Applejack sat listlessly on one of the hills dotting the orchards of Sweet Apple Acres, looking down towards her home. She’d been there for a while, just watching and thinking in silence. Something heavy was weighing on her mind—which is why it took her a moment to figure out why her head suddenly felt lighter. Before she could figure it out, a familiar blue face popped into view inches away from hers, wearing a familiar hat. “Hey Applejack!”
“Gyah!” Applejack let out a surprised yelp as she fell over backwards, to the sound of laughter. “Rainbow Dash, you shiftless, sneaky, sidewinding, skyjock! Don’t you have better things to do than interrupt a pony when she’s thinking?”
Rainbow snickered. “Thinking, huh? I was wondering what that burning smell was.” She took Applejack’s hat off and tossed it back to her. “What’s got you so worked up?”
“Nunya.” Applejack slapped her hat back on her head as she got back up. “If you have any respect for another pony’s privacy—”
“Says the pony spying on her brother’s date.” Rainbow crossed her front legs together with a smirk. She tilted her head down to the barn where Big Macintosh was escorting Sugar Belle inside. “I spotted them as I flew over.”
“I wasn’t spying!” Applejack stomped her hoof indignantly. “I was just … thinking, s’all.” Rainbow opened her mouth, but this time she was ready. “One more crack and I’ll hogtie you to a hay bale.”
Rainbow held up her hooves. “Okay, okay, I can take a hint.”
“Not from where I’m standing. If you could, you’d have left by now,” Applejack said.
“Somepony’s in a mood. Level with me?” Rainbow parked herself next to Applejack. “Please tell me this isn’t about you and Hearts and Hooves Day.”
Applejack snorted. “What? Ponyfeathers, no. Ain’t about that.”
Rainbow made a big show of letting out a huge sigh of relief and wiping her forehead. “Good. So what is it that’s got your tail in a twist?”
“Rainbow, look—” Applejack exhaled after counting to ten. “I appreciate that you’re trying to lend an ear, but I don’t think you’re the one I should be talking to 'bout this. Maybe I should try one of the others.” She winced, wishing she had put it another way when she saw the indignant, almost hurt, expression on her friend’s face.
Rainbow Dash tossed her head in agitation. “Oh yeah? And why’s that?”
Well, there was no way to get out of talking about it now without blowing Rainbow off and offending her more. “Because you don’t have any siblings, alright?” Rainbow blinked. Applejack shook her head. “Yeah, that’s what I thought. No offense, but this really isn’t something you can understand. Thanks for offering though, but—”
“Try me.”
That brought Applejack up short. “Say what now?”
Rainbow leaned forward. “You said I couldn’t get whatever’s bugging you because I don’t have any brothers or sisters. Now I’m telling you to put your money where your mouth is. Maybe I’ll get it, maybe I won’t. But how about you let me work out if I can understand something or not instead of having you tell me that I can’t?”
“Or, and I’m just throwing this out there, you could try leaving well enough alone?” Applejack smiled wryly. “Nah, of course not. ‘Sides, that’d be a case of the teapot and the kettle. So fine, but for the record, you can be a real pill sometimes.”
Rainbow nodded gravely. “Noted. Now spill.”
Applejack gestured for Rainbow to get comfortable. “You hear about what went down today with Big Macintosh and Sugar Belle?”
“Yeah, Scootaloo filled me in.” Rainbow shrugged. “Kinda crazy, huh?”
“Usually is anytime the Crusaders, Spike or Discord are involved, much less the lot of them together.” Applejack shook her head. “That ain’t the point though. Big Mac got into that situation because he couldn’t bring himself to talk to Sugar Belle … and I’m wondering if that isn’t a little on me.”
Rainbow tilted her head. “Gonna have to unpack that one a bit.”
“I figured.” Applejack fidgeted with her hat. “You know how I’m in the middle Apple?”
Given an opening like that, Rainbow could hardly resist. “Why, no, Applejack, I hadn’t! I just thought you were big for your age. You mean Apple Bloom’s actually younger than you?”
“Ugh.” Applejack buried her face in her hooves. “Fine, moving past the stupid question and even stupider answer—”
“Not a word!”
“Don’t care. Point is: I’m the pony who tends to take charge and make the decisions, even though Big Mac’s older.” Applejack shifted uncomfortably as she went on. “You know me: sometimes I can get so headstrong and sure of myself that I don’t listen to other ponies. If I don’t wanna hear it, it can be like talking to a brick wall.”
“Aww, come on, Applejack, don’t sell yourself short…” Rainbow patted her shoulder. “Some brick walls are actually interesting.”
Applejack snorted and shook her hoof off. “Quiet you—point is, it makes me wonder; what if I did that so often to Big Mac that he … stopped even trying to talk? Usually it’s the oldest sibling who’s in charge, and the middle one who tends to be quiet. That’s how it works, isn’t it?” She looked morose. “What if it’s my fault Big Mac’s so quiet that he can hardly speak up for himself? That I ran roughshod over my own big brother until he became the quiet middle kid.” She paused while she waited for Rainbow, who was clearly struggling to answer. “See what I mean? I told you that you wouldn’t get it.”
Rainbow held up her hooves. “Whoa, hold up. I was just trying to think for a minute.”
Applejack smirked. “So that’s what that burning smell—”
“Oh real mature, AJ.” Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Okay, so you were kinda right. I didn’t grow up with siblings and this isn’t exactly something I know a lot about.”
“Told you.”
“Let me finish.” Rainbow prodded her with a hoof. “Okay, so Big Mac’s the strong but silent type. What’s so wrong about that?”
Applejack scrunched her face. “I didn’t say there’s anything wrong with it, but maybe he’d have found some happiness of his own sooner if he expressed himself more. He almost lost it all today because he’s too afraid to talk.”
“And you, what, you think it’s because you upstaged him or something since you’re younger than he is?” Rainbow gave a skeptical snort to make her feelings on that perfectly clear. “If you want to talk about little sisters outshining their big brothers, look at Twilight and Shining Armor.”
Applejack couldn’t quite repress a snort. “Aw, c’mon now. That’s just being mean.”
“I didn’t mean it like that. Well, mostly.” Rainbow leaned forward. “But Twilight was this super-magical prodigy as a kid, the Princess’ student, then the savior of Equestria several times over—and this was all before she became an alicorn. But you don’t see Shining Armor turning into this quiet, reserved kinda stallion like Big Macintosh. Almost, like, I don’t know—they’re two different ponies or something. Go figure.”
“I know every pony and every family’s different.” Applejack tilted her hat back. “But your family is the first group of ponies you meet. They’re the ones who help define you, and siblings are a pony’s first friends.” She saw Rainbow stir and quickly preempted her. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying ‘oh poor you, you missed out’ or there’s something wrong if you don’t have any—just that it’s a big influence from the get go.”
Rainbow leaned back, mollified. “Okay, I can get that. And it’s not like I never wondered what it might’ve been like if I had siblings.”
“No fooling?” Applejack lightly punched her shoulder. “I didn’t think you were the introspective, sentimental type.”
Rainbow Dash snorted and returned Applejack’s punch with a harder one of her own. “Says the pony being all mopey while she watches her brother’s date. But yeah, I’ve thought about it. Would we have been rivals, spurring each other forward, like you and me? Would we have had totally opposite tastes that I don’t get, like Rarity?” She shrugged. “Or would we get along as ridiculously well as Twilight and Shining Armor?”
“You mean how ‘they never had a single fight?’” Applejack whickered and rolled her eyes. “Yeah, and if Granny Smith had wheels she’d be a wagon. Between you, me and the apple tree, I’m thinking Twi was seeing their relationship through rose-colored glasses. You know, like how Rarity got with Sweetie Belle a while back?”
Rainbow shrugged. “I have no idea about that. But you really think if I had a sibling I’d be totally different?”
Applejack thought it over. “Well, can you imagine what it would’ve been like if you grew up with Zephyr Breeze?”
Rainbow shuddered and twitched as if struck by lightning. “Ugh! Ugh ugh, no. I can’t even—I just can’t.”
“See?” Applejack leaned back against the tree, working out a crick in her neck. “Then again, I can’t imagine how Zephyr got to be the way he was either. Fluttershy and her folks are quiet, kind, decent ponies. I don’t think even Twilight could figure out how they ended up with Zephyr Breeze.”
“You think there’s a way he was supposed to turn out?” Rainbow stretched her wings. “Like Big Mac was supposed to turn out different? Ponies are ponies.”
Applejack shook her head. “Yes, but … I don’t know. You really don’t think you’d have been a different pony if you had a brother or sister?”
Rainbow shrugged. “I don’t see how it matters now.” She leaned back and looked up at the clouds in the sky. “Twilight tell you about the time we were called by the map to the Wonderbolt Academy?” She waited for Applejack to nod. “Okay, so you know how everypony thinks the explanation for really obnoxious, self-absorbed braggarts is that they were only foals whose parents gave them too much praise and attention or whatever?” Applejack nodded again. “But Sky Stinger, he had a ton of siblings—more than you or Pinkie even—and he became an obnoxious jerkwad because he was trying to stand out.”
“You’re kinda proving my point about how siblings play a role in shaping who you are,” Applejack pointed out.
Rainbow waved her off. “Let me finish. Then you had Vapor Trail. She was an only foal, just like me. All of her parents’ over-the-top attention and ridiculous praise—it smothered her. She hated it, and trust me, I know what that’s like. But despite having all that in common, we still turned out super different.”
Applejack nodded slowly. “I guess you have a point there.”
“I know right?” Rainbow beamed. “The sooner you admit that I’m a genius, the better off we’ll both be.”
“And like that, the ‘only foal leads to being a showboat’ theory is back on the table,” Applejack eyerolled.
Rainbow snorted. “Oh come on, you know I was kidding.” She flew up to grab a pair of apples from the tree they were sitting under. She tossed one down to Applejack, who neatly caught it without even having to look up.
“Much obliged.” Applejack took a bite. “Yeah, I know you weren’t being serious. You think a mite highly of yourself, but you mostly keep it in check. Ponies like Sky Stinger or Zephyr Breeze were a horse of a different color.”
“Remind me to quote you on that.” Rainbow helped herself to her own apple. “So yeah. There are a lot of ponies who are quiet and keep to themselves like Big Mac. Some have older siblings, younger siblings or are in the middle and some don’t have any at all. So I don’t see how you can be kicking yourself when you can’t be sure you’re responsible for Big Mac being so quiet.”
Applejack let out a frustrated snort. “Because he didn’t used to be like that, okay?” Rainbow blinked. “When we were younger, he’d shoot his mouth off from dawn to dusk. I was half afraid the darn thing would fly off and hit me in the face.” Her shoulders bunched up as she remembered. “I told him he talked so much so he wouldn’t ever have to listen to anypony else. So he said he’d talk less and listen more—and now he barely talks at all! So yeah, it is my fault!” Applejack hadn’t realized she had started yelling until she saw Rainbow Dash lean back.
She held up her hooves. “Whoa, um, okay … Ease it up there, AJ, alright?”
Realizing how loud and upset she’d become, Applejack groaned and buried her face underneath her hat. “Sorry, I—I’m sorry. I’m not mad at you, sugarcube. I’m mad at myself.”
“Yeah, I got that.” Rainbow coughed. “Look, I wasn’t there, so maybe I don’t know the whole score. But I don’t think you can put everything that makes your brother Big Macintosh on what you said to him.”
“I can’t, huh?” Applejack said skeptically.
Rainbow shrugged. “Well, if all it took for him to completely change himself was you telling him off, what about Pinkie? You don’t think that one sister, the angry one—Limestone—never told her to be quieter or less random?”
Applejack wasn’t swayed. “You said it yourself, ponies are different. Not everypony’s gonna react to criticism the same way.”
“So, what, you’re so special that you told Big Mac to shut up once and he decided to do it forever?” Rainbow snorted. “And you call me full of myself. Big Mac’s the way he is because … well, I don’t think it’s because of any one thing. There’s probably a ton of reasons. Sure, you’re a big part of that—” Applejack sighed, looking depressed, “—but what if it’s not the way you think it is?”
Applejack looked confused for a second, so Rainbow pressed the point. “What if he doesn’t talk that much because he doesn’t think he has to? It’s not that you shut him down or pushed him aside or anything, but he trusts you enough to understand him and to do the right thing without him having to say more than a word or two.” She crossed two of her feathers together. “You two get each other like that, without having to say much. I always thought that was kinda cool.”
“You did?”
“Well, yeah.” Rainbow shrugged. “How many times have Pinkie and Maud ended up on different pages and needed somepony else to get that into the open? Even Shining Armor despite the whole, you know, ‘never had a single fight thing,’ didn’t think to mention to Twilight that he was even seeing Cadance, let alone marrying her! There’s more to communicating than talking, you know?”
“You might be onto something.” Applejack didn’t say anything for a long while, settling for staring out and watching the sunset. “Know what I think?” Rainbow Dash shook her head. “I think sometimes I get an idea in my head of how things, like a family, are supposed to work and then get all discombobulated when something doesn’t play out right. Like what happened when we had Hearth’s Warming with the Pies.” Applejack shook her head. “Maybe it’s because…”
“Because, what?”
“…maybe I think that if I work hard enough, get everything running smoothly—it’ll almost be like how I imagine things’d be like if my parents were still around.” Applejack gave Rainbow a wan smile. “Could be that I’m gilding the lily a bit, but it just never feels enough, y’know? Like if they were around everything would be even better and that’s what I try to make it be like—” She sniffed and stopped, rubbing a hoof across her face. “Sorry, I got something in my eye.”
“I’m sorry,” Rainbow mumbled.
“'Salright, but thanks.” Applejack’s voice sounded tight, but seemed to lessen after she cleared her throat. “I guess you’re right, though. Not much point in wondering about how me or Big Mac or anypony could’ve been like or why. You can only deal with how things are.” She stood up. “I’ll talk to Big Mac. I don’t know which one of us is right about who’s responsible for him turning out the way he did. But he still needs to hear from me that it’s okay for him to speak out. Especially when his happiness is involved.”
Rainbow got up to join her. “Good on you, AJ. Only, er, you might want to wait until tomorrow.” When Applejack didn’t seem to get it, she added. “It’s Hearts and Hooves Day? It’s night? You don’t think that maybe Big Mac and Sugar Belle have plans for the evening? Special plans?”
Applejack blinked owlishly as it sank in. “WAUGH!” She buried her face in her hat. “Dagnabbit, Rainbow I did not need that image in my head! That’s my brother for pony’s sake! Do you have any idea what that means?!”
“Nope!” Rainbow cheekily responded as she flew up. “And you can’t pay me back for this, since I don’t have any siblings. So have fun with that!” She headed away, leaving Applejack to swear at her from down below.
It was good to be helpful.