Today, Fluttershy was ready.
For the past three days, something had been disturbing the animals near her home. Something that had been making quakes each time it appeared, and each time it left, the only signs of it's passing were some circular holes in the ground, almost like hoofprints. She'd asked the first people she could think of for help - and yet Rainbow couldn't spot whatever it was from the air, Twilight's books had nothing that matched what she was describing, and Applejack had just had no plain luck trapping whatever it was.
Today however, Fluttershy was ready.
It always appeared seemingly at a set time, hung around for a bit, and then left. With nopony else believing her, Fluttershy would have to catch it by herself.
And then suddenly, off in the distance...
Thoom.
The noise came, steady and rhythmic.Fluttershy peeked out of the bushes she was hiding behind...and couldn't believe what she saw.
It was an Earth Pony. A very big Earth Pony, with deep blue skin, a dark green, dirt matted, unkempt mane and tail and brown eyes...and it stood at over three hundred hands high. Strangely though, it seemed rather apprehensive and uncertain about what it was doing. It looked like it wanted to walk towards the Cottage, but it seemed nervous about doing so.
Fluttershy decided to walk out of hiding. It was only a pony right? A very big pony mind, but still a pony. She looked up and cleared her throat, trying to steady her nerves.
"Um...e-excuse me? P-Pardon me?"
The giant pony looked down...and freaked. It immediately dashed behind a tree it could hide behind, but a single massive eye kept looking at Fluttershy. Fluttershy sighed, sounding relived. This pony was somehow terrified of hurting her, or at least shy. She calmly decided to approach the pony.
"Can I help you at all? Are you lost?" she asked gently. The giant pony calmed down a little, or at least enough to step out from behind the tree. It lay down in front of Fluttershy and tried to act as unintimidating as possible.
"Am I disturbing you? I'm sorry." the giant asked. His voice was deep, but distinctly male. Fluttershy smiled nervously.
"No, your not. But you've been coming here the last few days, and you never stopped to say hello." she explained.
The giant nodded. "I'm sorry I'm...not very good at meeting new people." he explained. "I saw a house and...I wanted to say hello but..."
Fluttershy simply tapped his hoof. "Listen, there's some people I know who might be able to help you with that. Promise you'll come back tomorrow, same time?"
The giant looked a little alarmed. Nobody had asked him to come back before. It took him a few moments, but he nodded his head before turning to wander back into the Forest. He stopped and asked "What's your name, miss...?"
"Fluttershy."
The giant nodded. "I'll see you tomorrow, Miss Fluttershy. And thank you."
The giant then walked off into the forest. Fluttershy gave out a sigh of relief. This was not as bad as she thought it was going to be.
He seems nice. A bit sheepish, but nice.
There was only one more thing else to do.
****
"A...giant pony. Fluttershy, you sure you've been getting enough sleep lately?" Twilight asked. Fluttershy simply nodded in kind.
"You sure? I mean you've kinda been bothering everyone about this lately. You sure it's not just a recurring nightmare? Fever dream? A hallucination from lack of sleep maybe?" Twilight asked, a hint of concern in her voice. Fluttershy nodded in reply.
It was then that a familiar quaking sound interrupted the pair before any banter could continue. Twilight looked up...and up...and up. Standing infront of her was the biggest pony she'd ever seen. Needless to say, she stood there gawking. Fluttershy on the other hand was gently waving up as the pony lowered himself to the ground, being careful around the pair.
"Hello again, Miss Fluttershy." the giant spoke, before someone else caught his eye. He looked down at Twilight, and started to feel a little unnerved. Fluttershy easily picked up on this.
"Mr big pony sir, please don't be afraid. This is Twilight Sparkle. I bought her along so she could take a look at you. She won't hurt you, I promise." she told the giant calmly. He seemed to relax a little as Twilight started examining him.
"I don't get it." Twilight wondered out loud "If there were giant ponies, my books would have something. I don't know any magic that can make a pony this big unless..."
Twilight stopped thinking out loud for a moment and looked up, finding a rather unusual Cutie Mark. It looked like a pony, standing on it's hind quarters while holding up a heavy looking ball that was at least twice the size of the pony.
"Hey...what's your name?" Twilight asked.
"It's..." the giant paused, tracing a line in the dirt with a hoof. Fluttershy simply gave him a nod of approval.
"It's Atlas. Atlas Titanicus."
Twilight gave out a little giggle. Atlas looked rather embarrassed he'd mentioned that.
"Oh, sorry. But I think this is the cause." Twilight explained, pointing at the Cutie Mark. "It's your special talent."
"It's nowhere near a talent." Atlas sulked, his head lowered onto the ground. "More like a curse."
Both Twilight and Fluttershy felt a pinch of sorrow for Atlas. Twilight hadn't quite met a pony like this before. She'd never heard anyone speak out that way about their Cutie Mark before now. Fluttershy on the other hand was imagining what it would be like if she was in his position - the result made her shudder.
"Um...Atlas?" Fluttershy asked. Atlas looked over to where Fluttershy was standing.
"Come back tomorrow, okay?" Fluttershy asked. Atlas stood up and walked off without answering.
"You think I hurt his feelings?" Twilight asked. Fluttershy simply gave her a look.
"Point taken." Twilight replied, walking back with her.
****
The next day, Twilight had convinced Rarity and Applejack to join her and Twilight.
"So remind me why we're here again?" Applejack asked.
"Well, he seems a bit...unsure of himself." Twilight replied "it's probably a better start for him to meet someone friendly than...well...this is why I didn't tell Rainbow." she added, blushing a little.
"Very well Twilight, but why would you need me along?" Rarity asked.
"He's a bit...well...you'll see for yourself." Twilight replied.
A full five minutes passed. Not a single quake. Fluttershy started to grow concerned.
"You don't think he took yesterday to heart, do you?" she asked Twilight, who sighed in response.
"He could maybe have gotten lost?" Applejack suggested.
Fluttershy shook her head. "He's been coming the same way the past few days now. I think he knows the way. Maybe we should go looking for him?"
Twilight thought about this for a moment. "He's three hundred hands tall. Only thing I can think of that would really pose a threat to him would be a Dragon. On the other hand, I suppose maybe we should still look for him. I mean you'd do the same for me right?"
The others murmured for a little while, before coming out of the huddle.
"We'll come with you, Twi." Applejack answered, nodding her head. "'Cept Fluttershy. She was first to volunteer to stay in case he does walk this way." she added. Fluttershy looked a little sheepish. "I'm not afraid of the Forest, but if he does come this way-"
"Fluttershy, I understand." Twilight told her. "Any idea where we start looking?" she asked the group.
"Easy peasy, Twilight. Follow the prints." Applejack told her, before following the tracks. Twilight and Rarity followed soon after.
****
The trio were worked their way though the forest, noticing the surroundings becoming more and more black and twisted as they stepped. The trees and vegetation took on frightening shapes, while vines sought to reclaim the few rocks that dared to show themselves. The encroaching darkness was making the trail of prints difficult to follow.
"We must be pretty deep into the forest by now." Twilight thought aloud "Be on your guard everyone."
Everyone kept watch, though Rarity kept darting her head to and fro, scanning for anything nearby. Eventually, they heard something. A bizarre, malevolant cackling sound, like a thousand bizarre tongues being spoken all at once.
"Jabberwocky." Twilight whispered back. "Try to ignore it."
Rarity however hadn't quite taken Twilight's advice on board. Her hair stood up on end like a brush, the sound of her teeth could be heard chattering. After a few more minutes, she shrieked and curled up into a foetal ball.
Sensing a meal, the Jabberwocky moved forwards, it's snake like neck revealing an almost rat-like head, it's red eyes filled with malevolent intent. Twilight and Applejack wasted no time in picking up Rarity and backtracking the way they came, the Jabberwocky in pursuit. The pair tried to move into places the Jabberwocky couldn't reach, but it proved futile as long, thin claws simply broke the eroded rock.
Eventually, backed into a corner they had no choice. They screamed for help. It was futile they knew, but it was still some kind of hope as the Jabberwocky extended an arm forwards...
...Then they felt it. At first it was subtle, but it soon increased with intensity until it was audible.
The once-fearsome Jabberwocky was knocked as if a speeding train had hit it, sending it flying though the trees. And there, standing before the trio was the largest pony they'd ever seen.
"Golly." Applejack exclaimed quietly.
Atlas looked down, noticing Twilight quickly. "Oh, it's you." he said, the words full of venom. Twilight sighed. "Atlas, look - I'm sorry. I think we got off on the wrong hoof yesterday. I didn't mean to upset you the way I had."
For a moment, Atlas looked a little surprised, but relented. "You mean that? Your not lying to me are you?"
Now it was Twilight's turn to look surprised. Did he really think that low of her?
"She means it. I'd know if Twi wasn't tellin' the truth." Applejack chimed in.
Atlas stood for a moment in stunned silence, before bowing his head. "I'm...sorry. I didn't mean to-"
Twilight simply smiled up. "These are a few more friends of mine. This is-"
"Name's Applejack. Thanks for savin' us from that there bully back there." Applejack chimed in, finishing Twilight's sentence for her.
Atlas tilted his head up, looking at Applejack, before a babbling white unicorn caught his eyes. "And she is-"
"Rarity." Twilight told him "She'll be alright. The Jabberwocky's insanity should wear off in a few hours. I bought her along to clean you up."
Atlas gave Twilight a quizzical look. "What's wrong with the way I look?" he asked.
Twilight looked embarrassed, not knowing what to say next. "Well, when was the last time you had your mane trimmed?" she asked. Atlas simply made an "Oh" sound in response and nodded. "I was wondering why it kept catching on things."
Twilight giggled politely. "Well, time to come out of the forest, okay? Fluttershy's waiting for you." Twilight and Applejack started to walk off, Atlas very carefully following them out.
****
A few hours later, Rarity was up and about and giving Atlas a makeover, Fluttershy keeping him calm. Twilight and Applejack meanwhile were taking a break inside the Cottage. Fluttershy had set out some tea and biscuits for the group, but given the pair didn't have anything better to do, they called first dibs on the tea.
"So...thoughts?" Twilight asked Applejack.
"Well...he's okay I guess. But I get the feeling there's something broke inside him." Applejack told Twilight.
Twilight sighed. "So he's sensitive about his Cutie Mark Talent." she replied "He still deserves to have a chance at life here in Ponyville."
Applejack shook her head. "No, I get the feeling it's worse than that. There's something he's not telling us. Why's he hidin' out in the Forest? Nopony I know would live there. Well, 'cept Zecora, but you get what I mean...don't you, Twi?"
Twilight looked down at her tea, then back at Applejack. "Well I suppose you have a point, but I don't think we should force him to share if he doesn't want to. If there is a reason, it's probably something we're better off not knowing."
Applejack nodded in agreement. "If he wants to tell us, we'll let him."
At that moment, Fluttershy walked in the door. She blinked as she saw the pair helping themselves to the food and drink. "I thought we were all drinking together?" she asked.
Twilight and Applejack blinked, before Fluttershy relented. "Oh, it's alright. I set that out for everyone." she said, trotting into the house.
"So...how's the big guy?" Twilight asked.
"Oh! Rarity says he's all done. You should really go outside and take a look Twilight. He looks rather handsome...y'know, if he wasn't gigantic." Fluttershy replied.
****
"One more moment...there, done! Well, it took several hours and at least six chainsaws, but your new mane looks a lot better than that old raggedy mess." Rarity told Atlas, before sliding down his body to observe her work. Atlas couldn't help but feel his own mane.
"It feels...nice. Thank you Miss." Atlas replied, fondling with his own mane.
"Ah-ah, don't do that.You'll ruin your new mane." Rarity told him. Atlas immediately bought his hoof back down, setting off a mild tremor. He blushed.
"S-sorry. I guess I'm not used to having a short mane." he told her. At that point, Twilight wandered out. Atlas now had a much shorter mane. His hair had also been shortened and cleaned up significantly.
"Well, you look great." Twilight said, smiling. "I've got a few more Friends of Fluttershy's you might want to meet tomorrow. I was thinking maybe you could...join us for an outdoor picnic?" she asked.
Again, Atlas looked surprised at first. His eyes seemed to swell, before a happy expression appeared on his face. His gigantic hooves reached for Twilight, but he stopped himself just in time.
"I-I'd love to!" Atlas exclaimed, sounding rather nervous, but excited at the same time. He stood up quickly, a gust of wind knocking Twilight and Rarity over.
"Thank you, thank you!"
Atlas whistled happily as he trotted back off into the Forest. Fluttershy poked her head out the door.
"You may want to make some extra large Sandwiches tomorrow." Twilight told her. Fluttershy looked puzzled for a moment, before nodding her head in agreement.
"Just hope he doesn't mind the others..." Twilight muttered to herself.
****
The next day, the group had gathered out a short distance from the forest. Fluttershy set out the rug, while everyone else started unpacking their baskets when some familiar tremors started shaking the earth.
Pinkie Pie looked up in awe. Dash on the other hand just shrugged. "So he's big. Big deal."
This prompted a nudge from Twilight...before she noted what Atlas was carrying in his mouth.
"Is that a-?"
Atlas simply lowered a gigantic tree onto the ground. "Lunch." he told the group. This got some odd looks from the group.
Of course, he's the size of a Dragon, if not a little taller. What was he going to eat, Cupcakes?
Twilight laughed nervously as Atlas carefully set himself down. He was about to start eating when a fast moving blue object bumped into his muzzle. He immediately retracted, setting himself upright in a startled position, blinking. Looking around, his eyes locked onto a sky blue pegasi, flapping just a few hands away from his face.
"Hi, nice to meet you." the pegasi said, to which Atlas blinked as a response.
"I'm Rainbow Dash, the fastest and most daring flyer in all of Equestria!" Rainbow exclaimed enthusiastically. This got an unamused and rather deadpan look from Atlas.
"I'm Atlas Titanicus, the biggest pony around these parts." he replied sarcastically. He tried to get back to eating, before Rainbow blocked him again.
"So, you heard of me?" she asked.
A frustrated Atlas replied with an empthatic "No."
This made Rainbow looked shocked, before she was dragged away by Fluttershy. "Let's leave the nice giant pony alone for a while Rainbow. You can show him your moves later."
Rainbow huffed in disapproval, before landing back down on the ground. Before Atlas had even taken a bite, a pink pony popped out with a loud noise, fanfare and confetti that caused him to recoil in shock.
"So, what's your name? Where you from? Tell me, tell me huh, huh?"
As soon as the pink pony asked that, Atlas finally snapped. He left his tree, sprang up and fled back into the forest, this time simply ignoring any trees in his path, causing many to be uprooted or simply just outright destroyed. Pinkie blinked.
"I thought people liked surprises..."
****
Later that day, Twilight called a conference inside Fluttershy's hut.
"I can't believe you two!" she shouted, sounding frustrated things went wrong. "I warned you not to provoke him, and look what happened today!"
Both Pinkie Pie and Rainbow had their heads lowered out of shame. At that moment, Applejack put a hoof on Twilight's shoulder.
"Twi, I just think they got a little carried away." she interrupted. "At any rate, I just think they were trying to be friendly. Like I said, I think something inside him's broke." she added.
Twilight sighed. "Well, what do you think went wrong this afternoon?" she asked, sounding a little more calm.
"Well, call it a theory Twilight, but I don't think normal interaction is going to work. There's some kind of pain he's hidin' from us, and it all seems to revolve around his Cutie Mark." Applejack explained. Twilight sat down and started tapping her head. "Well, I still think you two owe him an apology. We should have a talk. All of us and him. Together."
There was a nod of unanimous approval.
"Alright, meeting adjourned. We'll meet back here tomorrow." Twilight told the group. As the others left, Fluttershy sat alone, worrying to herself about her new friend.
****
That night, Fluttershy could barely sleep. She kept tossing and turning in her bed worried. Suddenly, she felt the whole house shake. She immediately fell out of bed and ran to a window, finding it obscured by deep blue skin. She knew immediately who it was and dashed outside.
"There you are! Oh, I was so worried!"
Fluttershy ran over, rubbing Atlas' hoof. Atlas blushed and allowed her to keep doing so, before she looked up and backed off a little.
"You...don't like me anymore?" she asked.
Atlas was horrified at the thought. He panicked.
"Nononono, I do, I do! I just-well, I-"
Atlas slammed his head on the ground, narrowly missing the Cottage and Fluttershy and covered his face with his hooves. That's when he heard it. A soft giggle. It sounded like what happened when Twilight was giggling a few days ago. He peeked his head up. Fluttershy was giggling at him.
"What's...so funny?" he asked, sounding nervous.
"My..." Fluttershy spoke between giggles "and I thought I would be frightened of the big one."
Atlas blushed, looking embarrassed. "O-oh. I suppose it is kind of..."
Atlas looked back down at Fluttershy.
"Truth is, I've never handled another pony before. I mean I'm worried I'll break you - or worse." Atlas told her. "Sorry I can't comfort you."
Fluttershy blinked.
No wonder he reacted the way he did. He's terrified of himself. Of hurting others. I suppose I would be if I were that big.
"Atlas...would you like to try picking me up?" Fluttershy asked. Atlas thought to himself. "Well...what did you have in mind?" he asked, sounding concerned. Fluttershy flew up to his ear, and whispered into it. Atlas looked uncertain, but eventually he relented and nodded his head.
"Alright, I-I'll try."
Atlas reached down a massive hoof, stopping just short of Fluttershy. Looking nervous, he tipped it back up and bought it up to eye level. He blinked in surprise.
"Your...Your not flat?!" Atlas asked, sounding astonished. He lowered Fluttershy onto his right shoulder, letting her climb off before setting it back down.
"See? All you need is a little more self-confidence." Fluttershy told him. Atlas didn't look so sure. "I could have crushed you." he reminded her.
Fluttershy shook her head. "See, that kind of attitude is getting you nowhere. If you-"
"You have no idea what I've done do you?" Atlas asked. Fluttershy stopped and blinked.
Atlas took a deep breath.
"See, many years ago, I was the smallest foal back in my own town - a little village on the other side of the forest. Though it's likely not even there now. The other ponies there always picked on me for three things - I was never very smart, I was tiny and I had no Cutie Mark at the time. Then one day I started growing. It just...happened. Before long I was the size of the teacher at School. New insults were made up around me. Names like "Colossus", "Gargant" and "Dimclops". What few friends I had turned their backs on me out of fear. Everybody else all over town started to use me to do all their labour as I grew bigger and bigger. One day however I could take no more...so I wreaked the town. Granted, I was still smaller than I am now, but being the size of a house, I could still cause some serious damage. Anypony caught in my way I hurt without any sense of remorse. After destroying the entire village, I looked on at what I had done. The entire village was completely demolished, the place decorated with the injured, their lamentations filling the air. I was horrified with what I had done, what I allowed myself to do. I ran into the deepest depths of the Forest, where I stayed hidden ever since."
Fluttershy sat there listening and understanding. "That was the first time I was ever truly angry...it's something I don't want to repeat but being isolated away in the forest for so long..."
Fluttershy held up a hoof. "I don't care."
Atlas blinked. He looked down at Fluttershy, feeling a little insulted.
"Your different now. The Atlas I know wouldn't harm a filly, let alone ponyville." Fluttershy told him.
Atlas looked half in tears. "But look at me! I'm bigger than I was all those years ago! I could-"
Fluttershy held up a hoof to silence him.
"Altas, I think you putting this at the front is what's stopping you meeting people." Fluttershy told him.
Atlas slowly started to sob. "But what else am I supposed to do? I still remember that day, my callous act. It's not something you can just forget. I still see it every night, when I sleep."
"And if you keep hiding behind your size as an excuse, your going to end up with nopony else besides you." Fluttershy told him.
"I...I..."
Atlas was speechless. He turned to look at Fluttershy.
"I don't think I can do this on my own." he told Fluttershy. She simply nodded.
"Then we'll try and overcome it together, alright. Just promise me you'll try."
Atlas looked side to side. "Alright. For you, Miss Fluttershy. And thank you again. Sorry for ruining the picnic. I'll be going back home now..."
Fluttershy flew up in front of his face before he walked off. "Why don't you stay here tonight? Have somewhere nice to sleep for once." she offered. Atlas looked a little shy.
"T-Thank you for your hospitality."
Teary eyed, Atlas curled up around the Cottage. Fluttershy used the window to climb back in.
"Goodnight Atlas." she whispered softly, before climbing back into bed for a better night's sleep.
****
The next morning, Atlas felt something against his legs. He slowly stirred and woke up hazily, giving out a tremendous yawn. He looked down and hazily spotted something orange bucking his leg. He squinted and focused his eyes a little bit, before steadily sitting up. "O-oh, Applejack was it? S-So sorry." he said, half asleep and half surprised. He stood up as best he could, before his sleepy state caused him to sit down. As he focused a little more, he could make out everyone from yesterday was there, but the closest were a certain sky blue pegasi and a pink pony.
"Look Atlas, we're-"
"We're sorry about yesterday." the pair replied. Atlas himself nodded. "I'm sorry too. I may have overreacted a little yesterday." he admitted.
Twilight looked at the others, and then back at Atlas. "Atlas...there's a feeling in the room. We think there's something your hiding from us. Something that's making you act this way. If you can, can you explain to us what it is?" she asked, trying to sound polite. Atlas himself looked around, and spotted Fluttershy. Remembering his promise, he leaned in a little closer.
"Alright."
Atlas explained the story he told Fluttershy to the others, almost word for word. The reactions among the group were mixed from shock, to disgust, to sympathy as he spoke.
"...And that's it. I understand if you never want to speak with me again."
Atlas stood up.
"I'll be-"
He was stopped by the Pink pony. "Oh, no wonder your such a frowny face all the time!"
Atlas' reaction was puzzled. He turned around to the others behind him.
"Atlas, it doesn't matter what you've done. There should be room to make a new life here, and I'm sure the ponies in ponyville will treat you with the kindness and respect you want." Twilight added.
"Well you may have done wrong Atlas, but your tryin' to do right, and that's what should count." Applejack added.
"Atlas, I know you've had it hard dear, but please don't lump me and the others into the same group as those ruffians." Rairity added, sounding rather disgusted.
Dash simply stayed quiet in absolute shock, refusing to look up. She looked down and simply dangled a hoof loosely, as if quietly contemplating something.
Atlas turned back around. "Thank you, all of you. It...it means a lot to hear you say that." he replied, sounding a little upset. Fluttershy tapped one of his hooves.
"Oh, I'm not sad. I'm happy. Honest. I'm just so happy I could-"
Atlas noticed Fluttershy tying a pink bed sheet around his hoof. "What's with the-?"
"Oh don't worry, it's a spare one. I'm doing it so you won't forget your promise. I've done it too, see?" she replied, holding up one of her hooves. Atlas spooted she had tied a blue ribbon to it.
Atlas nodded. "So...what are we doing today?"
Twilight looked up. "Well, I think your about ready. How would you feel about a quick tour around ponyville?"
Atlas looked a little worried about the thought. He looked down at Fluttershy, and then back at Twilight. "Alright, a tour. Just a quick one though? Please?"
****
The city of Ponyville.
For the residents, so far today was an ordinary day. Ponies went out shopping, working and meeting up with friends. Then they felt it. Subtle at first, but with increasing intensity. Fearing the worst, the ponies quickly hid inside their own homes, behind benches, anywhere they thought was safe.
What they saw surprised them.
****
"So this is Ponyville." Atlas said, looking down at the ground and being careful not to knock anyone over. The others had taken to riding around on the giant's back for the tour, not wanting to make Atlas worry too much.
Atlas himself was carefully walking though the town, taking in the sight with his own eyes. Most buildings in the city barely went past his knees, but one quickly caught his eye. A tree in the middle of town...with a balcony, doors and windows. Puzzled, he walked towards it.
"It's a...tree house?" Atlas asked, tapping it gently. Surprisingly, it stayed upright despite his enormous strength, though Twilight was sure she and Spike would have some cleaning up to do later.
"That's my house Atlas." Twilight told him "But it's also the public library. Anything you want to know is in a book somewhere." she added.
"Got any in large print?" Atlas asked. This got a quizzical look from the others. Did Atlas really just make a joke about his own size? It wasn't a very funny joke, but it was surprising nevertheless.
"Sure. Would you like font size sixteen, twenty four or three thousand?" Twilight replied. This got a groan from the others for just being a plain bad reply to a bad joke. There was however a loud, bassy booming noise in response. It took the others to realise a few minuites before they realised Atlas was laughing. He soon put his hoof over his mouth.
Twilight giggled. "It's fine, you laughed. I'd be more worried if you didn't." Atlas simply nodded and moved on.
"Streets are...tighter than I remember." he said aloud. "Not much walking room."
"Well DUH. Your HUGE! If I was as big as you and the streets were itty bitty, I wouldn't have much walking room either!" Pinkie Pie replied, getting a chuckle from Atlas before-
Crunch.
Atlas looked down, worried. He'd trampled something wooden. Worse, he could see something red seeping out of it, he panicked.
"Oh no. Nononononono..."
Worried, he stepped back and started shovelling asides some of the debris. He couldn't see anybody. This just mad him more and more concerned, before he felt a tap on his shoulder.
"Easy there Atlas. Just a few barrels of wine." Applejack told him. Atlas calmed down and stood back up.
"Oh...Oh, okay." he replied, sounding embarrassed. He then continued to walk along before he saw another unusual looking Building. It looked a bit like a cake...or at least, it reminded Atlas of one. Even more surprisingly, it was almost as tall as Atlas was. Atlas walked over to it and tapped it with his muzzle.
"And this is?" Atlas asked.
"My house." Rarity replied. "I'm an artist and designer-"
"For architecture? This is a pretty impressive house." Atlas interrupted.
Rarity blushed at the compliment, but then shook her head. "I design clothes."
"Oh." Atlas replied simply.
"Oh? You...don't like Clothes?" Rarity asked.
Atlas looked nervous. "Um, no...no of course not. I just..."
"Atlas." Applejack chimed in.
"Oh alright. I just don't have as much interest." Atlas told Rarity. He turned to look at her. Rarity didn't look like she minded.
"It's alright dear. World would be boring if we all had the same interests, yes?" Rarity explained. Atlas nodded his head and turned to move on when...
Atlas noticed the grass had turn varying shades of colour. He came to his senses quickly - he'd drawn quite the crowd.
"What? Stop looking at me like that! Please stop looking at me like that?" Atlas protested, his voice shaky. He turned to the others. "What do I do? Is there a clear way out?"
As soon as he'd asked that, Dash immediately flew up, flying infront of Atlas' face.
"Follow me. If I can't find a way out of here, no one can!" she bragged, before flying off, taking the oppourtunity to show off a few flight moves. Atlas cautiously followed after her, sighing.
"She's a bit of a braggart, isn't she?"
"She is, but she's really is a nice pony. Don't be so harsh to judge her." Twilight told him, to which Atlas nodded. Once he was clear of the crowd, Atlas turned to Dash.
"Thank you Miss Dash." Atlas said, nodding his head.
"Anytime." Dash replied boldly, before rejoining the others.
****
Atlas spent the rest of the day carefully walking around the town, and keeping a second eye out on the crowd that was following him. It was then that he heard something. A scream. Reacting quickly, he turned around fast enough to give everyone a slight nausea, before trotting off in the direction of the scream.
Eventually, he caught sight of the source - a young pony hanging from a window ledge. With virtually the entire town following him around, it's cries for help had gone unheard until now.
There was a tapping on the shoulder. Atlas nodded and set everyone down. "I've a chance to make a start making up for what I've done. Stay here and don't worry - I'll be back." he told the others, before dashing off towards the young pony. The heavy vibrations of Atlas dashing knocked it off the ledge, sending it falling down. Atlas saw this and skidded underneath the young pony. The startled pony landed safely on Atlas's back and slid down. Atlas stood up...and looked behind him.
In his haste, Atlas had demolished several dozen market stalls and carved huge marks into the ground. For once, Atlas tried not to panic, though this certainly worried him. His concern only worsened as the crowd caught up to him, and a pony stepped forwards - a beige pony with a wavy grey mane stepped forwards.
"Thank you. I'll see to it that this street is repaired. In the meantime, why not make yourself at home?" she asked. Atlas blinked and sighed, before looking at the crowd.
"I'd like to. For once in my life I've met ponies who treat me with genuine kindness but...I'm afraid I can't stay, I'm sorry." Atlas replied. There was a collective gasp from the crowd as Atlas turned and walked off.
"Atlas..." the group said collectively as they saw him walk off.
****
As Atlas walked on, a familiar yellow Pegasi caught up to him.
"Why are you running away?" Fluttershy asked, sounding concerned. Atlas chuckled.
"I'm not running away. But...I've been doing some thinking..." Atlas told her.
"What have we said about your size holding you-"
"It's not. Well, sort of not." Atlas interrupted. "I was just thinking "Are there other Ponies like me?" It's nothing you've done or I've done. My size isn't really holding me back. It was always me. I know that now."
Fluttershy seemed quiet for a moment, before nodding. "I understand. You...need to find out if there are any other giants walking Equestria. You want to be with others like you."
Atlas looked a little confused. "Not exactly."
Fluttershy looked up.
"I like you. And I like your friends. But it's a question I think's eating me. Besides, the others might be total jerks who have no such guilt over smashing towns and other mean things." Atlas explained.
"So...you'll be back someday?" Fluttershy asked.
"I'm still wearing your Bedsheet aren't I?" Atlas replied. "Don't worry, I remember my promise. Take care Miss Fluttershy. And thank you. For everything."
With that, Atlas walked off slowly. Fluttershy walked off in the opposite direction.
"Goodbye Atlas. And thank you too."
Dear Princess Celestia,
These last few days, I've been talking with a very unusual pony. A pony whose somehow as big as a Dragon, but also polite and extremely shy. Only this pony kept second guessing and judging himself constantly over every action he made, because of a bad thing he did in the past.
I learned that while we should remember the bad things we've done as well as the good, sometimes the deeds we do are so bad they start affecting our lives and we try too hard to not repeat them. However sometimes a pony can become so obsessed the memory takes over their lives and governs what they do. And when that happens, the only thing that might show you the right path is a good friend.
