The Last Impressionist

by CrackedInkWell

Chapter 17: A Nightly Stroll

I let Mr. Brush decide what we would be doing for our third date. After all, I took him out twice and his turn was already overdue. But I gave him enough time to plan out whatever activity he had in store for us, and he hasn’t given me any clue as to what exactly it is.

By now, it has been a week since his parents visited that Acrylic is assisting me to be getting ready for our date. He already put my suit on and was brushing some loose hairs off from it. “Can you give me a hint, or do you want to keep it as a surprise?”

He put down the brush and hoofed me my pocket watch, “Well, I won’t say where, but I will tell you that it’ll be someplace quiet… you wouldn’t mind that, would you?”

“On the contrary, I’d welcome it. Though that’s the first time that any of my dates had ever decided to take me someplace where there isn’t any blasting music.”

“What do you mean?”

“For some, their idea of dating involves going to a club filled to the brim of drunken strangers, dancing to the latest song with enough flashing lights to give one a headache while somewhere in the back rooms there’s some sort of debauchery going on. But you’re not quite the partying type though.”

“No sir,” he said as he lifted my left foreleg to put one of my cuffs on. “When you grow up in a place where ponies like us aren’t really seen, you always feel like an outsider. I don’t really see the appeal, to be honest, Mr. Pants.”

“With Hoity’s perspective, I understand to a degree. He used to do so all the time as soon as I reached the drinking age. In those days there was a sort of thrill when you’re not sure who you’ll end up hooking up with.”

“But I suppose that didn’t last?”

I shook my head, “I’ve quickly learned that there was nothing fun about hangovers and finding out how hollow that sort of entertainment was. So now, I’ve learned to watch how much I drink and be more cautious about those who want to go to bed with me.

“Still, I am rather curious what we’re doing tonight. We already had dinner and it’s almost nine.”

“Just wait and see sir,” by now Mr. Brush was circling around me to see I was fit to leave the house. “I think you’re ready, and so am I.”

“Excellent,” I nodded in the mirror. “Shall we get going then?”

“Yes sir,” Mr. Brush opened the door. “I think our ride should be waiting for us.”

I followed the bloke down the stairs and out the front door where there was a carriage waiting for us. Right away I was curious because, for one, this carriage was covered unlike the taxi’s which was black and had dark blue curtains. So in other words, this was a luxury carriage. Even what intrigued me more was that the drives that were hooked up to pulling this thing were a couple of Lunar Guards.

Acrylic trotted up to open the door for me. I was impressed to find that it was spacious enough for a party of six to ride in, but it came with an icebox with a row of crystal glasses. Not only that, but the inside was lit with electric lighting with blue shades of stars.

“What’s all this?” I asked as I got in with him following close behind. “This can’t be yours, isn’t it?”

Mr. Brush knocked on the walls of the carriage, “Drive on,” he said before I felt it move. “To answer your question, no it isn’t.” He then sat down between me and the icebox. “When you gave me this opportunity to go on this date with me planning it all this out, I had to ask for a favor from a certain pony.”

“Well, you’ve certainly gotten my attention alright.” I was about to peek through the curtains before Acrylic stopped me.

“Don’t do that, I want to make our destination a surprise.” He opened the icebox and pulled out a cold jug from it. After pouring a glass of a yellow but familiar substance he offered it to me.

I took it with my magic and gave it a sip. “Braezilian lemonade. Whatever we’re doing, you’ve certainly came prepared.”

“I knew it would be something that both of us would like,” he said as he poured some lemonade for himself. “I’m actually hoping that all this goes right tonight.”

“Oh?”

“What your friend said, about the whole three date thing. When you gave the reigns over to me (so to speak), I just wanted to make sure that this would go well and… well…”

“You’re hoping that I would be your coltfriend, is that it?”

He nodded, “I’m hoping I could pull off this miracle of actually having a real relationship of a pony that I care about. I know that my tastes are… what’s the word? Simplistic. But I want to actually express my romantic side to you Fancy.”

“Understandable,” I sipped some more. “I hope I didn’t put you in any sort of stress for little old me.”

He snorted, “You’re not that old to me.”

“That’s not what I meant. I mean I didn’t get you paranoid enough into thinking that if this or that detail is out of line it would off throw the very balance of the universe.”

“Not to where we’re going,” he said. “I think you’ll like the place since I let… the pony that I’ve asked the favor to arrange it.”

“Ah, the plot thickens. I’m guessing that this happens to involve one of the Princesses?”

His eyes widen, “How did-”

“The Lunar Guards was a bit of a giveaway.”

“Oh…” he blushed in embarrassment.

“But I still don’t know where we’re headed.”

“You’ll know soon enough.”

“A change in subject then,” I took a gulp of the lemonade. “How did you get Princess Luna to arrange this?”

“Do you remember back at the gallery when she told me that if I needed somepony to talk to, I can always come to her? Well, I told her my predicament in planning for our date, and she was rather… what’s the word? Intrigued? Yeah, that was it. She was intrigued that I was taking you out. After a while, we talked and formed a plan in which wouldn’t need to involve Fleur spying on us.”

I couldn’t help but laugh, “Why Mr. Brush, having my bodyguard spying on our intimate moments, whatever gave you such an idea?”

Our ride lasted for about five minutes before we felt it come to a halt. There was a knock on the carriage door, “Well,” Mr. Brush said, getting up from his seat, “Off we go into the unknown.” He opened it and gawked as he stepped out, “Oh wow… Fancy, you’ve gotta see this!”

And so I did, when I stepped out of the carriage, I could have sworn that I’ve heard music playing in the distance. But when I looked up, my eyes were open so wide that my monocle fell out. We were in the Royal Gardens and at the same time it wasn’t. Above us was mange lights that hung over our heads like stars while there was a mist that swirled around the lights and curled over our heads. The mist was in various colors of blues, greens, gold, white, and deep violets that pulsed and glide. The plants, statues, flowers, gravel and even the grass itself seemed to move in the lights above that made it look as it the garden was underneath a sea of light purples, blues, grays, pinks, turquoise, and silver.

It was as if we’ve stepped inside one of Acrylic’s paintings to the music of Mahler’s Adagietto.

“I honestly didn’t think it would be this beautiful,” He told me.

“Looks like you’ve got a fan,” I nudged him with a hoof. “So now I think I know where we are, what exactly are we doing here?”

“Oh,” he blushed sheepishly, “Well… I was wondering if… Fancy… Would you walk with me and talk a little?”

Now it makes sense. He just wanted to have a quiet nightly stroll through a garden that’s closed at night. “I would love to. Lead on good sir,” we started to follow a path through what looked like to be moonflowers. “What do you want to talk about?”

“Well, for starters, I was hoping if you could tell me a little bit of yourself. Like how did you get your cutie mark?”

I glanced over to my flank at the three crowns, “You know most ponies that would look at this and would easily mistake me for a noble. Although consider the fortune, the mansion and how much influence I have in Canterlot, that’s easy to come to that conclusion. But to be honest, I actually got my cutie mark late.”

“Really?”

Nodding, I explained, “It wouldn’t be until midway through Jr. High that I would earn it. Of course, it was a bit humiliating that I was the only one in class to not have a cutie mark. In fact, I would be often been called ‘Blank Pants,’ by the other students. For a long time, I often wondered if there was something wrong with me.

“But that changed on one Nightmare Night dance. I remember that everypony was in costume for the occasion. Now, for the life of me, I can’t remember what I had on, but I did remember seeing this one filly in a Maredusa costume. She looked rather sad, and I can tell that she had put in a good deal of work into it like making her mane look like snakes and what not. Well, something compelled me to go over to talk with her. Now, mind you it wasn’t in a romantic sense but more out of curiosity. I went up to her and asked her what the matter was.

“She told me that she was planning to enter one of those contests that judges on the creativity of the costume, but she was having doubts about entering it. She said that although she had spent hours getting her mane and tail to look like that and she designed the dress herself, that she still thought there was no possible way of winning with all the effort she put into it. I told her otherwise, that her attention to detail was extraordinary; she shouldn’t have anything to worry about except go on stage.”

“Did she?” Acrylic asked as we turned into a grove of trees.

“I’m glad she did. When the costume contest came about, she was on that stage as a contestant, which, if I may add, she did end up winning. To be honest, I didn’t realize that I had my Cutie Mark until I returned home and mother pointed it out. For a long time, I pondered for several months to figure out what exactly I did differently. After all, I just gave some words of encouragement to that filly about overcoming her self-doubt. But then it came to me, it was much more than that, I realized that I had a much heavier responsibility.”

“Which is?”

“I have the responsibility to be on the lookout for those who have creative minds in the most unlikely places and transcend them above what they think they could accomplish – to seek out others that are worthy of opportunities once shut behind them. Although I promise you that there isn’t a drop of noble blood in me, what my Cutie Mark represents is something that I think is truly honorable.”

“Not to mention you’ve saved my life because of it.” The Artist pointed out. We now entered into the ponds, where with the lights hanging overhead, the water too looked like a living painting with its lily pads that floated there among the water flowers.

“You’re very much welcome,” I said. “Let’s rest for a moment,” we sat down by the water. “So a change in subject, are you feeling alright Acrylic with what happened with your family?”

Sighing, he replied, “Not really. Again, I apologize for all those awful things they’ve said, I didn’t really expect that it would take a turn like that.”

“And again, you’ve nothing to apologize for.”

“But I still feel bad about disowning them. I somehow knew that something like this would happen, but I didn’t imagine that I would be the one doing it. Look I know I was mad and all but once I calmed down and realized what I done… I realized I was the one that confirmed what they say about us ponies. That we break up families, and I did just that.”

“No family is really broken up unless everyone agrees to.” Mr. Brush looked up at me with a puzzled look. “The only way that either parent or child to be truly be separated is if either let it be. No matter who your family is made out of, or what they’ve done and said, nopony is separated unless you agreed to be separated. Take it from somepony whose father and I learned the hard way.”

“At least I know you and your father are on good terms… that reminds me, how is he doing anyway?”

“He’s not sick anymore, which is some good news.”

“Oh…” Acrylic looked over to the pond in thought, “Fancy, if we… if we do actually get together, what happens next?”

I shrugged, “Enjoy life together I suppose. As of now, I want to see your dreams become reality, and if I’m lucky, maybe you’ll make mine come true as well.”

He looked up at me in surprise, “You have dreams? Even when you have everything?”

“Not quite true. Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to have a family of my own. I’d figured that I try to find the perfect companion first before I start rearing some foals.”

“By what? Adoption?”

“It’s a possibility. I think I’m already old enough to do so. But what about you, do you want to have a family?”

Mr. Brush looked down at his hooves, “I never thought it was ever possible for me. To tell you the truth, while I have watched over children back in Lightning Falls, I knew that I would never have any of my own because I’m not exactly attracted to mares. Nor could I imagine of being with someone that could help me with it. But in our town, you’re nopony unless you have a family to call your own, especially if you got no children. At the same time, I know I can’t do it all on my own.”

I wrapped a foreleg over him, “Neither can I,” I said. “Acrylic, you are certainly an amazing stallion that I’m fortunate enough to gotten to know. I am grateful that you’re here with me and I’m finally sure that I want to enter a deeper relationship with you. Mr. Brush, will you be my coltfriend?”

He nuzzled me before saying, “Fancy, that’s exactly what I wanted to hear.” Then he straightens up, “Uh… Fancy. If it wouldn’t be too much trouble, can I kiss you?”

I chuckled, “Now Acrylic, that’s something you don’t need my permission with.”

Now, I confess that Mr. Brush didn’t hesitate to lean up to kiss me on the muzzle. Mind you, I have my fair share of kisses in the past form several ponies before. Yet, this one was different. I’m not sure if words would do it justice. Those several seconds seemed like years in comforting warmth on those soft lips. It was as if there was a sense that the very thing that was lost has been found. No surprise really, when I too kissed back.

Also, perhaps it’s the setting or the kiss itself, but I could have sworn that somewhere in the garden, I heard somepony squeeing. Or maybe it was just me.

The kiss ended and Acrylic wiped the saliva from his coat sleeve, “Thank you, sir.”

I laughed as I pulled him closer, “I say, we ought to do that a little more often.”

He smirked with a heavy blush. “So, are you going to tell Gustav about this once we get back? I mean, I’m still your Valet here.”

“You let me handle my Butler, so you don’t worry about a thing. Besides, Hoity is right on one thing.”

“What’s that?”

“Acrylic, how would you like to go to Neighpon with me? Both as my Valet, and coltfriend?”

“Of course I’ll go,” he nuzzled my neck, “But for the moment, can we stay here for a while?”

I looked out over the living painting of the lily pond, “Of course Mr. Brush, I’m in no hurry tonight.”