Inconsiderate

Crash.

Derpy’s third collision of the day brought her cheerful, heartened flight to an abrupt, undesired halt. The bluish mare lifted her head from the straw with a rustle, shaking the dry stalks out of her blonde hair. She was greeted by a pair of rather astonished farm ponies, busy with the harvesting of Applebuck Season.

The first to respond was the rusty red stallion, Big Macintosh. He leaned down and helped the dazed pegasus out of the haystack.

“Y’alright, sugarcube?”

The familiar voice was unmistakable, but Derpy still felt the need to affirm her assumption.

“Applejack?” she asked, straightening her eyes.

“It’s me,” came the response.

Derpy blinked a few times, adjusting her eyesight. A warm yellow-orange mare stood over her; Derpy’s soft amber-yellow eyes met with bright, friendly green ones.

“Oh, Celestia – did I crash again?” She held a hoof to her head and sighed.

“Looks like it,” Applejack pushed Derpy’s shoulder gently with a hoof. “You look a li’l disoriented. You ‘kay?”

“I’m fine,” Derpy responded with a nod. She glanced at Big Macintosh; he was staring at her rather unnervingly.

“Let’s get you cleaned up,” Applejack decided, nudging Derpy towards the barn entrance and leading her through, her warm orange shoulder leaning against Derpy’s grey one, providing support and reassurance for the somewhat confused pegasus.

“Alright, we have to get that hay out of your hair,” Applejack announced as they entered the Apple family’s house. Big Macintosh wandered in after them and blinked slowly as Applejack trotted upstairs to her room. Derpy inadvertently found herself staring at Granny Smith, who was asleep in her rocking chair, mumbling incoherently.

“Um,” Derpy murmured. Her head nodded slightly as her eye strayed, and she grit her teeth.

“I’m back!” Applejack called from the landing, a hairbrush between her teeth. Derpy shook her head, sending hay flying everywhere. AJ just rolled her eyes and began to brush Derpy’s yellow-blonde mane, ridding it of dust and stalks of hay.

“I’m okay, I can do it myself,” Derpy mumbled.

“No, no, sugarcube,” Applejack said firmly. “You’re still a little dazed. Leave it to me.”

Derpy stuck out her lower lip and plonked her rump on the floor.

“Don’t pout,” AJ scolded, but there was a trace of laughter in her vibrant green eyes. The ditzy pegasus stared at the wall and sneezed, drawing a snort of laughter from Applejack.

“Your mane will need a wash,” the orange earth pony informed Derpy seriously, “but it’s not very noticeable now.” She grinned.

“Um, okay, thank you!” Derpy squeaked happily, springing to her hooves and nearly backing straight into Big Macintosh. He stepped back without a word as Derpy apologised, a light blush painted across her cheeks.

“Now just you wait one second, Derpy. What made you crash like that?” Applejack questioned.

“Oh, er, I guess I was just distracted –”

“Is something wrong? You don’t often fly low at all,” Applejack pressed. Her warm gaze suddenly seemed a lot more hostile; it felt as though she was reading Derpy, trying to find out whatever the problem was.

“No, really, I...” Derpy paused. I told Fluttershy, and her reply made me feel nice. I’m not feeling so great after that crash, so maybe if I tell Applejack... She took a deep breath. “Rainbow Dash yelled at me,” she blurted out quickly, squeezing her eyes shut.

Applejack was silent for a moment. “What did she say?” she asked finally.

“Apparently, I’m stupid and... inconsiderate.” Derpy winced.

“Inconsiderate?” Applejack echoed, staring into space for a few seconds before stamping a hoof. “Well, in Celestia’s name you are far from inconsiderate!” She sighed, closing her eyes and shaking her head. “I’ll talk to her, okay, sugarcube?”

“Oh, no, you don’t have to do that!” Derpy squealed, her hooves covering her mouth. “I don’t want to hurt Rainbow!”

“Don’t worry about it, Derpy. It’s about time that goshdarn filly thought about what comes out of her mouth.” Applejack’s eyes opened in a flash of determined green. She took off her hat, saluted with it in her hoof and shoved it back on her head, pushing past Big Macintosh and trotting off down the path.

Derpy blinked, watching her go with a confused expression upon her face. “I haven’t seen her like that before. Have you?” she asked, the question directed at Big Mac.

“Eeyup.”

“Applejack!” Derpy called desperately, avoiding apple trees by mere centimetres as she flew dangerously fast through Sweetapple Acres. “Applejack, wait!”

“What is it?” Applejack sounded irritated as Derpy finally caught up to her, managing to fly straight along the path and focus on the orange mare beside her.

“Please, don’t talk to Dashie yet!” she begged, veering off to one side suddenly and nearly grazing her flank on the rough bark of a nearby tree.

“Why in the heavens not?” Applejack demanded fiercely.

“Please, AJ, I just need to talk to some others first,” Derpy pleaded.

Applejack came to a sudden halt – Derpy swore she heard her orange hooves skid. The pegasus yelped as she flipped over in the air in an attempt to stop alongside her and landed on her back, sliding a small distance away from the stubborn earth pony.

“I’m coming with you,” she informed Derpy, trotting along the path at a much more controlled pace.

“Um, okay,” Derpy agreed, rolling over and getting to her hooves. “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Derpy shook out a foreleg, upsetting the dust that clung to her coat and sending it skyward in an almost amusing cloud. She giggled, pausing to watch it float towards the clouds – and then, with a sudden realisation, she lowered her head and began walking again. Rainbow’s up there somewhere.

“Keep up,” Applejack called from ahead. Derpy fluttered her wings a little, more or less making up the distance between them. The dirt country path made way to Ponyville’s typical roads, and Derpy tilted her head as she looked down a side road.

“Hey, isn’t that Rarity’s place?” she remarked, just as Applejack reached the turning. The earth pony nodded, waltzed down the street and pounded on a certain white unicorn’s door.