// // Chapter Fourteen: Baggage // Story: Brushed Away 2: By Hoof and Claw // by TheVClaw //------------------------------// "Canvas, I'm sorry! I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so, SO SORRY!!!" Though he heard Troy’s desperate pleas as he called out to him, Canvas paid no heed as he ran as fast as he could back toward Greenhoof Village. While his hooves thundered under the pavement, Canvas's eyes were wide open in petrified fear as he galloped through the increasingly darkening streets of Manehattan. Moving and pushing his way past the crowds of Manehattanites like a madpony, all Canvas could think about was his art bag, praying to all that was holy that it wasn't lost forever. "Canvas, please slow down!" Troy exclaimed frantically, trying to catch up with him through the crowds. "We're going to find it, I promise! We just gotta calm down an—” "NO!!!" Reaching the end of the block, Canvas stopped for a moment to catch his breath. He stomped on the ground, clenched his eyes shut, and gritted his teeth. "I… I CAN'T CALM DOWN!!!" Falling back on his flank, Canvas brought his hooves to his face as he bent his head down. Struggling not to openly sob in the middle of the street like some depressed lunatic, Canvas felt his breathing come out in sporadic gasps while he desperately tried to keep himself together. "My… my bag…" Canvas said in almost a weeping whisper as Troy ran up to him. "My bag… my art bag… the bag that my… my Mom gave me… No… No, no, no, no…" Before he could let any tears escape his welling eyes, Canvas felt Troy's forelegs wrap around him. Panting heavily from his impromptu running, Troy hugged his fiancé as tightly as he could. "Canvas, listen to me." Troy tried to keep his voice from sounding strained from the huge wave of guilt he was feeling right now. "We are going to find your bag, okay? I know I messed up, and I am so, SO sorry!" Canvas laid his head against Troy's feathered chest, barely able to control his weeping as the Gryphon continued on. "But it was just misplaced! It wasn't stolen, alright? We have somepony else's bag, which means they have yours, and I know we're going to get it back!" Troy knew exactly what had happened, so he knew he wasn't just blowing hot air. Remembering that a mare came in with some filly while he was still half-conscious, he was absolutely certain what must have occurred. The mare had put her purse (which he was currently holding onto) down on the ground next to Canvas's art bag, and accidentally took his by mistake. Even though he absolutely hated now much this devastated his fiancé, he also knew that it was just a simple mistake. Before he could let Canvas go and try to head back to the pizzeria, Troy heard the flapping of Lyle's wings as he flew in towards them. "Guys, wait up!" Also breathing hard, Lyle landed down beside his brother before noticing how mortified Canvas looked. "What the buck happened?! Did Canvas forget something?" "Yeah. Well… sort of…" Grimacing, Troy held up the brown purse in one claw as he kept the other around Canvas. "We accidentally grabbed the wrong bag back at that pizza place, and we need to get it ba—” "WE?!!" Canvas quickly let go of his fiancé, giving him a deathly glare. "You're seriously trying to say WE?! YOU were the one who lost it!" Troy winced and tried to put his claws up in defense. "Canvas, please! It wasn't my fau—” "SHUT UP!!!" Canvas shut his eyes and hung his head again. His breathing came out more rapidly as he tried to speak through his clenched teeth. "I can't lose it… I can NOT lose that… It was everything… It was all I had…" Shaking in growing anger, the stallion screamed down at the ground before looking back up at Troy in a fit of rage. "HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO ME?! You know how important that bag is to me, AND NOW—" "HEY!!!" Lyle immediately stepped in between Troy and Canvas, freezing the stallion as he came face-to-face with him. "If you don’t stop screaming, I'm really gonna give you something to scream about! Stop yelling at Troy, and calm the buck down, RIGHT NOW!" Canvas froze in place for a long moment, looking absolutely stunned. Slowly, the stallion's erratic breathing calmed, and he looked away from Lyle. Even with how unstable the stallion appeared, Lyle didn’t want to see him blow up at his brother. While Troy stood motionless, shocked to see his brother stand up to Canvas like that, Lyle calmed himself down for a moment with a sigh before putting a claw to the pony's shoulder. "Canvas…" After taking a few deep breaths, Canvas slowly regained his composure enough to look at him. His eyes were starting to look reddened when he finally reopened them to look at Lyle's concerned face. "Listen, dude. I…" Lyle paused for a moment and looked back to his brother, noting how horrible he seemed to feel about what he indirectly caused to happen. Lyle sighed before looking back at Canvas. Lyle said sternly, "I know you're freaked out right now, and I totally get it. If I lost my stuff, I'd probably be ticked off too…" He used one of his wings to readjust the satchel over his shoulder, making sure it was secure. "But!" Lyle pointed a talon at Canvas and said in a more commanding tone, "I'm not gonna have you yell at Troy for something that wasn't his fault! Anyone could've made that mistake, so don't you try to put the all blame on him! He's trying to help, so cut him some bucking slack!" Canvas remained silent, unable to even blink while Lyle glared at him. Taking a few seconds to let Lyle's words sink in, Canvas sighed and closed his eyes. Exhaling a little slower than before, the stallion slowly nodded in agreement. "Ye… yeah…" Lyle slowly began to look a little more relaxed. "Canvas, listen…" He kept his claw on Canvas's shoulder and spoke in a calmer tone of voice. "I'll see if it's at the restaurant, okay? Just calm down a bit, and everything will be fine. I'm sure of it." After hearing Lyle's words, Canvas couldn't help but feel a little better. Noting how Lye tried to reassure him, he could definitely see a lot of the same personality Troy presented to him when they had first met. Knowing that Lyle was right, Canvas nodded again before the claw was removed from his shoulder. "O-okay… yeah… I… I'll do that…" "Okay…" Lyle looked back at his brother. "You alright, bro?" Even though he was surprised at how maturely his little brother had reacted, Troy still managed to give a small smile before nodding. "Uh-huh… Thanks, Lyle." "No prob." Hoping that he was really alright, Lyle gave his brother a quick hug before shooting back up to the skies. As soon as Lyle began to disappear against the Manehattan skyline and head toward Greenhoof Village, Troy glanced back down to see Canvas looking at him with an extremely ashamed expression. Looking like he was going to start crying at any moment, Canvas quickly lunged forward and hugged Troy. He clenched his eyes shut and tried to speak, his voice strained and heavy with guilt. "I'm sorry…" Canvas could feel a few stray tears escape his eyes while he hugged Troy as tightly as he could. "Troy, I'm so sorry… I didn't mean to yell at you… I'm sorr— "It's okay," Troy cooed, hugging him back. Closing his eyes as well, he kept his fiancé held tightly against his chest as assured, “Canvas, it's okay… I know that you're upset, and I'm so sorry…" After taking a deep breath, Troy held the stallion for another moment before pulling his head back. He looked straight into the pony's welling blue eyes with a warm smile on his beak. "Everything's going to be fine, alright? It wasn't stolen, and it wasn't lost. We're going to get it back, okay?" Looking into Troy's golden eyes, Canvas saw that same shade of beauty and sincerity that he fell in love with a few months ago. With a shaky smile on his muzzle, the stallion nodded slowly. "O-okay…" Troy bent his head in, closing his eyes as he gently pressed his beak against the stallion’s lips. With a small blush, Canvas closed his eyes as well, savoring the Gryphon's warmth as he kissed him back. In that moment, neither noticed the ponies who walked past them, nor the bewildered stares they received from a few at seeing their display. The only thing they noticed was each other, holding each other tightly as the sun began to sink past the Manehattan skyline. After a gentle moment of silence from their shared kiss, the two pulled back before Troy finally managed to speak. "Come on," he said confidently as he looked up to the direction of Greenhoof Village, "we can probably make it faster if I fly you there." Canvas quickly nodded and smiled, no longer hesitating as he hopped up on Troy’s back. "Alright. Let's go!" With that, the two shot up into the skies just as the streetlights began to glow against the growing autumn night. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ While the streets became darker, the growing evening approaching, Lyle stepped out of Roy's Pizzeria, hanging his head. After asking the owner inside, he was upset to discover that no bag was found or returned since they left earlier. Hoping that the bag really wasn't missing for good, Lyle sighed as he felt the cool evening air brush against his feathers. The streetlamps hanging above the cobblestone streets began to shine brighter as the skies darkened. Between the pools of lights that dotted the streets, which seemed like eerie spotlights for whomever walked past, the faint gaps of darkness managed to make anypony disappear in the brief instances when they weren’t under the light. Lyle was just about to open his wings once more, hoping to get back to his brother, before something caught his eyes. At the end of the block, two figures appeared under one of the streetlamps and galloped in Lyle's direction. The two ponies, one a white mare with an orange mane, and the other a tan filly with a short pink mane, could be heard bickering amongst each other as they hurried down the sidewalk. "Whaddya so worried about? It's just a bag, Citrus!" "You saw those Gryphons who were there when I took it! Do you know that they do to thieves back in the Gryphon Kingdom?!" "Do you?" "Well… No… But I'm sure it's not good!" Overhearing their heated (and slightly ignorant) discussion, Lyle's eyes widened when he noticed what was hanging on the mare's shoulder. Catching sight of the very noticeable art bag, the Gryphon began to rush over to them. "Hey!" Lyle pointed a talon at the mare. "That's Canvas's bag!" "EEP!" The mare immediately pulled the canvas bag off from her shoulder, throwing it over at Lyle and raising her hooves in surrender. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I thought it was my purse! I'm so sorry! Please don't hurt me!" Lyle blinked a couple times in confusion as he held Canvas's bag, surprised to see how distraught the mare was. It almost looked like she expected him to maul her for her mistake. Meanwhile, the filly standing next to the mare just gave her skewed brow as she looked up at her sister. "Are ya bein' serious right now?" Looking between the filly and Lyle, the mare started to lessen her trembling stance when she saw that he wasn't going to attack her. She began to run a hoof through her orange mane and looked away sheepishly. "Uhhhh… heh heh heh… Ummm…" "MY BAG!" All three of them looked up to the source of the voice to see Troy swoop down to the ground with Canvas on his back. Before Troy could land, Canvas jumped off him. Despite flopping to the ground surprisingly hard, the stallion didn't falter a bit and rushed up to Lyle with an extremely relieved smile on his muzzle. "Oh! Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyoooouuuu!!!" Canvas closed his eyes and held his art bag in his hooves. Clutching the bag against his chest, the stallion was practically swooning with delight at holding his prized possession. With a huge smile on his face, Canvas reopened his eyes and looked down at his bag, making sure nothing was damaged or missing when he quickly inspected it. When Troy finally regained his footing, he noticed the two perplexed mares standing nearby, neither of them sure what they could say. It wasn't until they noticed the silver Gryphon that the filly pointed a hoof at the purse. "Hey, Citrus, isn't that your purse?" The mare's eyes widened in surprise at seeing the purse, which Troy immediately removed from his shoulder to give to her. "Uhhh… I guess this is yours?" "Y-yes! It… it is…" Even though the older mare looked rather nervous about being close to him, she was quick to retrieve her purse. "Ummm… thank you, I… I really didn't realize I had the wrong one until… um…" "It's okay," Troy assured with a smile. He then looked back to see Canvas give a sigh of relief after closing his bag back up, happy to see everything was still inside. "To be fair, your purse does have a similar color to his bag. I didn't notice it at first either." The mare had bit her lip when she tried to smile, but she came off still looking a tad nervous when Troy glanced back at her. The filly facehoofed and groaned in frustration. "Ugh, come on! Sis, quit lookin' so freaked-out! He's not gonna kill ya!" "Babs!" The mare glared down at her little sister, which was only met by a deadpan stare back at her. After a few seconds of silence and the filly's face unchanging, the mare groaned under her breath, rolled her eyes, and looked back at Troy. "I'm sorry about my sister, sir. I was a little worried about having the wrong bag, and she thought I was overreacting." "You thought that they were gonna cut yer hooves off with a sword!" "SHUSH!" the mare hissed before turning back to a slightly confused Troy. She took a breath before putting out her hoof (somewhat) confidently to introduce herself. "D-don't listen to her. My name is Citrus Blossom and this is my sister Babs Seed. It's nice to meet you!" Despite her nervous stance, Troy put out his claw to shake Citrus's hoof. "The feeling's mutual. My name's Troy, and my brother over there is Lyle." Lyle gave a meager wave to the two with a talon as he stood beside Canvas. "…And the bag you accidentally took belongs to Canvas there, my fiancé." Troy gave the stallion a caring smile, who looked up with a blush and a grin back at him. Meanwhile, Citrus and Babs both stared at Troy and Canvas, wide-eyed. "R-really? A… fiancé?" "Yep!" Troy said cheerfully when he turned back to Citrus. "We've been engaged for… almost two weeks now?" Canvas gave an affirmative nod. The two then looked over at Lyle, who shrugged lightly. "…Huh…" Citrus bit her lip as she looked back at Troy. Not wanting to look too weirded-out, she shook her head clear and tried to look better about it. "Sorry, I… I just didn't expect to hear that." "Join the club," Lyle said bluntly. "Wait a minute…" Hearing the filly speak, all heads turned over to Babs Seed, who was looking at Troy with narrowed eyes. "Do youze two know my cousin Apple Bloom?" Troy and Canvas's eyes widened in surprise. However, Troy quickly nodded and smiled. "Y-yeah! She… she lives at Sweet Apple Acres near our house!" "Dat's what I thought…" Babs's smile widened as she continued, pointing a hoof at the two, "She's our cousin, and she mentioned in a couple letters dat a Gryphon was living near her place." Troy chuckled a little and looked back at his fiancé. "Gee, I wonder if she was talking about us?" Canvas giggled a little. "She also said somethin' about how you two broke a bed once…" Troy and Canvas's smiles quickly skewed, their eyes widening in worry. Citrus looked down at her sister with a confused expression while the filly glanced curiously at them. "She said that youze were puttin' a broken bed frame out by the street for the trash guys ta pick up, and ya told her that you two were jumpin' on the bed or somethin'. Was that right?" Troy, whose eyes were now shot wide open with shrunken pupils, repeatedly blinked and tried to keep a smile over his mortified face. Recalling the circumstances which had led to him and Canvas now sleeping in a nest, Troy remembered that Apple Bloom came by just as he was throwing out the broken bed frame. While it would be fairly obvious to any other pony what really happened, he was quick to say that to the filly to get her out of his feathers. "Y-yeah…" Troy's voice came out in a strained whimper. Meanwhile, Canvas was blushing as deeply as Big Macintosh's coat as he looked away from them with an extremely embarrassed look on his face. "We… were jumping on the bed…" While Troy tried to look innocent, Citrus struggled not to laugh, keeping a hoof over her mouth. Meanwhile, Lyle leaned against a streetlamp, keeping his eyes shut as he tried to keep his snickering as quiet as he could. Fortunately, before Babs could ask any more about it, a carriage pulled up beside the group. Glimmer Heart shot out of the cab with an aggravated look as soon as she saw Canvas on the sidewalk. "Canvas! Just what the hay are you trying to do?! The gallery starts in half an hour, and you still need to be prepped!" Looking over at Glimmer, Canvas quickly turned his attention to his art bag and held it up. "There was a bit of a mix up when we left here earlier. I thought I had my art bag on me, but it turned out that Tr—" Canvas paused, thinking it over before he sighed and corrected himself. "… We accidentally got the wrong bag. I didn't notice it when we were flying over, and it had a lot my things inside. Including your camera." Canvas pulled the camera out of his bag. He then looked back at Troy and Lyle with a smile. "Luckily, these two helped me out big time with getting it back. And I couldn't be happier for them…" Seeing Canvas’s grateful smile, both Gryphons gave appreciative grins back towards him. Even though she wanted to scold him, Glimmer Heart just sighed and glanced at the camera in his hoof. Happy that he didn't lose anything important before the show, she calmed herself down enough to give a more understanding glance at him. "Alright, Canvas. I get it." She pointed at the parked carriage and added, "Now, can you three PLEASE come back to the gallery before it begins?!" "Oh! Of course.” Canvas was just about to hop into the carriage, but stopped as he looked back to Troy and Lyle. "Wait, we still need to find a jacket for Lyle!" Glimmer groaned loudly and leaned against the open door of the cab. Noticing her distress, Citrus Blossom put out a hoof to catch their attention. "Don’t worry, I know a thrift shop nearby. Just take him back, and we can find something for these two." Troy and Lyle looked rather surprised by Citrus's offer, but Glimmer just gave her a relieved smile. "Thank you very much, that would help out a lot." She then grabbed Canvas and tried to push him in the cab. "Now come on, let's go! The meter's running!" Before Canvas was shoved inside the carriage, Troy ran over to give him a quick kiss on the lips. An instant later, the door was closed, and the carriage galloped off in the direction of the gallery. Standing on the side of the street as he watched the cab disappear into the Manehattan traffic, Troy took a moment before sighing and turning back to his brother and the two ponies. "So… Where's that thrift shop you were talking about?" ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ True to her word, Citrus Blossom was quick to get Troy and Lyle over to the clothing shop a couple blocks away. Along the way, the two Gryphons chatted with Citrus and Babs, and were able to quickly debunk any assumptions the mare may have had about Gryphon culture. Of course, when a pony's only experience with Gryphons comes from Daring Do comics, there was quite a bit to clarify. It only took five minutes for Lyle to find a Pegasus jacket that fitted him surprisingly well, which was a black suit jacket that looked rather nice on him. However, Troy took one glance around the jackets in the store and already knew that none of them would be large enough for his build. So, he reluctantly decided to head back without a jacket of his own, remembering that Canvas said something about having something for him already. After giving their thanks to the two ponies, Troy and Lyle gave their goodbyes and made their way back to the gallery. Since they knew they had enough time before the gallery actually began, the two took a leisurely soar above the streets as they admired the Manehattan skyline at dark. Surprisingly enough, the city seemed to be shining brighter at night than it did in the day, as the countless neon signs and lit windows illuminated the city in a strangely enchanting glow. Along the way, Lyle looked over at his brother and decided to ask about something. "So, Troy…" Troy looked over at his brother during their flight, noticing his puzzled state. "Why was Canvas so worried about that bag? I mean, he looked really freaked-out back there!" Troy sighed and looked back ahead of him. Even though he really didn’t feel like bringing up Canvas's past without him around, he knew that his brother deserved to at least know about that bag. "Well… that's kind of a long story, but…" Even with the constant barrage of noise surrounding them as they flew through the city, as well as the high winds blowing between them, Lyle was still able to catch what his brother was saying as he spoke in a subdued tone. Luckily enough, not many Pegasus ponies flew past as Troy explained how Canvas got his bag and who gave it to him. Fortunately, while Troy explained as much as he could in regards to Canvas's mother, Lyle didn’t seem to ask about the stallion's father. By the time they arrived back at the gallery, two large spotlights had been propped out front to advertise the exhibit being held inside. However, Troy didn't look that brightened, finishing his story while landing. Lyle, not expecting to hear that much, also looked rather disheveled as he landed beside him. "Damn… seriously?" "Yeah…" Troy sighed and stretched his back, resting his wings. "I actually visited her grave with him before we went to that Gala… He really loved her…" A brief exhale through his teeth was all Lyle could muster as he looked away from his brother. While he still thought Canvas acted a bit over-the-top in regards to his bag, finding that out made his reaction seem more understandable. As he straightened out his suit jacket, Lyle readjusted the satchel on his shoulder. "So… Does he have any other family?" Troy paused, blinking a couple times before he sighed. He slowly shook his head as he thought it over, realizing that his fiancé really didn't have anyone beside his parents before he came out. "N-no… I guess not…" Before Lyle could say anything else, Troy turned back to him and added sternly, "And I don’t want you to say anything about that to him. Understood?" Lyle quickly nodded in agreement, already knowing better than to try anything that dumb. "Yeah. Of course." Before anything else could be said, both Gryphons noticed Canvas as he galloped out of the front doors with a smile on his face. Wearing his blue dress shirt and green necktie, the stallion looked fairly well-presented. And, of course, his art bag was proudly slung around his shoulder as it hung at his side. "There you guys are!" Canvas trotted with a spring in his step as he ran up to Troy. He was quick to give the Gryphon a kiss on the cheek before noticing Lyle at the corner of his eye. "Wow!" he exclaimed, noticing the jacket Lyle was wearing. "That's a good look on you, dude!" Lyle just rolled his eyes and looked away, a smirk on his beak. "Yeah, sure." "I'm serious! You look great, Lyle," Canvas said before he looked back up to Troy with a grin. "Of course, not nearly as handsome as your brother here…" Troy chuckled a little, his feathers beginning to ruffle out. "You little flirt, you…" Lyle cringed a little, looking away as soon as he saw the two move their heads in. "Guys, come on!" muttered the Gryphon, hoping their lovey-dovey crap wasn't catching too much attention from ponies on the street. "I'd rather not get vomit on this jacket!" "Oh, shut up," Troy said as he pulled his head back from Canvas's lips. "Ooh! That reminds me!" Canvas opened up his art bag and began to rummage through the items inside. "So, Troy… I'm guessing you couldn't find a jacket at that store?" Troy groaned. "No… Nothing was big enough for me…" "I kinda figured." Canvas smiled when he found what he was looking for. "I wish I remembered that jacket policy when we came here, which I have to admit was my fault…" Canvas gave a guilty glance back up to his fiancé, which was only met with an understanding smile. "Hey, don’t worry about it. I didn’t need one for the last gallery we went to, so I wouldn't have thought I needed one for this either,” Troy said. "But still…" Canvas looked back inside his bag. "I talked with Glimmer Heart about it a while ago, and she agreed that you can wear something else that I happened to have…" "Wait, what?" Not remembering Canvas packing any of his clothing before they took the train to Manehattan, Troy was fairly confused. "What do you mean? I don't remember you having anyth—" As soon as Canvas pulled the item from his bag, Troy's eyes widened in shock for a moment before his expression quickly shifted to a bitter scowl. "NO!" Troy looked away from him. "I am NOT wearing that!" Lyle took a glance at what Canvas was holding before pointing at it with a talon. "BWAAAA HA HA HA HA HA HA!!!" "Troy, come on!" Canvas pleaded, staring at his unwilling fiancé. "It's only for one night!" "But… but…" Troy, who was starting to look like a stubborn child, tried to pout through his beak as he looked back over at Canvas. "But I don’t wanna wear the Pony Tones sweater!" Lyle was barely able to keep himself standing upright, clenching his eyes shut as he tried to breathe through strained laughs. "Oh man… I… I gotta get that camera!" "You better not!" Troy snapped, turning back to his brother with a nasty glare. "Troy," began Canvas in a stern tone of voice, "I know you don’t want to wear it, and I'm sorry, but I don’t see any other alternative. I tried talking with Glimmer Heart, and she said there was nothing she could do aside from this." Troy sighed and looked back to him. Knowing how much that mare had helped them out already, he knew that she couldn't have said something like that without good reason. "Besides…” Taking a second to look over at Lyle, who was currently trying to breathe normally at the thought of his brother in that sweater, Canvas quickly put his muzzle up to Troy's ear and whispered discreetly, "Given some of the outfits I've worn for you, I think it's only fair that you do this." "UGH!" Lyle may have been a bit distracted, but he still heard Canvas's comment clearly enough to stop laughing. "Too much information!" Canvas's blush deepened as he realized what Lyle had heard him say. Troy just grumbled under his breath before snatching the sweater from his hoof. "Oh, fine!" Troy muttered, "I'll… I'll wear the stupid thing…" Despite still looking embarrassed about his flub, Canvas gave a small smile up to Troy before nuzzling his feathered neck. "Thanks." Troy may have been upset about this, but he was still forgiving enough to quickly nuzzle him back. "No problem." Troy then headed to the main doors of the Gallery with the sweater hung over his back, hoping to find a restroom inside where he could put it on. Meanwhile, Canvas meagerly turned back to Lyle, who was giving him a deadpan stare. "Ehhh… heh heh heh…" Canvas’s blush stayed deep as he tried to avoid Lyle's gaze. "I... I'm sorry…" Lyle just rolled his eyes before walking past him. "Whatever, dude." Before he could disappear past the doors of the gallery, Canvas saw Lyle shudder as he walked through the doorway. Biting his lip in guilt, the stallion exhaled deeply and looked around in contemplation. "Man… How do I keep forgetting how good a Gryphon's senses are?"