Atlas followed his escort through the halls of the guard station. They walked in silence as Atlas contemplated his sentence once again as they passed barred doors and windows.
While Inquiring Mind said that he'd be placed under heavy surveillance, he also mentioned that whoever would watch him would do so from the shadows. As Atlas though about that, he was relieved that at least nopony would follow his every move right next to him. Having a third wheel would make meeting with his friends awkward as hell.
On the other side, he had to worry about just where they'd draw the line. Would he be able to go to the bathroom without some secret agent taking notes?
As they reached the end of the hallway the guard led Atlas down a staircase to the entrance hall of the station. There, sitting on a bench already waiting for him, were his friends.
They currently were engaged in a hushed conversation, their attention focused solely on their chatter. Crimson's ears swiveled around when Atlas drew closer, no doubt picking up on the sounds of approaching hoof steps. Breaking up their little huddle he glanced up towards the stairs.
Crimson's movement caused Belle and Amethyst to stop their conversation as well, to see what grabbed Crimson's attention. As soon as Belle's eyes landed on Atlas, a look of relief washed away what had been concern etched into her features. Crimson had a similar reaction, while Amethyst eyed him suspiciously, perhaps unsure what to think of the evening's events and revelations.
The guard led Atlas over to his friends, before stepping aside to give them some room for their reunion. Belle shot a last worried glance towards the guard before wrapping Atlas into a hug.
"I'm so glad they didn't lock you up," she whispered into his ear.
Atlas gently returned the hug, opting to not say anything for now. Crimson and Amethyst got up from the bench as well, approaching the hugging pair. Belle let go of Atlas and took a step back, wiping away a tear with her fetlock.
"They haven't told us any details, so what is your sentence exactly?" Crimson asked.
"Well, for one, I've gained a permanent second shadow," Atlas said. "They've also concluded that I somehow gained a third affinity, and that my newly gained powers are a potential threat to the general populace if left unchecked."
"So it is true then?" Amethyst interjected. "You’ve truly gained an affinity towards manipulation mana?"
Atlas shot Amethyst a confused look. "Yes, they hooked me up to this affinity scanner or whatever it's called."
"Fascinating..." Amethyst trailed off, lost in thought as his face lost some of its hardness.
"Anyways, I'll also have to provide unconditional support for anypony interested in studying my unique case," Atlas continued to explain.
"That doesn't sound too bad, considering you blew up a whole field," Crimson said, raising an eyebrow at Atlas.
"Supposedly...I have you guys to thank for that," Atlas said with a smile. "Since you told them what happened they decided that I wasn't fully responsible for what happened." He made it a point to look each of his friends in the eyes to get the message across. "I truly appreciate it."
"Don't sweat it, you'd have done the same for us," Crimson said, punching Atlas lightly on the shoulder.
"Yeah, we'd never leave you hanging!" Belle said, sidling up to Atlas.
Atlas was somewhat surprised by her sudden closeness but chalked it up to her just being happy… well, that and him literally telling her that he loved her mere hours ago.
"All I did was tell them the truth," Amethyst said. "It just so happened that you're not to blame for all of this."
"Thank you anyways." Atlas smiled. "According to them, it was ultimately your information that made them reconsider my sentence. Since you were able to give a little more insight as to what happened on the magical side of things."
"Sure," Amethyst said around a yawn. "What do you say we get this show on the road?"
Not even waiting for a reply from the others Amethyst turned away from his friends and made for the door. Nodding to each other, they followed him outside. Following closely behind them was the silent guard.
Once outside they found Amethyst looking around confusedly with a scrunched up face.
"What's up Amethyst?" Crimson asked, seeing his distress.
"Do any of you know where we actually are and how to get back?" Amethyst replied.
Atlas furrowed his brow and looked around. Since they were blacked out when they were transported to the barn, they had no idea where they were, neither were there any landmarks around any of them recognized.
"Allow me." The guard spoke up from behind them.
The guard started to walk off down a seemingly random street, turning back after a while as he patiently waited for the group to follow him.
Amethyst shrugged, shooting one last glance towards the guard station.
"Sure."
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Atlas and his friends were following the guard in pairs. Shortly after the start of their journey, they were told to stick together since it would be easier to guard them in case something happened. Crimson and Amethyst were walking closely behind the guard pony, leading a hushed conversation.
Atlas and Belle were a few meters behind them, Belle walking almost uncomfortably close to Atlas. Back in his time as a human, walking this close together was a lot more comfortable than it was in his new pony form. Since their legs protruded somewhat outwards to the side they rubbed awkwardly together with each step they took. Belle didn't seem to mind, but Atlas began to miss having a stationary upper body.
They had been walking for almost half an hour with the guard leading them through the maze that was the kingdom's streets. As they passed by an abandoned house, an overturned trash can with a few cats rummaging through it, Atlas finally gathered enough courage to say what he needed to say.
"Belle?" he asked in a hushed voice.
Belle just hummed questioningly, seemingly content not saying anything for now.
"You know, I had a lot of time to think today." Atlas began. "All alone in that room for a few hours..." He trailed off towards the end of his sentence.
Belle lifted her head, looking curiously at Atlas while waiting patiently for him to continue.
"It's about what happened in the barn." Atlas bit his lower lip. He really didn't want to do this but knew he had to if this relationship was to work out in the future. "About how I told you that I love you."
Atlas just stared straight ahead, not daring to look Belle into the eyes right now. Belle furrowed her brows, unsure of what to say.
"Is something wrong?" She asked after a few seconds of Atlas not elaborating.
After a while, Atlas let out a huge sigh and let his head hang slightly.
"You know... Love." Atlas said. "Love is such a strong word."
Belle was growing worried but gently nudged Atlas, signaling that she was listening.
"After all that happened tonight, I was just so happy that Dusty didn't take you away." Atlas gave another tired sigh. "Recently I have lost a lot of things. I went through a lot of hardships to get to this point, and you were the one who saved me back in High Rock."
Atlas finally looked towards Belle, looking deep into her eyes. Two blue orbs stared back at him, full of uncertainty.
"Since then you've grown to be my precious friend, and I wouldn't have been able to deal with losing you too. Not after I finally managed to get some stability in my life."
Atlas tore his gaze from her deep blue eyes and shifted his attention towards the countless stars dotting the night sky. Somewhere up there were the ones responsible for this whole mess, probably even watching right now. Watching and waiting, ready to trip him up the next chance they got.
"What I'm saying basically is... I may have acted a bit rash."
A small gasp could be heard next to Atlas, causing him to wince. Belle took a step towards the side, separating them slightly, and Atlas suddenly felt a lot colder.
"What... what do you mean?" Belle asked, close to tears.
"I'm saying that back there I wasn't really in any state to make a huge decision such as this. I was an emotional mess!" Atlas said, redirecting his eyes back towards a hurt looking Belle.
"After having thought about it, I'm just not sure what I'm feeling for you is... Love." Atlas put a lot of emphasis on the last word, putting a lot of emotion behind it.
Belle's eyes started to water, a betrayed look flashing across her face.
"Are... are you already breaking up with me?" Belle said, a slight sliver of hope still present in her voice.
Atlas studied her face. The moonlight accentuated her features, reminding him once again how beautiful she was. Even though deep down Atlas felt weird calling a pony of all things beautiful, he couldn't deny that her face was aesthetically pleasing.
"No," Atlas replied with finality.
Belle furrowed her eyes in confusion, a hopeful smile tugging at her lips.
"While I'm not really sure yet if what I'm feeling for you is actually love, I would be lying if I said I wasn't feeling anything for you," Atlas said.
Atlas sighed once again, awkwardly looking around, not sure where to look at the moment. He had never really confessed to anyone before, so his heart was thumping wildly in his chest.
"I guess what I'm trying to say is... I'm willing to give this whole thing a try," Atlas said. "You and Me, I mean." He waved his hoof between them a few times, trying to get his point across.
Belle took a few seconds to register the new information, but once it finally all locked into place, a huge grin spread across her face. She almost comically slid back to Atlas's side, as if somehow there was suddenly a magnetic force between them.
Atlas could have sworn he heard a soft 'shwooop' from somewhere and shot a concerned look toward Belle. As he had to slightly look down to look at her, he realized for the first time that she was quite a lot smaller than him.
He tilted his head to the side in confusion, as he could have sworn she was almost the same height as him before, but chalked it up to him never really paying that much attention. Belle looked right back at him, a happy smile plastered across her face.
"That's good enough for me," Belle said. "I'll always stay with you, so there's no need to rush."
Atlas pushed aside all thoughts about potential height differences and smiled at his new girlfriend. Or marefriend, as he had to remind himself. He leaned into her a bit more, the awkward leg rubbing momentarily forgotten as well, just enjoying her presence for now.
"Would you two lovebirds terribly mind to pay attention?" A voice asked suddenly.
Atlas and Belle whipped their heads around, only to find a bemused looking Crimson standing before them.
"We've arrived." He said, presenting the stairs to their flat with an exaggerated motion.
Atlas and Belle both blushed and separated, from each other. They looked around awkwardly for a few moments, while Amethyst could be heard laughing softly off to the side.
"Well, Atlas, Amethyst." Crimson nodded his head towards each of them respectively. "I'm plum tuckered out after tonight's events, so I'm gonna hit the hay. Goodnight you two."
After they returned his goodnight wishes, Crimson turned around and walked up the stairs, fumbling with the keys which he procured from... somewhere.
"Belle? You comin'?" He called down once he managed to get the door open.
Belle shot a glance back at Atlas before zipping over to him, planting a quick peck on his cheek, before running up the stairs and into the flat. Crimson just shook his head in amusement and followed her in, closing the door behind him.
Atlas touched a hoof to where Belle just kissed him, staring at the door in a daze. His thoughts were kickstarted once again when a purple hoof waved in front of his face. He followed the appendage back to his owner, finding Amethyst Blade at its end.
"Come on, we still have some ways to go." He said, pointing towards their guard, already waiting for them.
"Sure," Atlas replied and fell into step beside Amethyst.
------------------------------------
Atlas flopped onto his bed, exhaustion overtaking him. A soft click behind him could be heard as Amethyst closed the door. Soon enough he could be heard reuniting with his mattress as well. They stayed like this for a while neither of them talking as seconds passed in silence. Ever since they departed from Belle's and Crimson's place they were content in not talking to each other, both of them deeply caught up in their own thoughts.
"Hey, Atlas?" Amethyst suddenly said, his voice cutting through the silence.
"Yeah?" Atlas replied.
"You're weird you know that?"
Atlas sighed, cuddling up to his pillow.
"Yeah."
Sleep quickly found them both after the long day they’d both had.