Canvas didn't utter a single word while he walked to the Ponyville town limits. Despite Troy keeping himself as close as possible to the pony, Canvas seemed unaware of anything around him as he looked forward, keeping a blank expression on his face that worried the Gryphon more and more with each passing minute. Even though he knew that his boyfriend would be in a distressed state after what just happened with his father, Troy was hoping to get some sign of emotion from Canvas by the time the town limits were behind them. Before Troy could take a chance by speaking to him, he heard Canvas start to breathe harder as his walking slowed down.

Looking over to him, Troy saw that the stallion was looking at the ground in a saddened state, looking like he was about to start crying as he stopped walking altogether. Hearing his lover's breathing come out faster, Troy knew what was going to happen, making him quickly move to the front of Canvas as he held him to his chest.

For a moment, Canvas stayed silent as his head sunk into the feathers on Troy's chest, worrying the Gryphon even more as he realized he didn’t know what else to do for him; however, Canvas's forelegs slowly began to rise up as they met around Troy's back, clutching him tightly before the sound of sobbing came out muffled through the Gryphon's chest. Troy slowly lowered his head, letting his chin rest on the top of Canvas's head as he spoke in a quiet tone of voice, hoping to calm the crying stallion down after everything that happened.

"It's alright,” Troy said as he began stroking Canvas's mane with his talons, "I'm right here, Canvas. I'll always be here for you."

Despite speaking as gently and sincerely as he could, Troy could still hear Canvas crying as he held him, making him hug tighter to help verify his promise.

"Canvas, it's okay now. You don’t have to worry about him anymore!"

"I know,” whimpered the stallion as he kept his face buried in his lover's feathers, "I just…"

Canvas paused for a moment, trying to remember what he was going to say as he slowly let Troy's warmth sink in.

"I… I just don't know what to do right now. I… I don't know how to feel right now."

Even though he certainly felt some gratitude for finally facing down his father like that, Canvas still felt extremely conflicted as he let what happened set in. Despite how badly Copper treated him that horrible night, hurting him back like that didn't give Canvas the feeling of satisfaction he thought he would get.

While the first few moments after he said all that felt absolutely gratifying to the stallion, that feeling faded the more he thought about what he did. Even though he couldn’t say he felt guilty about what he said to Copper, knowing that he truly meant every word as it came out as maliciously as possible, Canvas still wasn't sure if it was really worth doing. Before he could let his confusion sink any deeper, Canvas felt a talon lift up his chin as Troy had him look into his shining golden eyes, staring back at him with the utmost sincerity and beauty.

"Canvas, I know you went through a lot,” said Troy in a calm and soothing voice as a gracious smile came up on his beak. "But I'm really happy for you right now. You stood up for yourself, and you didn’t need any help to do it. You really are strong, and you managed to stand your ground against somepony who deserved it."

Despite how tranquil Troy looked as he spoke, Canvas still felt a weight in his gut as he remembered how his father looked. Seeing that tear-stained face in his mind, recalling all the things he said in front of everypony without any remorse or shame, Canvas couldn’t help but wonder whether his lover was right.

Did he really deserve that?

Even after everything else, was that…

Was that the right thing to do to him?

As Canvas stood motionless and lost in his thoughts, the Gryphon started to look worried as he saw how morose the stallion was becoming. Troy then held Canvas against his chest again, making the stallion blush as he savored his boyfriend's soft feathers against his fur.

"Canvas, there's nothing that matters to me more than you. No matter what happens, no matter what comes our way, I want you to know that I will always be here for you."

Hearing the Gryphon's soothing voice, Canvas felt his heart begin to warm up again, despite the looming pressure still holding it down in his chest. Slowly, Canvas lifted his head back up to see Troy's face, giving him a faint smile on his muzzle as he became lost in his eyes again.

Before any more words could be spoken, Canvas moved his head up to Troy's as they kissed under the overcast skies. Holding the Gryphon in place with his lips, Canvas tried to lose himself to his love for Troy. However, the growing tension was keeping him from truly enjoying the kiss, and he slowly pulled his head back.

As Troy looked at him with concern, Canvas started to feel even more upset, making him scrunch his face in before speaking to the Gryphon.

"Troy… I… I still don’t…”

The stallion took a breath before he could continue, clenching his eyes shut as he opened his mouth. "It just doesn’t feel right! I… I know I shouldn't feel bad for doing that, but… I just don’t know what to think about it."

"Canvas, look at me,” said Troy in a surprisingly serious tone. Looking up, Canvas saw Troy looking at him in a more intense stare, moving in closer as he spoke. "What Copper did to you was one of the worst things a parent could do. You know what happens to abusive parents like that in the Gryphon Kingdom?

“They get beheaded!"

Canvas's eyes widened a little, starting to feel more worried as he saw how intensely Troy spoke about this.

"Canvas, you were almost killed because of him! He almost murdered you! For something that wasn't your fault at all! If I never found you…”

Troy closed his eyes for a few seconds, trying to keep himself from tearing up before he went on.

"Canvas, I've spent so many nights thinking about what you said about him, and… and all I could think about is how miserable my life would've been if you were never here. You… you made my life so much better and… and I know I couldn’t be happier with anyone else."

Even with the pressure still building inside him, Canvas couldn’t help but muster a weak smile as he saw how much he meant to Troy. Holding Canvas close, Troy started to look more sullen as he spoke, hoping to help Canvas overcome his confusion.

"But none of that would've happened if I never found you! Canvas… you can’t feel guilty about hurting somepony like him! After knowing how badly he treated you… after I held you that night when you finally talked about it… and I saw how much pain he put you through…”

Feeling tears coming out, Troy threw his forelegs around Canvas as he hugged him, struggling to control his building emotions before finishing his statement.

"Canvas, I can never forgive him for doing that! I can’t forgive someone who almost took you away from me like that! Not after all the time we spent together, not after falling in love with you so much! And I know that no pony who would do that to you should ever be called a parent!"

Realizing how strongly Troy felt about everything involving this, Canvas felt himself tearing up as well as he hugged him back. In that moment, Canvas could tell that what Troy was saying was right; even though the way he treated Copper was hurtful, Canvas knew that Troy was speaking truthfully about this. Despite seeing how much that stallion regretted hurting him like that, Canvas felt the same way that Troy did: he could never forgive somepony like Copper for causing him so much pain and sorrow.

As Canvas held the Gryphon tight and felt the tears hit the fur on his shoulders, Troy spoke in a whimpered tone and nuzzled his lover.

"Canvas, you shouldn’t regret what you said to him. I know you hurt him, but.. but he hurt you so much more."

Troy then opened his eyes as he pulled his head back, looking straight into Canvas's moistened blue eyes as he spoke.

"You can’t let this get to you. You did what you had to do… and you shouldn't think otherwise about that. You'll always have me… and I will always love you for being the brave and caring pony you are."

Exhaling, Canvas felt his heart get a lot lighter as he heard Troy's words. Realizing the Gryphon was right, Canvas could feel his tensions slip away as he moved in again, kissing him properly as he savored the moment for once. While the kiss was fairly brief, neither of them seemed to mind as they hugged again, sharing their warmth as Canvas felt easier about what happened.

As they stood at that spot in the middle of the road, holding each other tightly to overcome their shared troubles, the sound of hoofsteps interrupted the two as Lyra and Bon-Bon galloped toward them.

"Canvas!" shouted Lyra as she ran toward the stallion, looking especially distraught as she hugged him tightly. As Troy stepped back from them, he noticed Bon-Bon trying to catch her breath before she spoke.

"Honey!" wheezed the mare as she looked at her wife, panting between her words. "You… shouldn’t have… interrupted them!"

"I don’t care!" shouted the unicorn as she held on to Canvas. Looking like she was going to break down any second, Lyra kept her eyes on Canvas as she spoke in a saddened tone. "Canvas, I… Ican’t believe that happened to you! Wh… why didn’t you tell us?!"

Canvas's face scrunched in as he looked away, feeling a new wave of guilt from keeping this info from his friends. Remembering how Lyra and Bon-Bon were the first ponies to be there for him when he came to Ponyville, Canvas started to feel bad about not telling them any of this. Biting his lip, Canvas looked back to the mare in front of him, looking especially upset as he began to speak.

"I… I'm sorry I never told you. I… I tried to keep it away from everypony as long as I could… even myself…”

Canvas's gaze sunk down to the ground as he continued. "Only Troy knew about it, and that was just because I accidentally blurted it out to him after that moment with Hot Shot…”

Remembering how he acted that night, Lyra slowly nodded as she started to understand. Even though she wished he told them about this--especially after ensuring him they would listen to anything he said that first night they met--both the unicorn and her wife could tell this was something a lot bigger than either of them could've expected.

Looking back to her wife, Lyra saw that Bon-Bon understood as well as the mare walked up and placed a hoof on Canvas's shoulder. Keeping a calm smile on her muzzle, Bon-Bon carried a gentle tone of voice as she spoke to him.

"Canvas, you don't have to explain. I wish you told us about this sooner, but… but we get it. You went through something really terrible, and… and I can see why it would be hard to talk about."

With that, Bon-Bon bent in and gave Canvas a gentle hug, keeping him there as she spoke. "You're still a great friend, Canvas. And you always have been. Never forget that."

Feeling a faint smile creep up on his muzzle, Canvas hugged Bon-Bon back, holding her tightly as he tried not to cry again. "Th-thanks, Bon-Bon."

As soon as the mare let go, Troy was by Canvas's side again, holding him closely with his wing as they stood opposite Lyra and Bon-Bon. Canvas rested his head by Troy's side, hoping to savor his warmth some more before Lyra spoke up.

"Canvas,” said Lyra in a worried tone of voice, "do you two want to come with us? We were planning to make dinner, and you're more than welcome to join us tonight."

The unicorn looked over to her wife, seeing her nod in agreement before she turned back to Canvas.

"Besides,” said the mare in a more optimistic tone, "Bon-Bon was trying out a new flavor of hard candy."

Even with her small smile, Lyra could tell that Canvas had more pressing matters at hoof as he stood closer to Troy.

"That's really nice of you,” said Canvas as he spoke in a tired tone, "but right now I just want to go home and rest."

Seeing how exhausted the stallion was looking, Lyra sighed before nodding. "Alright, I understand."

After they each gave him one last hug, Lyra and Bon-Bon began to walk back into town. It wasn't until Canvas and Troy were about to walk away that Lyra turned back, looking at Canvas with a more insistent tone as she spoke.

"Canvas, I really think we should talk about this sometime."

As Canvas looked back at her, the unicorn spoke with a stern tone of voice as she showed she wasn't being flexible about this. "I know I'm asking for a lot, and I don’t want you to think you have to do something you don’t have to do. But I really think you should be more open about this with us, because, you know, we're your friends."

Canvas blinked a few times before he nodded, giving a faint smile to show he understood. Even though he really didn't feel like talking about this right now, he agreed that he owed the mares an explanation. Soon after, the two couples went back to their homes. Canvas walked with a better appreciation for his friends and Troy.

Feeling the pony under his wing, Troy hoped to make sure Canvas was really alright, not wanting to see his love deal with any more unneeded guilt. All of the Gryphon's worries about his coltfriend were put on hold as they reached their home.

Neither of them were sure what the heck to think when they saw who was waiting for them at their barn. Sitting in front of their door with her head hung low, Rainbow Dash sat motionless as Canvas and Troy walked up to her. Seeing how still the cyan mare was, both of them were sure she was asleep at their doorstep.

However, her head immediately shot upward at hearing them walk up to her, surprising them both as they saw how horrible she looked. With heavy lines under her saddened eyes and her mane still messy, the Pegasus looked absolutely miserable as she shot up to her hooves and ran to Canvas.

"Canvas, I’m so sorry!" shouted Rainbow Dash as she grabbed Canvas and hugged him as tight as she could, clenching her eyes shut as she spoke with the most sincere guilt in her cracking voice. "I had no idea he did that to you! I swear to Celestia, I would've never tried doing anything for him if I knew about that!"

Remembering how she was acting towards him for almost killing Copper, Troy was quick to put a claw to her shoulder, hoping to calm her down as he spoke. "Dash, you don't have to expla--"

"YES I DO!" screamed the mare as she let go of Canvas and looked over at Troy. Seeing that Rainbow looked like she was about to cry, Troy wasn't sure what to do as he just listened to her attempt at redemption.

"You tried to keep that guy away from Canvas, and I kicked you in the face! You knew who he was, and you knew what he did, but I kept you from helping your boyfriend when he needed you! I should've known you had a reason for being like that, but…."

Rainbow Dash hung her head to the ground as she paused, breathing heavily as she tried as hard as she could to hold back any tears from her magenta eyes.

"I…” The mare said in a more shaky voice than before, "I feel horrible… I… I let you down."

"No you didn't!" shouted Troy as he stared at Rainbow with a wave of anger, not wanting to see her act this way. "You didn’t know, and you were just trying to help! Rainbow, I'm not mad at you! I…”

Troy took a deep breath as he tried to go on, realizing how much his face still stung from her kick. Even though he was honestly a little upset at how much she tried to stop him, he knew it wasn't her fault for doing that; all she saw was him attacking some random pony, and she made sure no one got killed from it. Exhaling, Troy managed to ignore the growing pain on his face as he finished his statement.

"… I should've told you about this a long time ago. It's not your fault at all. If anything, it's mine for keeping this between Canvas and I."

Rainbow Dash lifted her head, looking at the Gryphon with her sullen eyes as she processed Troy's words. Seeing how genuine he looked, the mare began to look less saddened as Canvas stepped forward, putting his hooves around her in a hug as he spoke faintly.

"You don’t have to apologize. I know you were just wanting to help, and I'm not mad. You're still a great mare, and… you're still a loyal friend to Troy and me."

Canvas could hear Rainbow exhale a little heavier as she hugged him back, keeping him there for a second before she let go. Keeping her face away from both Canvas and Troy, Rainbow Dash wiped her face with a hoof before turning back to them, carrying a light smile on her muzzle as she tried to cover the slightly matted fur underneath her eyes.

Before she could try to apologize some more, a bright flash of purple light erupted several feet from the three of them. Twilight Sparkle appeared with a concerned look on her face. Seeing Canvas, Twilight gave a sigh of relief before walking up to him, keeping a faint hint of worry on her face before speaking to him.

"I took care of the situation, and I made sure he's taking the next train out of town, alright?"

Canvas nodded at her statement before noticing how troubled she still looked. Remembering how little he’d originally told her about his injuries that night, Canvas began to feel guilty that he kept information that vital from royalty, realizing how shocking it must have been to find out this way. Before he could open his muzzle and attempt to apologize for keeping this to himself, Canvas felt a hoof on his shoulder.

Twilight looked at him, keeping an understanding look in her eyes as she spoke. "Canvas, when I asked Celestia about what happened, she told me she knew who did it, and…”

Hoping to alleviate the new look of shame on Canvas's face from hearing that last statement, Twilight kept her hoof on his shoulder as she went on.

"... And she also said she understood why you wouldn’t talk about it to anypony. I didn’t know what she meant at first, but…”

Twilight's face scrunched in a little as she tried to hide how upset she looked before she pulled up her other hoof and hugged Canvas tightly, feeling just as saddened as she was when he first told her about that night at the library.

"... But I had no idea it was something that bad. Canvas, I'm so sorry something like that happened to you!"

Feeling his guilt building up, Canvas hugged her back as he said, "Twilight, I'm sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. I should've told you when I was telling you abo--"

"It's alright, Canvas,” said the alicorn in a soothing voice. "I understand completely."

As the two let go, Canvas kept a worried look on his face as he remembered what happened. Seeing how horrible Copper looked when he told him off like that, Canvas realized that Twilight still had to deal with him as he walked away, making him feel worse as he thought it over. Knowing how nasty he acted towards him, Canvas hoped he didn’t cause any bad friction as he spoke towards the Princess.

"Twilight, I'm really sorry you saw me act that way towards him. I know he hurt me, but--”

"Canvas, you don’t…”

As Twilight kept her hoof up to keep him from speaking, her words faltered a little as she tried to ease Canvas's worry. While she honestly couldn’t say she wasn't stunned at how cold he acted towards a pony that was supposed to be family--especially knowing how painful something like that could be from her experience at the Royal Wedding--all she could think about was how horrible he looked that night in the storm. Remembering how badly beaten his face was, and how worn down his hooves were from running that far, Twilight couldn't blame him for lashing out at his attacker like that, even when the pony was already so beaten down himself.

"You don't have to explain. I can't say it wasn't shocking to hear you say those things, but… but it was also shocking to find out what happened to you. Canvas, I know you went through something horrible, and I do want you to talk about this with me sometime…”

Seeing how insistently she spoke that last past, Canvas nodded in agreement before she continued.

"But I know you've been keeping this in for a long time, and seeing him was probably really overwhelming for you. I…”

Honestly, Twilight wanted to say that she hoped Canvas might speak to his father again at another time, when they'd both calmed down enough to speak properly. Despite how much pain he went through because of Copper, she couldn't expect Canvas to be that well-adjusted after doing something like that.

However, the alicorn decided not to say any of this out loud, considering that it was probably too soon for him to even consider doing anything involving his father. Instead, Twilight paused a moment before she finished her statement, finding the right words for what she wanted to say to him.

"I really hope we can talk about this when you're in a better mood. I'm sure you need some rest right now, so I'll go back home if you're alright."

Nodding to confirm Twilight's assumption, Canvas kept a half-tired look in his eyes as he looked at both mares, holding a faint smile while Troy held him close to his side. Before Twilight and Rainbow Dash turned to leave, the Pegasus looked over to Troy and spoke in a tired tone of voice.

"Troy, I really am sorry for kicking you."

"Don’t worry about it,” said the Gryphon as he held up a claw in understanding, putting a light smirk on his beak as he tried to lighten the mood. "You kick like a girl anyway."

Rainbow Dash stepped forward to try to make him flinch, making her smile a little as she saw how alright Troy really was. Feeling a little better, Rainbow stepped back before she spoke to him.

"You can take a few days off to stay home. The other guys can take care of the storm stuff, so just stay with Canvas for now. You earned it."

Pulling Canvas in closer, Troy nodded to the mare with a smile before she and Twilight went off, flying side-by-side as they made their way back to Ponyville. Seeing how darkened the skies were getting, Troy motioned to Canvas to stay by him as they went inside, walking into their home just as the thunder began to roar in the skies.

Seeing how tired the stallion looked, Troy didn't bother asking if he wanted dinner as he walked with the pony to the loft. Even though Canvas was silent as he trotted to their nest, he still kept a light smile on his muzzle as he felt the Gryphon by his side.

When Canvas crawled over the blankets to lie down on the mattress, Troy stayed right with the stallion and laid down alongside him, holding him close as thunder grew louder outside. As the room became darker from the clouds and the setting sun behind them, Troy felt himself grow tired as well as he held his lover's back against his chest, savoring his warmth as the first raindrops hit the roof of their home.

Even though he was completely exhausted, Canvas surprisingly couldn't get himself to sleep as he laid down in the nest. Hearing the storm grow louder outside, the soothing sound of raindrops did nothing to rest the stallion's mind, even as he felt Troy's warm body breathing slowly over his back. Canvas pulled the Gryphon's forelegs in tighter around his own chest, feeling his lover's heartbeat thump in a stunningly beautiful rhythm as his sleeping body kept hold of him.

Though he wanted to appreciate the pure bliss of having Troy hold him like this, Canvas still couldn't keep his mind at ease. His mind kept replaying the events that happened that day. Clenching his eyes shut, Canvas hoped to silence the tensions that were growing in his mind, as he kept picturing how devastated Copper had looked.

Suddenly, Canvas's eyes shot open as he realized he no longer felt Troy's heartbeat thumping against his back. As silence hung throughout the room, Canvas moved his body over so he could look over to the Gryphon, realizing that he was no longer moving in the nest. Before he could think something horrible just happened, Canvas paused and listened around him, realizing that the sound of rain was no longer hitting the ground or his home.

Looking over to the window, the stallion's eyes widened as he saw hundreds of raindrops hanging in midair, staying frozen in place as the moonlight glistened against them. Canvas lifted himself from the nest and looked at the unmoving rain, realizing that the moonlight shining in wasn't there before, almost as if the clouds of the storm moved away for the night to illuminate the space in the room.

Looking around, Canvas realized how eerily still everything felt, like time was paused for everything except him as he sat up in his nest. Breathing heavily, the pony began to feel uneasy and tried to piece everything together, not noticing the looming figure in the room before a booming female voice called out to him.

"Canvas."

Shrieking at the sudden noise in the deathly silent space, Canvas shot back from the source of the voice as he moved to the rear wall of blankets for the nest. Looking over to the foot of the nest, Canvas saw a large figure standing before him, completely darkened by shadows as its thin frame hung against the stillness of the night.

As his sights adjusted to the shape, Canvas slowly saw that it was the body of an alicorn, making his eyes widen as he realized who the body belonged to. The moonlight began to grow brighter in the frozen room. The mane of the figure began to glow against the shadows, showing the night's sky itself within it as it flowed against her dark blue coat.

As the alicorn's body began to take light against the darkness around her, Canvas began to shake as he saw who was in front of him.

Standing above Canvas in front of his nest was the Princess of the Night herself, staring at him with a stern tone within her blue eyes as she stayed silent. Keeping a serious expression on her flawless face, Princess Luna stayed silent for a moment as Canvas stared in shock, realizing a Princess was now in his bedroom.

Before he could motion to Troy and try to wake him up, Canvas saw Luna's chest puff out as she breathed in before speaking in an overwhelming tone in the silent room.

"Canvas, we need to talk."

Next Chapter: Chapter Forty-Six: The Son and the Moon Estimated time remaining: 2 Hours, 5 Minutes