Chapter 13-Best Laid Plans
Rainbow's mother woke with a start. A knock on her door at three a.m. was certainly out of the ordinary. Another series of knocks hurried her as she put on her bathrobe and strode towards the door.
"I'm coming, I'm coming!"
She opened the door, expecting to give the lashing of a lifetime to some unfortunate salespony or drunken wanderer. Instead, her daughter stood at her door in tears.
"M-mom?"
She blinked, a bit stunned to see her at this time of night.
"Sweetheart, what's the matter?" she asked, pulling her daughter into a hug as Rainbow began to break down. She let her inside and led her to the couch. As they both sat, she let Dash cry. A mother knew when she was needed to listen, and when she was needed to speak.
She stroked her back as she wept. After a few minutes, she decided to speak up.
"Rainbow, do you want to tell me what's got you so upset?"
Dash sniffed her tears up as she tried to dry her eyes. "Mom, how did you know you wanted to marry dad?" she asked, her voice shaking.
Wave smiled fondly, recalling the mental image of her father. She reached for a picture she kept on a small end table by the couch. It was taken on their honeymoon to the Mareibbean.
"Well, there were a lot of things. Your father was... different from any other stallion I'd ever met. He represented everything I loved about the world, and then some. He was loyal, funny, hard working... and there was just something about him. I tried to put my hoof on it for years, but I just couldn't," she explained.
Rainbow glanced over, a few tears still clouding her vision.
"The thought of him with anypony else just... put a weight in my stomach. One day he asked me to marry him and I couldn't think of any response but 'yes'."
Wave smiled down at the image of her husband before setting it back on the end table.
"Mom... you remember Mac, right?"
"Yes," she recalled, before putting two and two together. "Oh sweetie, he didn't break up with you did he?"
Rainbow scoffed. "No, he did the opposite. He asked me to marry him."
Wave gasped. Since Rainbow was born she had dreamed of her daughter finding the pony meant for her. Every parent dreamed of their daughter looking radiant on their wedding day. Unfortunately, it seemed her daughter wasn't on the same page.
"And what did you tell him?"
Rainbow inhaled sharply, steeling herself against her coming admittance. "I didn't say anything... I ran."
"Oh sweetheart, you just left him?" she asked, pulling her into a hug, a few sobs escaping Dash's clenched jaw.
"It wasn't an easy choice!" she snapped, pushing her away. "He just sprung it on me because..." Rainbow took a deep breath. "Because I told him... I was pregnant."
Wave reserved her reaction. "I know this is probably a difficult time for you, and if you don't want to talk about it right now, you don't have to."
Rainbow nodded, standing from the couch and heading to her old room. Wave followed her to her door.
"Mom, thanks for letting me stay here."
"Do you think I'd turn away my little girl?"
Rainbow smiled as she hopped into her blankets. Her mother followed and sat on the edge of her bed. She stroked a hoof through her daughter's mane as Rainbow simply rested and thought about everything the day had brought.
"It's not that I don't love Mac, but being stuck with somepony for the rest of forever? That's so..."
"Scary?" Wave completed.
"Yeah."
Wave nodded. "It's not a decision to take lightly. If it were just the two of you, I would tell you to spend some time apart to think about each other," she suggested softly. "But, it isn't just the two of you. It's the three of you, and raising a foal by yourself is hard work. It's a full time job, on top of your full time job."
Rainbow groaned, rolling over. "Yeah, I remember what that was like."
Her mother sighed, drawing a hoof across Dash's back. "Rainbow, I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you like you wanted me to, but I had to work twice as hard without your father to keep our heads above water!"
Dash turned, glancing at her mother apologetically. "I know. It's not your fault. You're a great mom. I just worry that I won't be as good as you are even with Mac."
Wave leaned in close to Rainbow's ear. "As long as you keep what's best for your foal in the forefront of your mind, you'll be a wonderful mother."
Rainbow rolled back over, looking into her mother's rose-colored eyes. "You think so?"
"Yes, my little bluebird, I do," she replied, kissing her daughter softly on her forehead.
"Will you please stop calling me that?"
Her mother rose from her seat on the side of the bed, preparing to turn back in for the night.
"Never. Goodnight, Rainbow," Wave whispered, pulling the door adorned with Wonderbolts posters closed. "Oh, and dear?" she paused.
"Yeah?"
"Try not to keep Macintosh out in the cold for too long, okay?"
That was a reminder she could have done without.
Like I don't have enough to worry about...
"Okay, goodnight."
Applejack awoke bright and early the next morning, ready to begin her routine of chores. It could get a bit dull, but she found contentment in the repetition of the day's labors. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and tossed her flannel sheets to her hooves. Grabbing her hat, she quickly fixed her hair and headed down stairs, expecting to smell whatever Mac had whipped up for breakfast.
As she descended the stairs, she noticed Mac sitting at the table, his broad back to her. "Howdy, Romeo," she teased, walking past him to the kitchen. She glanced around, noticing no dishes were dirty, and the stove hadn't even been turned on. She turned back to Mac, noticing the empty glass bottle on the table. Three 'X's covered the label. She connected the dots rather quickly.
"You skippin' breakfast this mornin'?" she asked softly. She'd never seen Mac drink before sundown before.
He shifted, acknowledging her words with a flick of his ear.
"Nope, got it right here," he said, placing a full bottle of amber liquid with the same three 'X's across the label onto the table in front of him. Applejack strode across to face him, a confrontational glare across her features.
"Just what in tarnation do you think you're doin'?"
Mac held up the bottle and bit the cork, pulling it out with a loud pop before pausing to glance into his sister's eyes. He spit the cork across the table and defiantly took a gulp.
"What business is it a yours?" he mumbled. He set the bottle back down, focusing his bloodshot eyes on his sister.
Applejack controlled her anger. She knew yelling and waking up the rest of the house wasn't going to do any good for anypony.
"You're my brother, that's what business! Just what in the hell were you gonna tell Applebloom if she came down here and saw you like this?"
A scowl crossed her brother's lips. "The truth. That she'll think she'll love somepony one day, and they'll take all the happiness and joy she feels when she's around them, and crush it right in front of her."
Applejack could hardly believe her ears. Her brother was drunk at sunrise! Ignoring what was obviously the booze talking, she continued to try and get to the bottom of his situation.
"What about your chores?"
"Fuck 'em," he burped, taking another defiant swig before Applejack reached across the table and smacked the bottle away, sending it shattering on the floor.
"Ah don't know what's gotten into you Macintosh, but you better get yourself cleaned up. Ah ain't havin' no drunks livin' in this house!" Applejack growled. Mac returned her glare, standing from the table. He towered over his sister, and with a single hoof, slid the entire heavy oak dining room table across the room, slamming it into the wall with a loud clatter. Applejack held her ground. Mac broke his glare and walked past her and back up the stairs.
Applejack fought the urge to chase him up the stairs and continue yelling at him. She knew trying to get anything out of him when he was like this would be useless. She'd wait until he was sober this afternoon before talking to him.
The noise of their dispute woke Applebloom, who tenderly peaked her head down from above the stairs.
"What was all that racket?" she asked, yawning.
Applejack sighed. "Nothin', sugarcube. Mac and I were just... havin' and argument is all." She moved into the kitchen to sweep up the broken glass and mop up the liquor. "Stay up there for right now, there's glass down here."
"Ah saw Macintosh headin' to his room. Is he sick? He looked real bad."
Applejack stopped sweeping and dumped a pan full of shards in the trash. "Yeah, he is."
Applejack finished her chores with the help of her little sister, who was more than happy to attempt earning her cutie mark via the day's labors.
As Applebloom and Applejack pushed the last bushel of apples into the barn, Applebloom noticed the work normally done by her brother sat unfinished.
"Ain't we gonna do Mac's chores on account'a him bein' sick?"
"No ma'am. He brought this on himself," she replied, a hint of bitterness in her voice.
"He brought bein' sick on himself? How'd he do that?" she asked, hoping to discover a fool proof way of skipping school.
Applejack paused. "Uh... sorta. He must'a caught somethin' from somepony. Now don't you worry about him, Ah'm gonna make sure he's all better by tomorrow."
"Can Ah help ya make him feel better? Maybe Ah can get my cutie mark in—"
"No!" Applejack snapped, startling the excitement from Applebloom's eyes. "Ah mean, ya can't help because you could catch what he's got."
"Oh," she sighed. Applebloom paused before raising an eyebrow. "Wait a second, couldn't you catch what he's got too?"
"Listen, your brother's not feelin' well and he'll be better by tomorrow. Right now, the best thing for him is rest, and to not be disturbed. Understand?"
"Yeah," Applebloom replied, defeated.
"Come on now, Sugarcube, no reason to feel down. Tell ya what, while Ah finish up the chores, why don't you round up your friends and go crusadin'? No reason to let a good Saturday go to waste!" Applejack reminded her, mussing her mane as her little sister began to perk up.
"Really? Thanks Applejack!" Applebloom scurried off down the dirt trail toward town, eager to begin another day in their seemingly endless quest for their cutie marks. This left her plenty of time to deal with Macintosh. Back when they were foals, Granny Smith took care of any disciplinary measures that needed meting out. However, once Macintosh had matured enough to become the head of the household, he and Applejack began to raise Applebloom as best they could. Now that Big Mac had a problem, Applejack wasn't sure how to go about fixing it by herself.
She knew her brother was no problem drinker. Up until now the only thing that upset him was sleeping in late and missing his early start on his chores. Something must have really shaken him to have him acting like this. Applejack could feel it.
She only had to feed the chickens before heading inside to deal with her brother. As she strapped the bag full of chicken scratch onto her back, she contemplated what she would say to Mac. Thinking back to last night, she figured it had to have something to do with Rainbow Dash. After all, the two of them stayed on the porch while she went inside and readied herself for bed. From that point until morning, something had come between them, but Applejack was hard pressed to figure out what.
What on earth could drive 'em apart like that? she thought, idly watching the chickens file out of their house and began scratching and pecking at the dirt. Try as she might, the only thing she could think that happened was the worst case scenario. However, Rainbow just breaking it off with Mac out of the blue didn't make sense. Why now? Why right then?
She absently scratched the ground with a hoof, recalling that her pal Rainbow wasn't exactly renowned for her logical and sensible decision making. Before long, the chickens had eaten their fill, and Applejack headed toward the farmhouse. The creaky steps denied her the element of surprise, though Mac's loud snoring assured her she wouldn't need it.
Coming to his door, his thunderous snoring was almost too much to stand. She pushed the door open rather loudly. Startling a grunt out of him, he blearily rolled over to face the intruder. Realizing the mistake he had made all night and most of that morning, he rolled back over, ears flat against his head.
"Don't you go back ta sleep Macintosh! We got things to discuss," Applejack hissed through gritted teeth.
"Ah ain't in a talkin' mood," he replied, not bothering to turn away from the wall.
"You're never in a talkin' mood." She strode over to Mac's bedside. "Now, Ah'm your sister dammit and Ah want ta know what's got your tail in a twist!" she insisted.
Mac rolled over and worked his jaw, before falling silent again. He figured Applejack was more hurt than angry at him. "Applejack..." he sighed, "Ah asked Rainbow to marry me last night," he said quickly, nearly spitting out the words.
Her mouth fell open. "You did what?" Applejack blinked, letting his revelation sink in for a moment before regaining her wits. "Have you lost your mind? You've only been datin' for a few months!"
"Well Ah didn't say it 'cause Ah was plannin' on it!" he snapped back defensively.
Applejack raised an eyebrow. "What d'ya mean you weren't 'plannin' on it'?"
Macintosh avoided her steely gaze. "She told me last night that she was pregnant."
Applejack was dumbstruck. If her mouth weren't already open, it would have been on the floor. After a pause that seemed to last a lifetime, she spoke, "You mean to tell me you got one of my best friends... pregnant?"
"Eeyup," he sighed.
"Are you a Celestia damned moron?!" she shouted, nearly shaking the house. "Why in the hell didn't you use protection?"
"Ah... Ah don't know. It just never came up." he shrugged sheepishly.
"You were too busy thinkin' with the wrong head, Mac!"
He winced at the yelling, and the fact that his sister was doing it concerning such a normally taboo topic in the Apple house. Applejack's harsh expression dropped as she had a rather disconcerting realization.
"Ah suppose Rainbow turned you down?"
Macintosh sat up in his bed, his lower back against the pillows. "Not exactly, but she didn't say 'yes', either," he explained, his shoulders drooping and expression falling seemingly with each word. "She just sorta... left."
As upset as she felt for Rainbow Dash doing this to her brother, she couldn't hope to try and empathize with what somepony as brash as Rainbow was going through.
"She'll come around," she assured, taking a step towards his bedroom door. "You know you're gonna have twice as much work tomorrow, don't ya?"
Mac nodded, feeling as though more work was exactly what he needed to keep his mind off of his heartache.
"Alright, well get yourself cleaned up. If Applebloom asks, you had a twenty-four hour flu."
Rainbow woke to the smell of hot breakfast, the scent alone nearly lifting her from bed. She rubbed her eyes and tossed the Wonderbolts bedspread aside as she stretched her wings. After a yawn, she wearily trotted toward the kitchen.
"Hello Rainbow, did you sleep well?" Wave asked cheerily, sipping her morning coffee at the table.
"Yeah," Dash replied, taking a seat, a hint of resentment in her tone for her mother being so chipper while she was still an emotional wreck. Rainbow could guess why. Every mother wants to be a grandmother.
Wave folded the morning's paper neatly on the table after she had read it. "I'll be at work until five this afternoon, but you're welcome to anything in the fridge."
Rainbow looked at the plate of eggs and daisies before her, feeling her appetite vanish.
"Thanks, mom... I think I'm just gonna—" A burp cut her off as she felt a familiar and hated nausea rising in her stomach. Wave recognized that face instantly and moved the kitchen trash can in front of her daughter in the nick of time.
After a few heaves and watery eyes, it was over as quickly as it'd come. "I'm sick of this bucking kid already!" Rainbow snapped, washing out her mouth and settling at the table once more.
Wave stroked her daughters back as she sat, hunched at the table, wings drooping and mane frazzled.
"When I was pregnant with you, I was doing this almost every day for the first few months. Consider yourself lucky, sweetheart." Rainbow shot a quick glare at her before staring back down at the food still waiting on her. "You need to eat as much as you can. Your baby needs it."
Rainbow set a hoof on her forehead and began to cry, her mother pulling her into a hug. "Rainbow, what's the matter?"
After a few sobs, Dash wiped her eyes, and steadied her voice. "Wonderbolts practice starts in a few days. How am I supposed to be competitive if I'm puking every five minutes?" she asked sharply.
Wave looked at her daughter with a bit of concern. "You mean you haven't told them you're pregnant?"
Rainbow looked at her as though she was dumb. "Duh! What if they kick me off the squad, or make me return their money?"
"Will they?" Wave asked.
"I don't know! I didn't read the contract and I don't have a copy of it!" she snapped, getting irritated at her mother being unhelpful by asking obvious questions.
"Employers don't like being kept in the dark about their employees' health, Rainbow. You won't be able to do your tricks in a few months, don't you think they should be made aware of that?"
"But what if they fire me?" Dash pled, annoyed her mother still didn't see her concern.
"Most jobs allow mares maternity leave. I couldn't imagine why a group of stunt fliers wouldn't," she assured her, all the while continuing to gently stroke her daughter's back. "Now, I have to get to work or I'll get fired. See you this afternoon, sweetie."
Rainbow sighed. "Bye mom..."
Forcing herself to eat, she finished the eggs and flowers, but found herself still hungry. Searching through the kitchen, she glumly scanned the cupboards, finding an apple. Its bright red skin reminded her of a certain stallion she'd left heartbroken. She was scared of facing the Wonderbolts, but terrified of facing Macintosh again. She hadn't said she wouldn't marry him, but she didn't say she would, either. Any other answer besides an enthusiastic 'yes' may as well have been a thinly veiled 'no'.
Taking a bite out of it, she flopped back down at the kitchen table, mentally admonishing herself for chickening out the night before.
Why didn't I just say yes?